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Doug Mallory

AFC North Coaching Updates: Ravens, Browns, Steelers

February 15th, 2025 at 2:37pm CST by Ely Allen

The Ravens defense got off to a slow start last year, and though they were able to finish strong down the stretch, disappointing veteran safeties and underwhelming linebacker play contributed to the team finishing second to last in pass defense. The team hired Tyler Santucci to act as the new linebackers coach after moving on from Mark DeLeone, and they continue to make changes to defensive coordinator Zach Orr‘s coaching staff.

Assisting Santucci will be Matt Pees, who has been named assistant inside linebackers coach, per Jeff Zrebiec of The Athletic. Pees rejoins his father, senior advisor Dean Pees, after working under him for two years in Atlanta. After three years as defensive assistant for the Falcons, the younger Pees spent 2024 as a defensive analyst (advance/special projects) for the Bears.

In the secondary, the team has moved on from secondary coach Doug Mallory, per Zrebiec. Replacing him, in a sense, will be Donald D’Alesio, according to Matt Zenitz of CBS Sports, who has been with the Chiefs for four seasons, the last three as safeties coach. In his three years at the job, he molded Bryan Cook and Justin Reid into starters. He’ll now work with star safety Kyle Hamilton and whomever the team brings in (or back) to play alongside him. Tom Pelissero of NFL Network reports that D’Alesio’s title will be defensive backs coach.

Here are a few more coaching updates from around the AFC North:

  • The Browns announced a number of changes to their coaching staff yesterday. We already were aware of the additions of tight ends coach Christian Jones and assistant defensive line coach Adam Morris, as well as the shifting of Bill Musgrave to quarterbacks coach. The new information includes the shifting of assistant special teams coach Stephen Bravo-Brown to assistant wide receivers coach and offensive assistant/run game specialist Nick Charlton to pass game specialist. Additionally, Cleveland has hired Ben Wilkerson as assistant offensive line coach after he served in the same role for the Jets last year before being let go. Joining Wilkerson as an assistant offensive line coach is Sanders Davis. Davis has spent the last six seasons at Rice University, with the last four being as offensive line coach. This will be his first NFL coaching job. Lastly, Kyle Hoke has been hired as assistant special teams coach. A 13-year veteran of collegiate coaching, Hoke will debut in the NFL, after stops at Western Michigan, Army, South Carolina, John Carroll, Texas State, Indiana State, San Diego State, and Texas A&M.
  • The Ravens aren’t the only AFC North team making changes to their secondary and linebacker coaching staffs. We learned a week ago that Gerald Alexander was being hired as the Steelers secondary coach, and we questioned the fate of sitting secondary coach Grady Brown. ESPN’s Brooke Pryor informed us this week that Brown’s contract was not renewed. The Steelers saw inside linebackers coach Aaron Curry depart for New York, and per Gerry Dulac of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, they will replace him with Scott McCurley. McCurley spent most of his coaching career in Green Bay from 2006-18 before eventually following Mike McCarthy to Dallas, where he spent the past five seasons coaching the likes of Leighton Vander Esch, Jaylon Smith, DeMarvion Overshown, and, of course, Micah Parsons.

Ravens Updates: Urban, Departures, Hewitt

February 11th, 2024 at 7:18pm CST by Ely Allen

After leading the league in scoring defense and finishing sixth in yards allowed this season, the Ravens saw their defensive staff get dismantled as several other teams around the league decided to provide opportunities for upward mobility to several assistants. Now begins the process of hiring replacements on new defensive coordinator Zach Orr‘s staff.

The first two new additions we see in Baltimore come from the college football ranks. First, University of Michigan defensive analyst Doug Mallory makes the move from one Harbaugh to another, per Matt Zenitz of CBS Sports. After working with Jim Harbaugh in Ann Arbor, Mallory heads to Charm City to work with his former coach’s older brother, John Harbaugh. Mallory will be taking the defensive backs coaching job, a role he previously held at the NFL level with the Falcons. He replaces Dennard Wilson, who now holds the defensive coordinator position in Tennessee.

Orr’s former position of inside linebackers coach will be filled by another former college staffer. Former University of Kansas defensive analyst Mark DeLeone is expected to fill his new boss’s former job coaching inside linebackers, according to Bruce Feldman of The Athletic. DeLeone has coached the same position group with the Chiefs, Bears, and Lions over the years.

With those two positions filled, and Chuck Smith perhaps staying as outside linebackers coach, the sole vacant position remaining to fill would be the defensive line coaching gig vacated by new Dolphins defensive coordinator Anthony Weaver.

Here are a few other coaching updates for the AFC runner ups:

  • We already knew of the departures of Wilson, Weaver, and defensive coordinator Mike Macdonald. The Athletic’s Jeff Zrebiec provided an update on a few other staffers who aren’t expected to return in 2024. On the offensive side of the ball assistant quarterbacks coach Kerry Dickson and assistant offensive line coach Mike Devlin will not be back next season. Devlin is set to serve as the Chargers‘ new offensive line coach. On special teams, assistant T.J. Weist is also not expected to return. Additionally, senior analysts James Urban and Craig Ver Steeg and director of football research Scott Cohen will not retain their roles in 2024.
  • With all the loss and new additions, longtime staffer Chris Hewitt has been rewarded once again for his longevity. A Ravens coaching assistant since 2012, Hewitt has moved through the ranks from assistant special teams coach to assistant secondary coach to defensive backs coach to pass defense coordinator to pass game coordinator and secondary coach. While Hewitt will remain the team’s pass game coordinator on defense in 2024, he will do so with the additional moniker of assistant head coach, per Aaron Wilson of KPRC 2. The title was previously held by Weaver.

