Here's what the Lions are getting in new defensive line coach Kacy Rodgers
On Monday, Detroit Lions coach Dan Campbell called defensive line coach Terrell Williams the best in the league at coaching the position. By Wednesday, he was gone, accepting a job to become the New England Patriots defensive coordinator. A day later, the Lions secured his replacement.
On Thursday, the Lions agreed to terms with Kacy Rodgers, a longtime and respected defensive line coach and former defensive coordinator.
Campbell and Rodgers go way back, intersecting twice during their careers. They first overlapped when they separately arrived in Dallas in 2003. Campbell was still in the early stages of his playing career, coming home to Texas after spending the first four seasons with the New York Giants. Meanwhile, Rodgers earned his first NFL job after coaching nine years collegiately. He was coming off a one-year stint with an Arkansas team that allowed fewer than 20 points per game.
Campbell and Rodgers spent three years together in Dallas before reuniting on Tony Sparano's staff in Miami in 2010. Rodgers was in his third season as the Dolphins' defensive line coach when Campbell came aboard as a coaching intern before taking charge of the team's tight ends the following year.
Rodgers departed to become the defensive coordinator of the New York Jets in 2014 to join the staff of former Dallas and Miami colleague Todd Bowles. That was the year before Campbell served as the Dolphins interim head coach.
Most recently, Rodgers has been working Bowles in Tampa. Rodgers' contract expired this offseason, and even though he had an offer to stay, he's opting to try something new by reconnecting with Campbell in Detroit.
Let’s explore Rodgers’ credentials a bit more: