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Uncredited/Associated Press

Don Shula was a win or two away from finishing at the top of this list.

Maybe if his Colts had won Super Bowl III, he would rank first. Or if his Colts had held on to beat Vince Lombardi's Packers in the 1965 divisional round, when halfback Tom Matte was forced to play quarterback in place of injured Johnny Unitas and backup Gary Cuozzo.

Shula could rank first if his 1964 Colts hadn't been shut out in the championship game by the Browns. Or if the 1982 or 1984 Dolphins weren't taken down by John Riggins and Joe Montana in the Super Bowl. Or even if his 1990s Dolphins teams could have just beaten the Bills and gotten one more crack at the Super Bowl.

Shula led both the Colts and Dolphins to league championships, though Super Bowl III places an asterisk next to that 1968 title. He coached the undefeated 1972 Dolphins, of course. He coached some of the greatest quarterbacks in history: Unitas, Bob Griese, Dan Marino. But his teams kept reaching the postseason with backups at the helm: Matte, Earl Morrall (twice), the David Woodley-Don Strock platoon of 1982.

Shula won with all-time great offenses like the 1984 Dolphins, all-time great defenses like the 1968 Colts, and balanced teams like those undefeated Dolphins. His teams won in the Dead Ball Era of the 1970s and after the offensive explosion of the 1980s. Much is (rightfully) made of Bill Belichick's ability to keep a great team together in the free-agency era. But the pre-merger NFL was no picnic, either: Al Davis might lock your first-round pick in a hotel room and stack $100 bills on the table until he signed a contract. Shula, no older than many of his players in that era, kept the Colts together for years.

Shula won more games than any other NFL coach. At the rate of 12 wins per year, Bill Belichick won't catch him until 2024. But Shula needed just another win or two to climb to the top of this list. And of course, one of the guys at the top kept standing in his way.