Packers Finalize Coaching Staff

Information from the Green Bay Packers


PACKERS FINALIZE COACHING STAFF

 

The Green Bay Packers have named Joe Philbin offensive coordinator, Mike Pettine defensive coordinator, James Campen offense – run game coordinator/offensive line, Jim Hostler offense – pass game coordinator, Patrick Grahamdefense – run game coordinator/inside linebackers, Joe Whitt Jr. defense – pass game coordinator, Frank Cignetti Jr.quarterbacks coach, Ryan Downard defensive quality control coach, Maurice Drayton assistant special teams coach,Scott McCurley defensive assistant, Jerry Montgomery defensive line coach, David Raih wide receivers coach andJason Simmons secondary coach. Head Coach Mike McCarthy made the announcement Wednesday.

 

Philbin returns to Green Bay, where he coached for nine seasons before leaving to become the head coach of the Miami Dolphins (2012-15). Miami increased its win total in 2012 and 2013 under Philbin, one of only four teams in the NFL to improve its record in both of those seasons. In 2014, he helped QB Ryan Tannehill (4,045) and RB Lamar Miller (1,099) become the first duo in team history to throw for 4,000 yards and rush for 1,000 yards in the same season. Philbin entered the NFL coaching ranks with the Packers in 2003 as an assistant offensive line coach before adding tight ends to his duties in 2004-05 and then leading the offensive line in 2006. From 2007-11, Philbin was Green Bay’s offensive coordinator, directing a unit that ranked No. 3 in the NFL over that span in points per game (28.3), touchdowns (267), passing touchdowns (170) and total net yards per game (372.8). During that five-year period, the Packers ranked in the top 10 in the league in total yards and total points each season, and ranked No. 2 in the NFL in fewest giveaways over that span with 97. In 2011, he helped QB Aaron Rodgers record the best single-season passer rating in NFL history (122.5) as the Packers set team single-season records for total points (560), touchdowns (70), total yards (6,482) and net passing yards (4,924). For the past two seasons, Philbin served as the assistant head coach/offensive line for the Indianapolis Colts. Before entering the NFL coaching ranks, he coached at the collegiate level at the University of Iowa (1999-2002), Harvard (1997-98), Northeastern (1995-96), Ohio (1994), Allegheny College (1990-93), U.S. Merchant Marine Academy (1988-89) and Worcester Tech (1986-87). Philbin began his career as a graduate assistant at Tulane (1984-85).

 

Pettine (PETT-in) comes to Green Bay after working as a consultant for the Seattle Seahawks last season. He brings five years of experience as a defensive coordinator for the New York Jets (2009-12) and Buffalo Bills (2013) as well as two years as head coach for the Cleveland Browns (2014-15). In his first season in Cleveland, he guided the Browns to their most victories since 2007 as they led the league in opponent passer rating (74.1) and ranked No. 2 in interceptions (21). In his five years as a defensive coordinator, Pettine led his units to a top-10 finish in total yards allowed and passing yards allowed in all five seasons. In 2013, he helped the Bills rank No. 2 in the NFL with a franchise-record 57 sacks as Buffalo was the lone team in the league to have three players each register 10-plus sacks. During his four seasons with the Jets, the defense ranked No. 1 in the NFL over that span in opponent passer rating (71.0), completion percentage (52.6) and passing yards per game (186.3). Prior to being a defensive coordinator, Pettine spent seven seasons with the Baltimore Ravens, serving as a coaching and video assistant (2002), coaching assistant/quality control coach (2003), defensive assistant (2004) and outside linebackers coach (2005-08). He began his coaching career as an assistant (1988-92) for his father, Mike Sr., who was the head coach at Central Bucks West High School in his hometown of Doylestown, Pa. Pettine had a two-year stint in the college ranks as a defensive graduate assistant at the University of Pittsburgh (1993-94) before serving as the head coach at William Tennent High School (Warminster, Pa.) from 1995-96 and then at North Penn High School (Lansdale, Pa.) from 1997-2001.


