Wikipedia

Jim Haslett

For the former American college football player and coach, see Jim Hazlett.

James Donald Haslett (born December 9, 1955) is an American football coach and former linebacker who was most recently the head coach of the Seattle Sea Dragons of the XFL. He played college football for the IUP Crimson Hawks before being drafted by the Buffalo Bills in the second round of the 1979 NFL draft; he went on to be named NFL Defensive Rookie of the Year.

Jim Haslett
refer to caption
Haslett with the Tennessee Titans in 2021
No. 55, 51
Position:Linebacker
Personal information
Born: (1955-12-09) December 9, 1955 (age 68)
Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, U.S.
Height:6 ft 3 in (1.91 m)
Weight:232 lb (105 kg)
Career information
High school:Avalon
College:IUP (1975–1978)
NFL draft:1979 / round: 2 / pick: 51
Career history
As a player:
As a coach:
Career highlights and awards
Career NFL statistics
Games:94
Sacks:4.5
Interceptions:6
Stats at Pro Football Reference
Head coaching record
Regular season:
  • NFL: 47–61 (.435)
  • UFL: 6–0 (1.000)
  • XFL: 7–3 (.700)
Postseason:
  • NFL: 1–1 (.500)
  • UFL: 0–1 (.000)
  • XFL: 0–1 (.000)
Career:
  • NFL: 48–62 (.436)
  • UFL: 6–1 (.857)
  • XFL: 7–4 (.636)
Record at Pro Football Reference
College Football Hall of Fame

Haslett's coaching career began in the late 1980s, with him rejoining the NFL by the mid-1990s. In 2000, he was hired as head coach of the New Orleans Saints and was named the NFL Coach of the Year. He has also served as head coach for the Florida Tuskers of the United Football League (UFL).

Playing career

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Haslett attended Indiana University of Pennsylvania, and was selected in the second round of the 1979 NFL draft by the Buffalo Bills. He was a linebacker for the Buffalo Bills through 1985; he broke his leg during a 1986 preseason contest, ending his time with the Bills. He made a brief comeback with the New York Jets in 1987. He was named the NFL Defensive Rookie of the Year for 1979. In a 2005 article in the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, Haslett admitted to using steroids while playing for the Buffalo Bills. Haslett went on record saying that "everybody tried it" to gain a competitive advantage against opposing teams.[1]

Coaching career

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Early coaching career

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Haslett began his coaching career at the University at Buffalo in 1988 as a linebackers coach before being promoted to defensive coordinator in 1989.[2][3] After three seasons with Buffalo, Haslett became the defensive coordinator for the Sacramento Surge of the World League of American Football for the team's inaugural season in 1991.[4] The league suspended operations after the 1992 season.

NFL coaching career

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Haslett began his NFL coaching career as a linebackers coach for the Los Angeles Raiders in 1993.[5] After two seasons with the Raiders, Haslett was hired as linebackers coach for the New Orleans Saints. He was promoted to defensive coordinator for the 1996 season. After head coach Jim Mora quit during the season, Haslett was offered the interim head coach position, but he declined, and was not retained by new head coach Mike Ditka for the 1997 season.[6]

Haslett was then hired as the defensive coordinator for the Pittsburgh Steelers, where he coached for three seasons from 1997 to 1999.[7]

New Orleans Saints

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In January 2000, Haslett was named head coach of the New Orleans Saints. He was reportedly hired to a three-year contract.[7] That season, he guided the Saints to a 10–6 regular-season record, their second NFC West division championship, and the first playoff victory in franchise history (defeating the St. Louis Rams; they lost to the Minnesota Vikings the next week). As a result of the Saints' turnaround from their previous 3–13 season (under his predecessor, Mike Ditka), Haslett was named NFL Coach of the Year. This was the only playoff appearance in Haslett's six years in New Orleans. They would only notch one other winning record in 2002. That year, the Saints started 9–4, but three consecutive losses, including to the 1-14 Cincinnati Bengals, resulted in them missing the playoffs by a single game.

