| Seattle Seahawks | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Title | Run game coordinator & senior offensive advisor | ||||||||
| Personal information | |||||||||
| Born | (1958-06-22)June 22, 1958 (age 67) Kalispell, Montana, U.S. | ||||||||
| Height | 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m) | ||||||||
| Weight | 220 lb (100 kg) | ||||||||
| Career information | |||||||||
| High school | Fort Collins (CO) Rocky Mountain | ||||||||
| College | Colorado State | ||||||||
| NFL draft | 1980: undrafted | ||||||||
| Position | Linebacker, No. 55 | ||||||||
| Career history | |||||||||
Playing | |||||||||
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* Offseason and/or practice squad member only | |||||||||
Coaching | |||||||||
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| Awards and highlights | |||||||||
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| Career NFL statistics | |||||||||
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| Coaching profile at Pro Football Reference | |||||||||
Rick Steven Dennison[2] (born June 22, 1958) is an American professionalfootball coach and former linebacker who is currently the run game coordinator and senior offensive advisor for theSeattle Seahawks of theNational Football League (NFL). He was theoffensive line coach andrun game coordinator for theMinnesota Vikings of theNational Football League (NFL) from 2019 to 2020. An assistant in the NFL since 1995, he has worked exclusively on the staffs ofMike Shanahan andGary Kubiak, and also served asoffensive coordinator for theDenver Broncos (2006–2008, 2015–2016),Houston Texans (2010–2013), andBuffalo Bills (2017), and served asquarterbacks coach for theBaltimore Ravens in2014. He was thespecial teams coach for theSuper Bowl Champion Broncos in1997 and1998. Alinebacker who spent his entire NFL playing career in Denver from1982 to1990, he appeared in Super BowlsXXI,XXII, andXXIV.
Dennison was born inKalispell, Montana, on June 22, 1958.[3] His fatherGeorge was the 16thPresident ofThe University of Montana from 1990 to 2010.[4] The younger Dennison starred in football,baseball, andbasketball atRocky Mountain High School where he graduated in 1976.[5]
Dennison attendedColorado State University where he was a footballletterman for theRams in 1976, 1978 and 1979. Wearinguniform number 83 and primarily atight end for head coachSark Arslanian, Dennison also saw some action as a wide receiver. He was both a second-teamAcademic All-American and the recipient of theMerrill-Gheen Award as the university's most outstanding male scholar-athlete in hissenior year. He earned abachelor's andmaster's degree, both incivil engineering, in 1980 and 1982 respectively.[5][6][7]
Dennison moved to linebacker when he entered the NFL. He played for theDenver Broncos from 1982 to 1990.
During a year off in 1993 for personal reasons, "Rico" assistedSuffield Academy in a successful New England football championship.
Dennison began his coaching career as an offensive assistant for theDenver Broncos in 1995 and would serve in this role until 1996. In 1997, Dennison was promoted to special teams coordinator and would serve in this role for four seasons. In 2001, Dennison shifted to the offensive line coach of the Broncos. In 2006, Dennison was promoted to offensive coordinator of the Broncos and would serve in this role from 2006 to 2008.
In 2010, Dennison was hired by theHouston Texans as their offensive coordinator and served in this position from 2010 to 2013. Dennison's move to Houston reunited him with Texans head coachGary Kubiak, who was a teammate of his in Denver between 1983 and 1990 and a fellow Broncos assistant coach between 1995 and 2005, and who he succeeded as Broncos offensive coordinator in 2006. On January 6, 2013, theChicago Bears announced that they would interview Dennison for their head coaching position.[8]
Both Dennison and Kubiak were appointed quarterbacks coach and offensive coordinator respectively of theBaltimore Ravens on January 27, 2014.[9]
In January 2015, Dennison returned to the position of offensive coordinator with the Broncos following the hiring of Kubiak as head coach.[10] On February 7, 2016, Dennison was part of the Broncos coaching staff that wonSuper Bowl 50. In the game, the Broncos defeated theCarolina Panthers by a score of 24–10.[11]
After the retirement of Kubiak following the 2016 season, Dennison was replaced by former San Diego Chargers head coachMike McCoy as the Broncos' offensive coordinator.[12]
On January 19, 2017, he was hired by the Buffalo Bills to serve onSean McDermott's staff as offensive coordinator.[13] On January 12, 2018, Dennison was relieved of duty as offensive coordinator after one season that saw the Bills offense finish 29th overall despite making the postseason.[14]
On January 27, 2018, Dennison was hired by theNew York Jets as their offensive line coach and run game coordinator under head coachTodd Bowles.[15]
On February 8, 2019, Dennison was hired by theMinnesota Vikings as their offensive line coach and run game coordinator under head coachMike Zimmer, replacingClancy Barone andAndrew Janocko, who took over in place ofTony Sparano, who died prior to the 2018 season.[16] In 2021 during theCOVID-19 pandemic Dennison refused to take a vaccine and was promoted to a different job. Rick now serves as the Minnesota Vikings senior offensive advisor.[17] The reason for this promotion was because it will follow COVID-19 protocols, because of being able to avoid contact with players.
On February 16, 2024, Dennison was hired to serve as the senior offensive assistant for theNew Orleans Saints.[18]
On February 18, 2025, theSeattle Seahawks hired Dennison to serve as the team's running back-game coordinator.[19]
