NFL Coaching Updates: Vikings, Packers, Colts

The Vikings made two additions to their coaching staff this week, adding assistants on both the defense and special teams. The additions help head coach Kevin O’Connell fill a few holes that were vacant due to recent departures.

Former assistant defensive line coach A’Lique Terry departed to join Dan Lanning‘s second-year staff at Oregon. Terry will coach the Ducks’ offensive line, a position group he worked with as a graduate assistant in 2019-20. Replacing Terry as assistant defensive line coach will be Patrick Hill, according to Matt Zenitz of On3 Sports. After serving as an analyst at LSU, Hill had recently joined Deion Sanders‘s inaugural staff at Colorado as the defensive tackles coach. Instead, Hill will make his way to the NFL.

The Vikings also needed to replace assistant special teams coach Ben Kotwica who left to become Sean Payton‘s new special teams coordinator in Denver. Replacing Kotwica will reportedly be former special teams coordinator and defensive ends coach at Southern Illinois Dalmin Gibson., according to Charean Williams of NBC Sports. Gibson’s role as assistant special teams coach will be his first NFL job after college gigs at Dickinson State, Wayne State, Colorado, and Michigan State.

Here are a few more coaching updates from around the league:

  • The Packers will be losing a member of their coaching staff to the college ranks next season. According to ESPN’s Pete Thamel, special teams quality control coach Micheal Spurlock will be departing for a role as wide receivers coach at Western Kentucky. Spurlock, a former NFL wide receiver, has now coached two separate seasons in the NFL, spending the rest of his coaching experience at the high school, community college, and NCAA level. The Packers don’t have an immediate need to replace Spurlock, as they still retain a special teams coordinator and assistant special teams coach, but that decision will likely fall to head coach Matt LaFleur.
  • New Colts head coach Shane Steichen is looking to round out his first NFL coaching staff. It appears that, in order to do so, Steichen will dip into the college coaching ranks as he is expected to hire Notre Dame special teams coordinator Brian Mason, according to Josh Alper of NBC Sports. No position has been specified for Mason, and it will be interesting to see what Steichen has in mind. Indianapolis does currently have its special teams coordinator role vacant, but Mason has never held an NFL coaching position. Mason had gone from a graduate assistant at Ohio State in 2016 to director of recruiting at Cincinnati in 2017 before becoming the Bearcats’ special teams coordinator. Last year was his first as a coordinator for the Fighting Irish, and now he’ll make his way to his first NFL job. It’s hard to see Mason immediately earning a coordinator position for his first NFL role, but with the position open, it’s certainly a possibility.
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