Staff Notes: Chargers, 49ers, Falcons, Colts

February 10th, 2017 at 6:12pm CST by Dallas Robinson

Former Falcons defensive coordinator Richard Smith is interviewing for the Chargers‘ linebackers coach position, according to Jack Wang of the Orange County Register. Smith was fired by Atlanta on Wednesday after leading a defense that finished just 27th in DVOA, but linebackers are his specialty, as he’s coached the position at four other NFL stops. Smith’s interview could mean Los Angeles expects Robert Saleh, the team’s other candidate for ‘backers coach, to land the 49ers DC gig.

Here’s more from the 2017 hiring cycle:

  • New 49ers head coach Kyle Shanahan has lured yet another former Falcons staffer to San Francisco, as ex-Atlanta assistant Mike LaFleur will be the 49ers’ next wide receivers coach, tweets Alex Marvez of the Sporting News. LaFleur, who spent the previous two seasons with the Falcons after working in Cleveland during the 2014 campaign, is the brother of Matt LaFleur, who recently left Atlanta to become the Rams’ offensive coordinator. The 49ers also announced they’ve hired Nick Kray (administrative assistant to the head coach), T.C. McCartney (offensive assistant), and Ray Wright (strength and conditioning).
  • Although Chris Ballard left Kansas City to become the Colts‘ new general manager, Chiefs GM John Dorsey doesn’t expect Ballard to poach any KC staffers “right now,” tweets Terez A. Paylor of the Kansas City Star. Typically, an executive will try to bring at least a few low-level front office employees along to a new job, but it sounds like Ballard will be starting from scratch, and rolling with the incumbent Indianapolis staff for the time being.
  • The Falcons promoted Marquand Manuel to defensive coordinator earlier today, but that wasn’t the only change the club made to its defensive staff. As expected, Bryant Young has been named as Atlanta’s defensive line coach, replacing the fired Bryan Cox, while defensive assistant Doug Mallory has been promoted to secondary coach, taking over for Manuel, the club announced today.
  • Broncos assistant defensive backs backs coach Samson Brown had been set to join ex-Denver coordinator Wade Phillips on the Rams‘ coaching staff, but he’s experienced a last-minute change of heart and will be staying in Denver, per Marvez (Twitter link). It’s unclear how Brown’s decision will affect longtime NFL coach Johnnie Lynn, who was reportedly hired to replace Brown with the Broncos.
  • The Buccaneers have made a series of changes to their coaching staff and personnel department, according to Greg Auman of the Tampa Bay Times, who reports the Bucs have promoted Zack Grossi to offensive quality control coach, hired Anthony Perkins to replace Grossi as the club’s assistant to the head coach, and hired former NFL tight end Alex Smith as a pro scout. Tampa Bay has also hired Skyler Fulton as an offensive assistant, tweets Adam Caplan of ESPN.com.
  • Vikings offensive assistant Drew Petzing could be a candidate for the club’s vacant wide receivers coach role, reports Andrew Kramer of the Minneapolis Star Tribune (Twitter link). Longtime Minnesota WRs coach George Stewart defected for the Chargers earlier this offseason.

NFC South Notes: Benson, S-Jax, Falcons

February 10th, 2015 at 6:09pm CST by Zachary Links

A court in San Antonio ruled yesterday that Saints owner Tom Benson needs help in managing his assets in Texas, as Katherine Sayre of The Times-Picayune writes. Meanwhile, Benson’s daughter Renee is seeking to overthrow Tom as trustee in the Texas trust, arguing he has mismanaged assets and is in declining health.

Benson, who owns the NBA’s Pelicans in addition to the Saints, suffered another loss in court today, when a New Orleans judge ruled that the 87-year-old must undergo evaluations by three different doctors to determine whether he remains competent to control his NFL and NBA franchises. As Andy Grimm of the Times-Picayune details, one doctor will be appointed by Benson, one by his daughter Renee, and the third will be named by those first two physicians.

Here’s more on the Benson story, along with a couple other notes out of the NFC South:

  • Saints owner Tom Benson issued a statement regarding his current situation and it sounds like he has no intention of backing down. “I have instructed my attorneys to spare no effort in defending my rights and the decisions I have made. The decisions I have made are well within my rights to make at any point in my life, and rest assured that I am making sound decisions. I need not look any further than to read the allegations made against me in these multiple lawsuits to rest easy that I have made the correct decisions,” Benson said in the statement (via Saints VP of communications Greg Bensel on Twitter).
  • Vaughn McClure of ESPN.com (on Twitter) doesn’t expect Steven Jackson to be back with the Falcons next season. McClure notes that Falcons offensive coordinator Kyle Shanahan declined to address Jackson’s future with the team, though that would ultimately be more in the court of head coach Dan Quinn.  Jackson, 32 in July, appeared in 15 games for the Falcons last season, running for 707 yards off of 190 carries with 6 TDs. Cutting Jackson would save Atlanta $3.75MM against the cap.
  • The Falcons officially announced the rest of their coaching staff for the upcoming season. Atlanta hired Keith Carter as assistant offensive line coach, Matt LaFleur as quarterbacks coach, Doug Mallory as defensive assistant/linebackers coach, Marquand Manuel as secondary coach/senior defensive assistant, Mike McDaniel as offensive assistant, Chris Morgan as offensive line coach, Jeff Ulbrich as linebackers coach, and Chad Walker as defensive assistant/defensive backs.

Luke Adams contributed to this post.