| No. 62 | |||||||||
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| Position | Guard /Tackle | ||||||||
| Personal information | |||||||||
| Born | (1967-10-03)October 3, 1967 (age 58) Akron, Ohio, U.S. | ||||||||
| Listed height | 6 ft 5 in (1.96 m) | ||||||||
| Listed weight | 309 lb (140 kg) | ||||||||
| Career information | |||||||||
| High school | Westerville (OH) North | ||||||||
| College | Ohio State | ||||||||
| NFL draft | 1990: 5th round, 111th overall pick | ||||||||
| Career history | |||||||||
Playing | |||||||||
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 | |||||||||
Jeff Davidson (born October 3, 1967) is an American professionalfootball coach and former player in theNational Football League (NFL). He was theoffensive coordinator of theCarolina Panthers andCleveland Browns.
Davidson attendedWesterville North High School inWesterville, Ohio and was aletterman in football. He was also all state in football as well as all state in track & field in the shot put, where he holds his high school's school record at 60'3."
Davidson attended and played football for theOhio StateBuckeyes from 1986 to 1989. He became a starter at offensive guard as a junior and earnedAll-Big Ten honors as a senior.
He was also selected as a co-captain as a senior. His father Jim, an All-American tackle, had been Buckeye co-captain in 1964. The Davidsons became the first father-son captain duo in Ohio State history. They were followed by theHerbstreits (1960/1992) and theJohnsons (1984-1985/2007).
Davidson was drafted by theDenver Broncos in the fifth round of the1990 NFL draft.[1] He was with the Broncos for four seasons before signing with theNew Orleans Saints in1994, and retiring after suffering a shoulder injury.
After retiring, Davidson stayed with theNew Orleans Saints as a volunteer assistant in1995. He was made an offensive assistant by the Saints in1996. In1997, he was hired by theNew England Patriots as theirtight ends coach. At the end of the season, the Patriots promoted him to assistant offensive line coach, where he remained from1998-2001. In2002, he again became the tight ends coach while retaining his assistant offensive line coaching duties.
When Patriotsdefensive coordinatorRomeo Crennel left to become the Browns' head coach for the2005 season, Davidson followed Crennel to Cleveland as the Browns' offensive line coach. In2006, Davidson was named the team's assistant head coach/offensive line coach. After six games of the Browns' season, offensive coordinatorMaurice Carthon was fired and Davidson promoted in his place.
Davidson was hired on January 24, 2007, as the offensive coordinator of theCarolina Panthers. Having worked as a member of theNew England Patriots' staff underCharlie Weis, Davidson forged a close relationship with him. Weis is a good friend of former Panthers head coachJohn Fox, and it is believed that his recommendation was instrumental in Fox's decision to hire Davidson.[2] With his playing and coaching experience at the offensive line and additional coaching with tight ends, most believe this hire meant that Coach Fox wanted to keep his focus on a powerful offense based on a strong running game, as has been his tendency in the past.[3]
Head Coach Leslie Frazier announced Davidson would be joining the Vikings as offensive line coach on January 20, 2011.
On January 12, 2016, head coachMike Zimmer announced that Davidson's contract would not be renewed for the2016 NFL season.[4]
On January 14, 2016, the San Diego Chargers announced Jeff Davidson for new offensive line coach.
On January 14, 2017, Davidson was named offensive line coach of the Denver Broncos, joining recently fired San Diego Chargers head coachMike McCoy on the offensive staff for head coachVance Joseph.
On February 7, 2018, Davidson was named offensive line coach of theDetroit Lions.[5] On January 2, 2020, Davidson announced he was taking an "indefinite leave" from coaching.[6]