Campen enters his 15th season with the Packers, having worked as the team’s offensive line coach for the past 11 seasons (2007-17). Green Bay ranked in the top 10 in scoring in nine of those seasons and in the top 10 in total offense eight times, including three of the top four single-season yardage marks in franchise history. Campen’s offensive linemen combined for seven Pro Bowl selections over the past six seasons, with four different linemen receiving recognition. He had at least one of his linemen selected to the Pro Bowl following the 2010-12 seasons, the first time since 1967-69 that the Packers had a different lineman honored in three straight seasons. T David Bakhtiari earned second-team All-Pro honors from The Associated Press in 2016-17, joining Forrest Gregg as the only tackles in franchise history to earn AP All-Pro recognition in consecutive seasons. Campen began his NFL coaching career with the Packers in 2004, serving as assistant offensive line/quality control for two seasons before serving as the assistant offensive line coach in 2006. He played center for seven years in the NFL, including five with the Packers (1989-93).

 

Hostler brings 28 years of coaching experience to the Packers, including 18 in the NFL. He has spent the past three seasons with the Indianapolis Colts, first as wide receivers coach (2015) and then as tight ends coach (2016-17). He tutored TE Jack Doyle, who ranked No. 2 in the league among tight ends with 80 receptions in 2017, the second most by a tight end in franchise history. In 2015, Hostler helped guide WR T.Y. Hilton to his second career Pro Bowl selection as he became just the third player in team history to post three straight 1,000-yard receiving seasons. In 2014, Hostler was an offensive assistant for the Buffalo Bills after coaching wide receivers for the Baltimore Ravens from 2008-13. He was with the San Francisco 49ers from 2005-07, serving as quarterbacks coach for the first two years and the final season as offensive coordinator. In 2003, he coached quarterbacks for the New York Jets and added wide receivers to his duties in 2004. Hostler began his NFL career as an offensive assistant/quality control for the Kansas City Chiefs in 2000 and held the same title with the New Orleans Saints in 2001. He was also the assistant wide receivers coach for the Saints in 2002. Prior to the NFL, Hostler coached 10 years in college, spending nine years tutoring a variety of positions at his alma mater, Indiana University of Pennsylvania (1990-92, 1994-99), and one season at Juniata College (1993).

 

Graham joins the Packers after spending the past two seasons as the defensive line coach for the New York Giants. In 2016, his line accounted for 23 of the Giants’ 35 sacks and DT Damon Harrison was named first-team All-Pro by The Associated Press. Prior to coaching for New York, Graham spent seven seasons with the New England Patriots, serving as a coaching assistant (2009), defensive assistant (2010), linebackers coach (2011, 2014-15) and defensive line coach (2012-13). In his five seasons as a position coach in New England (2011-15), he was part of a staff that helped the defense rank No. 1 in the NFL over that span in takeaways (150) and tied for No. 4 in sacks (214). In 2014, the Patriots lost LB Jerod Mayo for the season due to injury and Graham helped LBs Dont’a Hightower (career-high six sacks) and Jamie Collins (career-best 115 tackles) have breakout seasons that played a role in the Patriots winning Super Bowl XLIX. Before the NFL, Graham was a graduate assistant at the University of Notre Dame (2007-08) and coached for three seasons at the University of Richmond, working as the assistant defensive line coach for one season (2004) and two as the tight ends coach (2005-06). He entered coaching as a graduate assistant at Wagner College (2002-03) after playing on the defensive line at Yale, where he earned a bachelor’s degree in sociology in 2001.

 

Whitt enters his 11th season with the Packers, having worked as the secondary – cornerbacks coach for the past nine seasons (2009-17). In that role, he helped Green Bay rank in the top 10 in the league over that span in interceptions (No. 1, 176), opponent completion percentage (No. 7, 59.8) and opponent passer rating (No. 9, 83.2). Under Whitt’s guidance, CB Damarious Randall (2015-17) became the first Packer since CB Tim Lewis (1983-85) to register three-plus INTs in each of his first three seasons in the league. Whitt also tutored CBs Sam Shields (2014) and Tramon Williams (2010) to Pro Bowl selections and helped veteran CB Charles Woodson earn NFL Defensive Player of the Year honors from The Associated Press in 2009. Whitt joined the Packers in 2008 as a defensive quality control coach. He began his NFL career as an assistant defensive backs coach for the Atlanta Falcons in 2007 after five seasons coaching at the collegiate level, first as wide receivers coach at The Citadel (2002) and then as cornerbacks coach and recruiting coordinator at the University of Louisville (2003-06). A wide receiver at Auburn University, Whitt spent his final two seasons at the school (2000-01) assisting the coaching staff after his playing career was cut short by injury.

