Each year AFL coaches are either put under scrutiny or praised for what they have done with the club's list and where their side has finished at the end of the year.
Whether it's a club going through a rebuild, a premiership contender, or a side failing to fulfil expectations, here is every coach ranked as safe, pressure-building, or under the pump heading into the 2027 season.
Matthew Nicks (Adelaide)
Safe
Nicks took over the Crows in 2020, replacing Don Pyke as head coach, and was met with some scrutiny early on. The Crows did not record a winning season between 2020 and 2024, up until 2025, when things took a huge turn around.
Nicks led the Crows from an 8-1-14 bottom-four season in 2024 to an unbelievable 18-5 minor-premiership-winning year, cementing themselves as a huge premiership-winning chance.
Although they were beaten in straight sets, fast-forward to this year, where Nicks' side are once again going to play finals footy and will be eager to get their first finals win since 2017.
Although still uncontracted at this stage beyond 2027, the Crows winning a final will place Nicks in good stead to coach next year and beyond.