In 2005, the Saints crashed to a 3–13 record. The season was marred by Hurricane Katrina's devastation of New Orleans. This forced the franchise to temporarily relocate to San Antonio, playing three of their 'home' games in the Alamodome. Another four home games were played in Baton Rouge at LSU's Tiger Stadium, and one took place at Giants Stadium in New Jersey (against the New York Giants).

Haslett was fired after the 2005 season. He finished his six-year tenure as the head coach of the Saints with the second most head coaching wins in franchise history, with a regular season record of 45–51.[8]

St. Louis Rams

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Haslett became the St. Louis Rams' defensive coordinator to start the 2006 season. On September 29, 2008, Haslett was named the interim head coach of the Rams after Scott Linehan was fired. The Rams gave Haslett an interim coach's contract, containing a clause that promised him the permanent head coach's job if the team won at least six games that season. Within a few weeks, this clause was nullified by the NFL, because it violated the league's "Rooney Rule". He won his first game as interim head coach of the Rams with a 19–17 victory over the 4-1 Washington Redskins. That win was followed by a 34-14 drubbing of the Dallas Cowboys on October 19, 2008. This brought the Rams to a 2–4 record. The team would lose their final 10 games, leaving Haslett with an interim record of 2–10 on the year. On January 15, 2009, the Rams announced that Haslett was no longer in consideration for the permanent head coaching position and that the team would be going in a "new direction".[9]

Florida Tuskers

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Haslett coached the Florida Tuskers of the United Football League during its inaugural season in 2009.[10] The team went 6-0 but were upset in the first-ever UFL Championship Game by the Las Vegas Locomotives. He won UFL Coach of Year in their inaugural season.[11]

Washington Redskins

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Haslett was hired as the Washington Redskins defensive coordinator on January 12, 2010, under head coach Mike Shanahan. Haslett replaced the retiring Greg Blache.[12] After many speculated he would be fired after the disastrous 2013 season, new head coach Jay Gruden announced Haslett would remain on the team for the upcoming 2014 season. The move reunited the pair, as Gruden had worked as the offensive coordinator under Haslett for the Tuskers in the 2009 season. On December 31, 2014, the Redskins announced that Haslett would leave the Redskins by mutual agreement.[13]

Cincinnati Bengals

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After spending the 2015 season as a consultant for Penn State,[14] Haslett was hired as the linebackers coach for the Cincinnati Bengals on January 15, 2016.[15] Following the 2018 season, the Bengals chose not to retain Haslett along with several other assistant coaches after the firing of longtime head coach Marvin Lewis.[16]

Tennessee Titans

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On February 6, 2020, Tennessee Titans head coach Mike Vrabel hired Haslett as the team's inside linebackers coach.[17] Haslett spent two years in the role. He was not retained after the 2021 season.[18]

XFL

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Haslett was announced as an XFL head coach in 2021, later revealed to be for the Seattle Sea Dragons.[19] Due to the Covid-19 pandemic, the XFL ceased operations in 2021 and 2022. Haslett was the head coach of the Sea Dragons for their final season in 2023, guiding them to a 7–3 record before losing in the divisional round of the playoffs 37–21 to the DC Defenders.[20]

On January 1, 2024, it was announced that the Sea Dragons would be disbanding. Eight teams from competing spring football leagues, the XFL and USFL, merged into the United Football League going into the 2024 season; the Sea Dragons were not one of the teams selected for the merger.[21]

Head coaching record

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NFL

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Team Year Regular season Postseason
Won Lost Ties Win % Finish Won Lost Win % Result
NO 2000 10 6 0 .625 1st in NFC West 1 1 .500 Lost to Minnesota Vikings in NFC Divisional Game
NO 2001 7 9 0 .438 3rd in NFC West - - - -
NO 2002 9 7 0 .563 3rd in NFC South - - - -
NO 2003 8 8 0 .500 2nd in NFC South - - - -
NO 2004 8 8 0 .500 2nd in NFC South - - - -
NO 2005 3 13 0 .188 4th in NFC South - - - -
NOR total 45 51 0 .469 1 1 .500
STL 2008* 2 10 0 .167 4th in NFC West - - - -
STL total 2 10 0 .167 - - -
Total[22] 47 61 0 .435 1 1 .500