 

Cignetti comes to Green Bay with 29 years of coaching experience, with much of it working with quarterbacks. For the past two seasons, he coached quarterbacks for the New York Giants, helping QB Eli Manning register the second-highest completion percentage of his career (63.0) in 2016. Cignetti was the quarterbacks coach for the St. Louis Rams from 2012-14 before becoming the offensive coordinator in 2015, leading an offense that ranked No. 7 in the NFL in rushing that season (122.3 ypg). He worked as the offensive coordinator/quarterbacks coach for Indiana University of Pennsylvania (1997-98), Fresno State (2002-05), University of North Carolina (2006), University of California (2008), University of Pittsburgh (2009-10) and Rutgers (2011). Between his college jobs, Cignetti was a quality control coach for the Kansas City Chiefs (1999) and quarterbacks coach for the New Orleans Saints (2000-01) and San Francisco 49ers (2007). The Pittsburgh native began his coaching career in his home city, working as a graduate assistant for Pitt in 1989. He went on to coach wide receivers (1990-92), secondary (1993-94) and quarterbacks (1995-96) at IUP.

 

Downard (DOWN-erd) comes to Green Bay after working at Bowling Green for the past two seasons, serving as the safeties coach in 2017 and the director of football operations in 2016. In 2017, he oversaw the development of Marcus Milton, who converted from cornerback to tie for the team lead with three interceptions, as well as junior-college transfer Fred Garth, who led the team with 95 tackles. From 2014-15, Downard was a defensive coaching assistant with the Cleveland Browns, assisting with the defensive line in 2014 and the defensive backs in 2015. Prior to his two seasons with the Browns, he served as a graduate assistant at both Texas Tech and Toledo. Downard played defensive back at Eastern Michigan, where he earned honorable mention Freshman All-America recognition from Scout.com in 2007 after ranking No. 2 in the country among freshmen with six interceptions.

 

Drayton is entering his third season coaching in the NFL, having worked as the assistant special teams coach for the Indianapolis Colts for the past two seasons. In 2016, he assisted P Pat McAfee in earning his second career Pro Bowl selection after leading the league in punting average (49.3) and ranking No. 3 in net punting average (42.7). After McAfee retired, Drayton helped P Rigoberto Sanchez finish No. 4 in the NFL in net punting average (42.6) in 2017 and earn a spot on the Pro Football Writers Association All-Rookie team. Drayton was the assistant head coach/defensive coordinator/cornerbacks coach at The Citadel (2014-15), where he played defensive back (1994-98). It was his second stint at his alma mater, having previously worked as a graduate assistant/secondary in 1999 and then coached tight ends/offensive tackles in 2000, wide receivers in 2001, outside linebackers in 2002 and secondary/special teams from 2003-05. He was the secondary coach at Southern Mississippi in 2012, the assistant head coach/special teams/wide receivers coach at Coastal Carolina from 2010-11 and coached special teams/defensive backs at South Carolina State in 2008-09. Drayton spent 2007 as an assistant coach at Goose Creek (S.C.) High School, was the defensive coordinator for the Seinajoki (Finland) Crocodiles of the European Football League in 2006 and was an assistant coach with the Charleston Swamp Foxes (Arena 2) from 2000-02.

