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Hines Ward

Latest On XFL Coaching Staffs, Front Offices

June 26th, 2022 at 10:12pm CST by Ely Allen

The XFL made a bit of a spectacle of announcing all of the staff that would be involved in the league once it returns in 2023. Aaron Wilson of Pro Football Network provided a rundown of all eight teams’ staffs (all Twitter links).

Dallas Renegades

Director of player personnel: Rick Mueller
Head coach: Bob Stoops
Offensive coordinator: Matt McMillian and Jonathan Hayes
Defensive coordinator: Jay Hayes

Mueller, 54, has an extensive history in the player personnel circles of football. He’s spent time in the college ranks, the CFL, the UFL, and held high-level positions with the Jaguars, Saints, and Eagles. Stoops has a storied history as a college football head coach, most notoriously spending 18 years with the Oklahoma Sooners. Jonathan Hayes, the brother of Jay Hayes, coached with Stoops at Oklahoma before spending 16 years as the Bengals’ tight ends coach.

DC Defenders

Director of player personnel: Von Hutchins
Head coach: Reggie Barlow
Offensive coordinator: Fred Kaiss
Defensive coordinator: Gregg Williams

Hutchins is a former cornerback who played for the Colts, Texans, and Falcons back from 2004-2009. He also spent time in personnel roles with the Raiders and Packers. Barlow is a former NFL receiver who has head coaching experience with FCS Alabama State and Division II Virginia State. Kaiss has worked in the past with Barlow at the FCS level. Williams has vast NFL experience serving as the head coach of the Bills, interim head coach for the Browns, and defensive coordinator for eight different teams, most recently the Jets in 2020.

Houston Roughnecks

Director of player personnel: Marc Lillibridge
Head coach: Wade Phillips
Offensive coordinator: A.J. Smith
Defensive coordinator: Brian Stewart

Lillibridge has a bit of a thin history with the NFL with experience both representing and scouting players over the years. Phillips has enough NFL experience for the both of them, though. Phillips has served as the head coach of the Broncos, Bills, and Cowboys, interim head coach of the Saints and Falcons, and the defensive coordinator of eight different teams, calling defensive plays in Denver in two separate stints. Smith is an innovative, young coach who created a virtual system to train quarterbacks. He’s worked over the years with Gardner Minshew, Jimmy Garoppolo, Josh Rosen, and others. Stewart has worked previously with Phillips as his defensive coordinator in Dallas. Since his time in the NFL, he has served as a defensive coordinator at the collegiate level at Houston and on two separate occasions at Maryland.

Las Vegas (TBD)

Director of player personnel: Joey Clinkscales
Head coach: Rod Woodson
Offensive coordinator: TBD
Defensive coordinator: TBD

Clinkscales has served in personnel roles for the Steelers, Jets, and Raiders dating back to the early 1990s. At his height, he was hired as the Raiders’ director of player personnel in 2012, parting ways with the team when then-general manager Reggie McKenzie was fired in 2019. Woodson is a legendary former NFL defensive back who last played in the early 2000s. Since then, he has worked in some assistant coaching roles with the Bengals, Broncos, and Raiders.

Orlando (TBD)

Director of player personnel: Larry Lee
Head coach: Terrell Buckley
Offensive coordinator: Robert Ford
Defensive coordinator: Tony Carter

Lee is a former NFL center from the 1980s who became the Lions’ vice president of football operations after his retirement. He hasn’t worked in a professional football league in two decades, serving most recently as the deputy executive director of the Fritz Pollard Alliance. Buckley is a former NFL cornerback who moved to coaching after playing, holding multiple assistant coaching positions around the college ranks over the past 15 years. Ford has been coaching for almost 50 years, breaking into the NFL in 1991 with the Cowboys, where he won three Super Bowl rings as a tight ends coach. He has served as an assistant coach with the Dolphins, Cardinals, and Raiders, as well, with his last stint in the NFL coming back in 2006. Carter is another former NFL cornerback who moved to coaching after his playing time ended, taking small coaching roles with the Raiders and Lions since retiring.