*Interim head coach

UFL

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Team Year Regular season Postseason
Won Lost Win % Finish Won Lost Win % Result
FL 2009 6 0 1.000 1st in UFL 0 1 .000 Lost to Las Vegas Locomotives in 2009 UFL Championship Game
Total 6 0 1.000 0 1 .000

XFL

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Team Year Regular season Postseason
Won Lost Win % Finish Won Lost Win % Result
SEA 2023 7 3 .700 2nd in XFL North 0 1 .000 Lost to DC Defenders in XFL North Division Championship
Total 7 3 .700 0 1 .000

References

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  1. ^ Bouchette, Ed (March 24, 2005). "Haslett admits to using steroids". Pittsburgh Post-Gazette.
  2. ^ Harrington, Mike and Robert J. Summers (April 20, 1989). "UB football program steps up improvement, Haslett and Pry will coordinate 'new emphasis'". The Buffalo News. Archived from the original on February 23, 2022. Retrieved February 23, 2022.
  3. ^ Brady, Erik (January 2, 2020). "Ex-Bills linebacker Jim Haslett: 'That city deserves a championship'". The Buffalo News. Archived from the original on January 3, 2020. Retrieved January 2, 2020.
  4. ^ "The Official Site of the Tennessee Titans". www.tennesseetitans.com. Retrieved February 23, 2024.
  5. ^ White, Lonnie (February 18, 1993). "Former NFL Linebacker Jim Haslett to Join Raiders as an Assistant Coach". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved February 23, 2024.
  6. ^ "Saints Name Haslett New Coach - CBS News". www.cbsnews.com. February 3, 2000. Retrieved February 23, 2024.
  7. ^ a b FOSTER, MARY. "Saints hire Haslett as head coach". The Ledger. Retrieved February 23, 2024.
  8. ^ "Haslett won't return as Saints head coach". ESPN.com. January 2, 2006. Retrieved February 23, 2024.
  9. ^ Rams Remove Haslett From Search SI.com, January 15, 2009
  10. ^ Haslett to Coach UFL Team SI.com, March 11, 2009
  11. ^ Smith, Sutton. "Former Titans assistant coach Jim Haslett named head coach in XFL". The Tennessean. Retrieved February 23, 2024.
  12. ^ Thomas, Jim (January 12, 2010). "Haslett headed to Washington as Redskins defensive coordinator". St. Louis Post-Dispatch. Archived from the original on January 14, 2010. Retrieved January 12, 2010.
  13. ^ Jones, Mike (December 31, 2014). "Redskins announce mutual parting with defensive coordinator Jim Haslett". The Washington Post. Retrieved December 31, 2014.
  14. ^ WOGENRICH, MARK. "How Jim Haslett, an NFL coaching veteran, ended up as a Penn State football 'intern'". York Dispatch. Retrieved February 23, 2024.
  15. ^ "Jim Haslett joins Bengals staff as LB coach".
  16. ^ "NFL Rumors: Bengals Fire Multiple Asst. Coaches, HC Will Come from 'The Outside'". Bleacher Report. Retrieved February 23, 2024.
  17. ^ "Titans name Jim Haslett as inside linebackers coach". ESPN.com. February 6, 2020. Retrieved February 9, 2020.
  18. ^ "Jim Haslett, three other assistants out in Tennessee". NBC Sports. January 25, 2022. Retrieved February 23, 2024.
  19. ^ "XFL UNVEILS TEAM MARKETS AND VENUES: ARLINGTON, HOUSTON, ORLANDO, LAS VEGAS, SAN ANTONIO, SEATTLE, ST. LOUIS, WASHINGTON D.C." www.xfl.com. Retrieved July 28, 2022.
  20. ^ Garrett, Shawn (May 1, 2023). "Seattle Sea Dragons end inaugural season after elimination from playoffs". KIRO 7 News Seattle. Retrieved February 23, 2024.
  21. ^ Alexander, Mookie (December 31, 2023). "Report: RIP, Seattle Sea Dragons?!". Field Gulls. Retrieved January 1, 2024.
  22. ^ Jim Haslett Record, Statistics, and Category Ranks - Pro-Football-Reference.com
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