 

Montgomery is entering his fourth season with the Packers, having served as the defensive front assistant for the past three years. In 2017, he was part of a staff that helped Green Bay rank No. 8 in yards allowed per carry (3.86) and tied for No. 9 in rushing TDs allowed (10). DT Mike Daniels earned his first career Pro Bowl selection this past season, just the fifth defensive tackle in team history to be named to the Pro Bowl, after recording a career-best 72 tackles while ranking No. 3 on the team with five sacks, and DT Kenny Clark led the defensive line with 78 tackles (39 solo) while adding 4.5 sacks. Montgomery joined the Packers in 2015 after coaching at the collegiate level for 11 seasons, which included eight seasons coaching the defensive line at the University of Oklahoma (2013-14), the University of Michigan (2011-12), the University of Wyoming (2009-10) and the University of Northern Iowa (2007-08). He began his coaching career at his alma mater, the University of Iowa, as a student assistant in 2002. Montgomery continued coaching as an assistant at Iowa City West High School (2003-04) and as the defensive coordinator at North Iowa Community College (2005) while also playing for the Chicago Rush, Colorado Crush and Las Vegas Gladiators of the Arena Football League (2003-05).

 

Raih (RYE) has been with the Packers for the past four seasons, spending 2014-15 as a coaching administrator, 2016 as assistant offensive line coach and last season as offensive perimeter coach. In 2017, Green Bay was one of six teams to have three or more players with 50-plus receptions and four-plus receiving touchdowns, and was the only team where at least three of the players were wide receivers. In 2016, Rye assisted with a line that helped the Packers rank in the top 10 in the NFL in numerous categories, including points per game (No. 4, 27.0,), yards per game (No. 8, 368.8), passing yards per game (No. 7, 262.4) and yards per carry (No. 7, 4.55). Before joining Green Bay, he spent 2013 at Texas Tech as the director of high school relations before being promoted to outside receivers coach. The former Iowa quarterback (1999-2003) coached at his alma mater as a graduate assistant, working with the offensive line in 2010-11 and the tight ends in 2012. Raih started his coaching career as an intern for the UCLA football program, working with quarterbacks in 2008 and tight ends in 2009.

 

Simmons is entering his eighth season with the Packers, having served as the assistant special teams coach for the past three seasons. In 2017, Simmons helped P Justin Vogel register a net punting average of 41.6 yards, ranking No. 1 among Packers since 1976 (min. 40 punts). From 2015-17, the Packers ranked No. 2 in the NFL in opponent punt return average (5.7 yards per return). In 2014, Simmons was a defensive/special teams assistant, where he worked closely with special teams and spent much of his time tutoring perimeter players on various coverage and return teams. He also assisted with the defensive backs, helping the Green Bay defense rank No. 9 in the league in takeaways (29). Simmons joined the Packers in 2011 as a coaching administrator, a position he held for three years. Before coaching, he played for 10 years in the NFL as a defensive back and was a standout on special teams during his career. A fifth-round pick by the Pittsburgh Steelers in the 1998 NFL Draft, Simmons went on to play 121 games from 1998-2007 for the Steelers and Houston Texans. He lettered four years as a cornerback for Arizona State, serving as a team captain and earning second-team All-Pacific-10 honors as a senior.

 

Offensive Coaching Staff

Joe Philbin                    Offensive Coordinator

James Campen             Offense – Run Game Coordinator/Offensive Line

Jim Hostler                   Offense – Pass Game Coordinator

Brian Angelichio            Tight Ends

Frank Cignetti Jr.           Quarterbacks

Ben Sirmans                 Running Backs

David Raih                    Wide Receivers

Jeff Blasko                   Assistant Offensive Line

 

Defensive Coaching Staff

Mike Pettine                  Defensive Coordinator

Winston Moss               Associate Head Coach/Linebackers

Patrick Graham             Defense – Run Game Coordinator/Inside Linebackers

Joe Whitt Jr.                 Defense – Pass Game Coordinator

Jason Simmons            Secondary

Jerry Montgomery         Defensive Line

Scott McCurley             Defensive Assistant

Ryan Downard              Defensive Quality Control

 

Special Teams Coaching Staff

Ron Zook                     Special Teams Coordinator

Maurice Drayton            Assistant Special Teams

 

Strength and Conditioning Staff

Mark Lovat                    Strength & Conditioning Coordinator

Chris Gizzi                     Strength & Conditioning Assistant

Thadeus Jackson          Strength & Conditioning Assistant

Grant Thorne                 Strength & Conditioning Assistant