San Antonio (TBD)

Director of player personnel: Will Lewis
Head coach: Hines Ward
Offensive coordinator: Jaime Elizondo
Defensive coordinator: Jim Herrmann

Lewis is a former NFL player and assistant coach who moved to the personnel side of football in the late 1990s. After starting as a scout with the Packers, Lewis has held high-level positions with the Seahawks and Chiefs. He also served as general manager for a franchise in the short-lived Alliance of American Football. Ward is a former longtime receiver for the Steelers who, since retiring, has held assistant coaching roles with the Jets and at the collegiate level. Elizondo has a long history of coaching football at the collegiate level and in the CFL, as well as serving as an offensive coordinator in the 2020 iteration of the XFL. Herrmann has been a defensive coordinator at his alma mater, the University of Michigan, as well as an assistant coach for the Jets, Giants, and Colts.

Seattle Dragons

Director of player personnel: Randy Mueller
Head coach: Jim Haslett
Offensive coordinator: June Jones
Defensive coordinator: Ron Zook

Mueller has served in the past as general manager for the Saints and Dolphins while holding other high-level positions for the Seahawks and Chargers. Haslett was the head coach of the Saints for six years in the early 2000s . He has also been a head coach in the UFL and served as interim head coach of the Rams. He’s held defensive coordinator positions with the Saints, Steelers, Rams, and Washington, as well as holding assistant coaching positions with the Raiders, Bengals, and Titans. Jones was the head coach of the Falcons back in the mid-1990s and, subsequently, served as a head coach in the CFL. He’s held offensive coordinator jobs at nearly every level of competitive football. Zook adds to the head coaching experience in Seattle with two stints as a college football head coach. He’s served as defensive coordinator for the Saints and special teams coordinator for the Steelers and Packers. He has lots of experience as a coordinator at the collegiate level, as well.

St. Louis BattleHawks

Director of player personnel: Dave Boller
Head coach: Anthony Becht
Offensive coordinator: Bruce Gradkowski
Defensive coordinator: Donnie Abraham

Boller has scouting experience with the Buccaneers back in the late 1990s. Becht is a former NFL tight end whose only coaching experience is as a positional coach in the AAF. Gradkowski is a former NFL quarterback who served as a backup for much of his career. Since his retirement, Gradkowski has been serving as a high school head coach in Ohio. Abraham continues the trend of former NFL player coaches in St. Louis with no NFL coaching experience. Abraham was a cornerback for the Buccaneers and Jets from 1996-2004. Since retiring he has been a head coach at the high school level, an assistant coach in the Arena Football League, an assistant coach at the collegiate level, and an assistant coach in the AAF.

XFL Assigns Franchise-Coach Pairings

June 4th, 2022 at 12:11pm CST by Adam La Rose

The identities of the head coaches who will be on the sidelines when the XFL begins its third iteration were already known. Today, though, it has been revealed which franchise each coach will be working with when the league re-starts in 2023. 

[RELATED: XFL Announces HCs For 2023 Season]

As detailed by Pro Football Network’s Aaron Wilson (on Twitter), Wade Phillips has been assigned to the Houston franchise. That will mark the second stint coaching a professional team in that city for the soon-to-be 75-year-old, as he took over interim HC duties for the Texans during his time there in 2013. This will mark his first time on the sidelines since 2019, when he served as defensive coordinator of the Rams.

The list of XFL coaches also includes decorated former players. One of them is Hines Ward, who will be joining Phillips and Bob Stoops in the state of Texas by coaching the San Antonio franchise. The former Super Bowl MVP worked as an offensive assistant with the Jets in 2020 and 2021; he spent the past campaign as the WRs coach at Florida Atlantic. The XFL post will mark his first time as a head coach at any level.

Another brand-name player the XFL will be featuring on the sidelines is Rod Woodson. The Hall of Fame corner has more experience than Ward with respect to time spent as a positional coach at the NFL level, including two separate stints as the CBs coach of the Raiders. In his case as well, though, the XFL will provide a first-time HC opportunity. He will take the reins of the Las Vegas team.

Long before the league unveiled its batch of HCs for the upcoming season, the XFL announced a formal partnership with the NFL. While the former will not organize itself as a strictly developmental league for the latter, there will be notable collaboration between the two on a number of matters, including the NFL’s Alumni Academy. While it remains to be seen if the third time proves to be the charm for the enterprise now co-owned by Dwayne Johnson and Dany Garcia, these agreements, along with the interest generated by these coaches, should give the league a chance at long-term success.

