NFL Head Coach

GamingTrend

A chance to go out and have a taste of what it’s really like in the world of NFL coaches today. It’s a job, and a game that only a chosen few will really be able to embrace and get the most out of it.

AtomicGamer

However, if you enjoy building your team more in Franchise mode than you do actually playing the games, give NFL Head Coach a shot – the game definitely has a lot to offer despite some shortcomings.

Console Gameworld

It’s not perfect, but it’s worth a look.

Cheat Code Central

When Head Coach hits, it slams it out of the ballpark. Excellent structure and balance in the practice periods before game day ensure that you take your time and prepare extensively, while tasks at the front office put you in control of every aspect of the franchise.

Gaming Age

It is nice to see EA Sports use their license for something a bit different.

Team Xbox

From a video game standpoint, there are things that the game does well, like the strategy and motivation of your players, and things that it doesn’t, such as the barebones online showing and the absence of any offline multiplayer.

Detroit Free Press

EA Sports is best known for its other monster football game, "Madden NFL." But where "Madden" lets you control real-life players and plays on the field, "Head Coach" takes you behind the action, putting you in the Gatorade-scented shoes of a coach you create from scratch.

Official Xbox Magazine

If you have the personal motivation, joining the ranks of coaching legends could be incredibly satisfying. [Aug 2006, p.76]

GameZone

Get used to the interface and you will find a very deep game that should give you a new respect for the job of a NFL Head Coach.

IGN

As it stands, NFL Head Coach will appeal to die-hard fantasy football fanatics and Madden franchise mode junkies, and to little else. Still, that's all EA ever wanted.

GameSpot

Still, while Head Coach is ultimately an imperfect football-management simulation, it is also, almost in spite of itself, a frequently fun one. Those with a penchant for serious football management are most certainly going to find things to like about it.

Games Radar

Chances are that NFL Head Coach won’t cure your football jones unless heavy-duty statistical simulators are up your alley.

Gamer 2.0

There are a lot of great ideas in NFL Head Coach, but quite a few of them aren’t executed to perfection.

Operation Sports

I’m not sure that I will or would ever export my coach or team to Madden, but I think there is some exciting potential.

Gamers' Temple

Best left to the diehard franchise mode fans.

Game Informer

Even though you are the coach in this game, you're still little more than a bystander. [Aug 2006, p.84]

Kombo

An average start to a series with potential.

Armchair Empire

The idea behind NFL Head Coach was an interesting one. But too many little flaws and deficiencies shelve the game on the nearly-unable-to-perform list, at least at the performance level it set out to reach.

Worth Playing

It features too few options, too little control and too many load screens. There are moments when the game shines and you will actually be really excited to play. The chess game that is NFL play-calling can exhilarate at times and frustrate at others.

GameSpy

Playing NFL Head Coach and having a good time while doing so is a daunting task, one far more challenging than taking the Browns to the Super Bowl.

ZTGameDomain

NFL head coach takes a bold leap and attempts to start something well needed in the sports simulation field, change. Unfortunately, it falters in more aspects than it flies, with horrible AI, and an in game system that makes the game feel like more of a chore than a fun experience.

GamerFeed

But between the game's turtle-speed pacing, AI quirks, useless motivation, and bland online play, its game isn't as solidly backed-up as it should have been.

DailyGame

An interesting experiment for EA and the NFL. Now let's forget it ever happened and kill the idea altogether.

Game Chronicles

NFL Head Coach might have been better received it appeared on the scene as a newly added mode within the Madden franchise – because as it stands, it really isn’t worth your hard earned cash.

eToychest

NFL head Coach is obviously targeted toward a very niche group of extreme football enthusiasts, but the game, such as it is, has been made into such a laborious, oftentimes arduous affair that even the target audience is likely to be turned away.

The Onion (A.V. Club)

The load times between each task are inexcusable, but worse yet are the games themselves, which you barely have to orchestrate.