 Haslett with theTennessee Titans in 2021 | |||||||||
| No. 55, 51 | |||||||||
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| Position | Linebacker | ||||||||
| Personal information | |||||||||
| Born | (1955-12-09)December 9, 1955 (age 69) 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: 2nd round, 51st overall pick | ||||||||
| Career history | |||||||||
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Coaching | |||||||||
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| Awards and highlights | |||||||||
| Career NFL statistics | |||||||||
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| Head coaching record | |||||||||
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| Career |
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| Coaching profile at Pro Football Reference | |||||||||
James Donald Haslett (born December 9, 1955) is an Americanfootball coach and formerlinebacker who was most recently thehead coach of theSeattle Sea Dragons of theXFL. He playedcollege football for theIUP Big Indians before being drafted by theBuffalo Bills in the second round of the1979 NFL draft; he went on to be namedNFL Defensive Rookie of the Year.
Haslett's coaching career began in the late 1980s, with him rejoining the NFL by the mid-1990s. In 2000, he was hired ashead coach of theNew Orleans Saints and was named theNFL Coach of the Year. He has also served as head coach for theFlorida Tuskers of theUnited Football League (UFL).
Haslett attendedIndiana University of Pennsylvania, and was selected in the second round of the1979 NFL draft by theBuffalo Bills. He was alinebacker for theBuffalo Bills through 1985; he broke his leg during a 1986 preseason contest, ending his time with the Bills. He made a brief comeback with theNew York Jets in 1987. He was named theNFL Defensive Rookie of the Year for 1979. In a 2005 article in thePittsburgh Post-Gazette, Haslett admitted to usingsteroids while playing for the Buffalo Bills. Haslett went on record saying that "everybody tried it" to gain a competitive advantage against opposing teams.[1]
Haslett began his coaching career at theUniversity 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 theSacramento Surge of theWorld League of American Football for the team's inaugural season in 1991.[4] The league suspended operations after the 1992 season.
Haslett began his NFL coaching career as a linebackers coach for theLos Angeles Raiders in 1993.[5] After two seasons with the Raiders, Haslett was hired as linebackers coach for theNew Orleans Saints. He was promoted to defensive coordinator for the 1996 season. After head coachJim Mora quit during the season, Haslett was offered the interim head coach position, but he declined, and was not retained by new head coachMike Ditka for the 1997 season.[6]
Haslett was then hired as the defensive coordinator for thePittsburgh Steelers, where he coached for three seasons from 1997 to 1999.[7]
In January 2000, Haslett was named head coach of theNew Orleans Saints. He was reportedly hired to a three-year contract.[7] That season, he guided theSaints to a 10–6 regular-season record, their secondNFC West division championship, and the first playoff victory in franchise history (defeating theSt. Louis Rams; they lost to theMinnesota Vikings the next week). As a result of the Saints' turnaround from their previous 3–13 season (under his predecessor,Mike Ditka), Haslett was namedNFL 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 byHurricane Katrina's devastation of New Orleans. This forced the franchise to temporarily relocate toSan Antonio, playing three of their 'home' games in theAlamodome. Another four home games were played inBaton Rouge atLSU'sTiger Stadium, and one took place atGiants Stadium in New Jersey (against theNew 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]
Haslett became theSt. Louis Rams' defensive coordinator to start the 2006 season. On September 29, 2008, Haslett was named the interim head coach of the Rams afterScott 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 4-1Washington 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]
Haslett coached theFlorida Tuskers of theUnited 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 theLas Vegas Locomotives. He won UFL Coach of Year in their inaugural season.[11]
Haslett was hired as theWashington Redskins defensive coordinator on January 12, 2010, under head coachMike Shanahan. Haslett replaced the retiringGreg Blache.[12] After many speculated he would be fired after the disastrous2013 season, new head coachJay Gruden announced Haslett would remain on the team for the upcoming2014 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]
After spending the 2015 season as a consultant forPenn State,[14] Haslett was hired as the linebackers coach for theCincinnati Bengals on January 15, 2016.[15] Following the2018 season, the Bengals chose not to retain Haslett along with several other assistant coaches after the firing of longtime head coachMarvin Lewis.[16]
On February 6, 2020,Tennessee Titans head coachMike Vrabel hired Haslett as the team'sinside linebackers coach.[17] Haslett spent two years in the role. He was not retained after the 2021 season.[18]
Haslett was announced as an XFL head coach in 2021, later revealed to be for the Seattle Sea Dragons.[19] Due to theCOVID-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 theDC Defenders.[20]
On January 1, 2024, it was announced that the Sea Dragons would be disbanding. Eight teams from competing spring football leagues, theXFL andUSFL, merged into theUnited Football League going into the 2024 season; the Sea Dragons were not one of the teams selected for the merger.[21]
| 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 toMinnesota Vikings inNFC 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 | 47 | 61 | 0 | .435 | 1 | 1 | .500 | |||
*Interim head coach
| 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 toLas Vegas Locomotives in2009 UFL Championship Game |
| Total | 6 | 0 | 1.000 | 0 | 1 | .000 | |||
| 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 toDC Defenders in XFL North Division Championship |
| Total | 7 | 3 | .700 | 0 | 1 | .000 | |||