Here is the full breakdown of the franchise-coach pairings, per Wilson:

Wade Phillips, Rod Woodson, Hines Ward Among XFL HCs

April 13th, 2022 at 6:47pm CST by Ben Levine

Out of the NFL since the 2019 season, Super Bowl-winning defensive coordinator Wade Phillips will resurface in the latest XFL iteration. The longtime NFL coach will be one of XFL 3.0’s eight HCs, the rebooting league announced Wednesday.

Hall of Famer Rod Woodson, former Pro Bowler Hines Ward, and ex-Oklahoma national championship HC Bob Stoops will join Phillips. Former Saints and Rams HC Jim Haslett will also lead an XFL team. The league’s third round of HCs also includes former NFLers Terrell Buckley, Anthony Becht and Reggie Barlow.

“Our head coaches are a diverse group of leaders, champions and hall of famers with experience competing and coaching at the highest level in football. Not only will they be mentors to our players, but they are also ambassadors of the XFL as we work together to build tomorrow’s league,” said Dany Garcia, Co-Owner and Chairwoman of the XFL. “What is most exciting about our talented coaches is that they all share our vision for the XFL and are committed to advancing the game of football for players and making it into a must-watch program for fans. The XFL is anchored in the belief of opportunity, and, just like our players, these football legends will drive the future of the game.”

Head coach or interim HC for four teams, Phillips was on the sideline for the Broncos’ Super Bowl 50 win and coached in Super Bowls XXIV and LIII as Denver and Los Angeles DC. The veteran coach also had a long career as a defensive coordinator, with his most recent gig coming with the Rams between 2017 and 2019. The last we heard from Phillips, he was discussing a potential role on the Browns staff in 2020. Phillips will be 75 when he takes the field in February.

Haslett, the 2000 AP NFL Coach of the Year, served as the Titans inside linebackers coach over the past two seasons, but he wasn’t retained following the 2021 campaign. He last served as a HC in 2008, going 2-10 as the interim head coach with the Rams. In six seasons with the Saints, the team went 45-51 with only one playoff appearance.

Woodson has some experience coaching in the NFL. He had two stints as the Raiders cornerbacks coach, and he also had coaching jobs with the Bengals and Broncos. Similarly, Ward had a two-year coaching stint with the Jets before spending the 2021 campaign as Florida Atlantic’s wide receivers coach.

2022 NFL Head Coaching Search Tracker

February 6th, 2022 at 10:15pm CST by Zachary Links

Last year, seven NFL teams opted to make a head coaching change. Sean Payton stepping away from the Saints created nine full-time vacancies available this year.

Listed below are the head coaching candidates that have been linked to each of the teams with vacancies, along with their current status. If and when other teams decide to make head coaching changes, they’ll be added to this list. Here is the current breakdown:

Updated 2-7-22 (1:45pm CT)

Chicago Bears

Denver Broncos

Houston Texans

Jacksonville Jaguars

Las Vegas Raiders

Miami Dolphins

Minnesota Vikings

New Orleans Saints

New York Giants

Texans Interview Hines Ward, Joe Lombardi For HC Job

January 15th, 2022 at 4:09pm CST by Sam Robinson

The Texans continue to move swiftly in their search to replace David Culley. They interviewed two more candidates Saturday, meeting with Chargers OC Joe Lombardi and Florida Atlantic wide receivers coach Hines Ward.

These meetings come after the Texans’ Brian Flores interview Friday. Flores has been the candidate most closely linked to the job and should still be considered the favorite, though GM Nick Caserio end up meeting with Patriots linebackers coach Jerod Mayo as well. Ward being interviewed meets the Rooney Rule requirement for the Texans, who have now met with two minority candidates.

[RELATED: 2022 Head Coaching Search Tracker]

A former star Steelers wide receiver, Ward has only been a full-time staffer since 2019. He coached wide receivers for two years under Adam Gase with the Jets. While he also serves as a special assistant to the head coach at Florida Atlantic, Ward’s coaching background would not seem enough to make him a serious candidate. But the four-time Pro Bowler has been around the game for a rather lengthy stretch.

The Chargers brought Lombardi over from the Saints to be their OC. Under Lombardi, Justin Herbert topped 5,000 passing yards this season and is the AFC’s Pro Bowl starter. Lombardi has three seasons’ worth of OC experience, with the previous two coming under Jim Caldwell in Detroit from 2014-15.

Unlike Flores, Lombardi does not have a tie to the Patriots, having spent most of his coaching career with the Saints. This is Lombardi’s first connection to a head during this year’s HC hiring period.

Extra Points: Jets, Clowney, Steelers, Ozigbo

September 2nd, 2019 at 9:59pm CST by Andrew Ortenberg

Hines Ward is back in the NFL, this time as a coach. The legendary former Steelers receiver will join the Jets as an offensive assistant, the team announced in a release. Ward had been a coaching intern, and after impressing during camp got invited back as a member of the full-time staff. “He’s going to be an offensive assistant, he’s going to be working with the wideouts with Shawn so I think that’s a great addition for us. He’s done a lot of really good things with that group, helping out with those guys,” head coach Adam Gase said.

Ward has been working under receivers coach Shawn Jefferson, and that will continue. Ward finished his decorated career with 1,000 receptions and 85 touchdowns, winning two Super Bowls and a Super Bowl MVP Award. He also served as an executive with the now defunct AAF. He’s already made a positive impression on presumed number one Jets receiver Robby Anderson. “He’s a great resource because he’s done it at a high level consistently,” Anderson said. “He’s a future Hall of Famer so what more can I ask for? I’m picking his brain, and he’s more so telling me than I’m asking him, and I’m just staying on top of him. He’s just trying to find ways to get me better in each way.”

Here’s more from around the league:

  • Jadeveon Clowney was almost a Seahawk all the way back in the spring. The Texans and Seahawks first discussed a Clowney trade before the draft, Seattle GM John Schneider tells Albert Breer of The MMQB. However, there were logistical roadblocks – namely, extension talks with quarterback Russell Wilson and linebacker Bobby Wagner. Meanwhile, the April price tag for Clowney was too high for the Seahawks’ taste. Over the weekend, the Seahawks acquired Clowney for a 2020 third-rounder, defensive end Barkevious Mingo, and linebacker Jacob Martin.
  • The Browns got tight end Ricky Seals-Jones off waivers from the Cardinals this weekend, and they weren’t the only AFC North team interested. The Steelers submitted a claim for the Texas A&M product as well, according to Field Yates of ESPN.com (Twitter link). Seals-Jones has shown flashed during his two years in the league, but the 2017 UDFA fell out of favor with the new coaching staff in Arizona. The Steelers have Vance McDonald but not a ton behind him on the depth chart, so their interest makes some sense.
  • Before he was claimed by the Jaguars, the Browns and Lions also tried to snag running back Devine Ozigbo off waivers, according to Field Yates of ESPN.com (on Twitter). Ozigbo turned in a solid preseason with the Saints, but was unable to make their final cut on Saturday. Detroit was only one spot behind Jacksonville in the waiver order, so they just barely missed getting their guy. Ozigbo is an undrafted rookie from Nebraska.
  • Undrafted rookie offensive tackle Ryan Pope signed with the 49ers’ practice squad earlier today, and he was apparently in high demand. Pope had practice squad offers from four teams after getting cut by the Lions, a source told Matt Maiocco of NBC Sports. Pope played his college ball at San Diego State, where he earned All-Mountain West second-team honors as a senior.

 

AFC East Notes: Fitzpatrick, Jets, Bills

July 30th, 2019 at 3:34pm CST by Sam Robinson

Ryan Fitzpatrick is well on his way to starting for a third AFC East franchise. The 15th-year veteran continues to hold off Josh Rosen for the Dolphins‘ starting quarterback job. “It’s pretty clear to me that Ryan Fitzpatrick is leading the way,” Brian Flores said Tuesday (via ESPN.com’s Adam Schefter, on Twitter). Rosen was viewed as the clear underdog for the Week 1 role coming into camp. Fitzpatrick has not been a regular starter since his two-year Jets tenure concluded after the 2016 season, while Rosen started 13 games for an overmatched Cardinals team last year.

Here is the latest from the AFC East:

  • The Jets entered camp thin at cornerback, but their top offseason investment at this spot has not impressed coaches thus far. Former Falcons slot corner Brian Poole reported to Jets camp in less-than-ideal shape, Rich Cimini of ESPN.com notes. Adam Gase did not single the fifth-year player out as one of the veterans on which the Jets will rely, with the new HC only mentioning Trumaine Johnson and Darryl Roberts in that regard. Gang Green does not have much depth behind its top three. The Jets signed Poole to a one-year, $3MM deal ($2MM guaranteed).
  • Now two former NFL starting wide receivers are giving Jets wideouts guidance. In addition to full-time receivers coach Shawn Jefferson, the Jets brought in Hines Ward as a coaching intern, per Cimini. Ward, who began working with the Jets on Monday, served in this role with the Steelers two summers ago and was part of the one-and-done Alliance of American Football. It appears Ward’s primary pupil will be Robby Anderson, Cimini adds.
  • Bills third-round pick Devin Singletary is stationed behind one of the most veteran-heavy backfield duos in NFL history, with the Bills adding Frank Gore to their LeSean McCoy-led group. But Singletary is receiving plenty of opportunities in camp. The former Florida Atlantic star has worked with Buffalo’s starters “a ton” during camp, Marcel Louis-Jacques of ESPN.com notes (on Twitter). While Louis-Jacques adds that this is partially to conserve McCoy and Gore, Mike Florio of Pro Football Talk adds more fuel to the speculation Singletary could induce a McCoy pay-cut request or push him off the roster. McCoy (career-low 3.2 yards per carry in 2018) being a departure candidate has been floated at multiple junctures this offseason. Singletary rushed for 66 touchdowns in three college seasons.
  • Dolphins first-round pick Christian Wilkins may have an interesting side job in his first NFL season. The 315-pound defensive tackle has worked on offense as well to start camp, Hal Habib of the Palm Beach Post notes. This would presumably mean a role as a fullback, but OC Chad O’Shea did not specify.

Coaching Notes: Lions, Cardinals, Bears

February 5th, 2018 at 9:48pm CST by Ben Levine

Matt Patricia is already adding to his new coaching staff. Pete Thamel of Yahoo Sports reports (via Twitter) that the Lions have hired Paul Pasqualoni. The coach’s role in Detroit is unclear, although Charean Williams of ProFootballTalk.com wonders if he could be the team’s new defensive coordinator.

Pasqualoni, 68, has bounced between the NFL and NCAA during his long coaching career. In the NFL, he served as defensive coordinator of the Dolphins and Cowboys, and he was head coach at Syracuse for more than a decade. In fact, Patricia coached under Pasqualoni with the Orange during the early 2000s. Pasqualoni spent the past two seasons serving as the defensive line coach at Boston College.

Let’s take a look at some more coaching notes from around the NFL…

  • The Cardinals have hired a college coach to fill out their staff. Sporting News’ Alex Marvez reports that the team has hired Charlie Harbison as their new cornerbacks coach. The 59-year-old last served as the co-defensive coordinator and outside linebackers coach for the University of Louisiana-Lafayette. The Cardinals have also hired Kirby Wilson as their new running backs coach. Wilson spent the past two seasons in the same role with the Browns.
  • Former Steelers great Hines Ward was hoping to be considered for the team’s wide receivers coach job before it went to Darryl Drake, Marvez writes. Ward, who currently works as a contributor for CNN Sports, remains interested in coaching. “There was some interest, but I can’t hire myself,” Ward said. “If the opportunity presents itself, it’s something where I’d have to sit down and seriously think about it.“
  • Following news that Bears coach Matt Nagy had added Brad Childress to his staff as an offensive consultant, it sounds like the coach isn’t finished with his hires. Adam Caplan tweets that the Bears are also expected to hire Brian Ginn as an offensive assistant. Ginn was at Delaware for almost two decades, where he served as offensive coordinator (among many other roles).
  • The Bears are also expected to hire Bill Shuey as a defensive assistant, reports Caplan (via Twitter). Shuey previously served as the Eagles linebackers coach, where he coached alongside Nagy. Shuey also had a stint as defensive coordinator at Division III Widener for a handful of seasons.

Sam Robinson contributed to this post.