 Tolzien with theIndianapolis Colts in 2016 | |||||||||||||||
| New Orleans Saints | |||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Title | Quarterbacks coach | ||||||||||||||
| Personal information | |||||||||||||||
| Born | (1987-09-04)September 4, 1987 (age 38) Rolling Meadows, Illinois, U.S. | ||||||||||||||
| Height | 6 ft 2 in (1.88 m) | ||||||||||||||
| Weight | 215 lb (98 kg) | ||||||||||||||
| Career information | |||||||||||||||
| High school | William Fremd(Palatine, Illinois) | ||||||||||||||
| College | Wisconsin (2006–2010) | ||||||||||||||
| NFL draft | 2011: undrafted | ||||||||||||||
| Position | Quarterback, No. 16 | ||||||||||||||
| Career history | |||||||||||||||
Playing | |||||||||||||||
* Offseason and/or practice squad member only | |||||||||||||||
Coaching | |||||||||||||||
| |||||||||||||||
| Awards and highlights | |||||||||||||||
| |||||||||||||||
| Career NFL statistics | |||||||||||||||
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Scott Jeffery Tolzien (born September 4, 1987) is an American former professionalfootballquarterback and coach who currently serves thequarterbacks coach for theNew Orleans Saints of theNational Football League (NFL). He playedcollege football for theWisconsin Badgers. He was signed by theSan Diego Chargers as anundrafted free agent in 2011. He was also a member of theSan Francisco 49ers,Green Bay Packers, andIndianapolis Colts.
Tolzien was a two-star recruit out ofWilliam Fremd High School, located inPalatine, Illinois, a suburb northwest ofChicago.[1] He made official visits to theUniversity of Kentucky and theUniversity of Toledo, but he did not attract many offers from major universities. He chose to attend theUniversity of Wisconsin–Madison.[2]
Tolzien attended and played college football for the University of Wisconsin from 2006–2010.[3]
As a true freshman at Wisconsin in2006, Tolzien wasredshirted and did not play.[4]
Tolzien did not play in any games for Wisconsin in2007, as Wisconsin had Tyler Donovan,Allan Evridge, and Dustin Sherer at quarterback.[5]
After Allan Evridge was benched following his performances againstMichigan,Ohio State, andPenn State, Tolzien saw his first major action for Wisconsin againstIowa inKinnick Stadium. He completed 5 passes on 8 attempts, but threw an interception in the red zone.[6] Dustin Sherer eventually took charge of the Badgers, who finished the season 7–6.[7]
The winner of a spring quarterback competition, Tolzien beat out starter Sherer in2009. He set the Wisconsin record for completions in a single season, with 211, and passed for 2,705 yards.[8] Under Tolzien's leadership, Wisconsin finished the season at 9–3.[9] He threw a pair of interceptions that were returned for touchdowns in a loss atOhio State and threw three interceptions againstIowa the following week.[10][11] Despite this, Tolzien played well in games againstMichigan,Minnesota, andMichigan State, and was named Big Ten Offensive Player of the Week for his efforts against Michigan State.[12][13][14]
Tolzien finished the2009 season in a 20–14 win overMiami in theChamps Sports Bowl, completing 19 passes on 26 attempts as the Badgers knocked off the higher-ranked Hurricanes.[15]
After a disappointing effort againstMichigan State, Tolzien improved week after week as the Badgers won their next 7 games, to finish the year 11–1.[16][17] Against a top 5Ohio State defense, Tolzien completed 13 of 16 passes. His efforts led the Badgers to an eventual upset of then top-rankedOhio State.[18] The next week againstIowa, Tolzien again had a solid game, completing 20 passes on 26 attempts for 205 yards and a touchdown. Most impressively, Tolzien led the Badgers down the field for the game-winning touchdown with Wisconsin's running game stifled by Iowa's defense.[19] In his final home start, against theNorthwestern Wildcats, Tolzien completed 15 passes on 19 attempts for 230 yards with four touchdown passes.[20]
Tolzien made his final collegiate start at Wisconsin in theRose Bowl against one of the top defenses in the nation,TCU. He finished the game with 12 completions out of 21 attempts for 159 yards, no touchdowns and no interceptions and a rating of 120.7 for the game, and the Horned Frogs won, 21–19. Tolzein completed his college career at theEast-West Shrine Game on January 22, 2011.[21]
Tolzien won theJohnny Unitas Golden Arm Award in2010, edging out finalistsAndy Dalton ofTCU,Colin Kaepernick ofNevada,Christian Ponder ofFlorida State, andRicky Stanzi ofIowa,[22][23] In 2010, he set a new Wisconsin record for completion percentage in a single season, completing 74.3% of his passes in 12 regular season games. Tolzien ranked 4th nationally in passer rating, and led the nation in completion percentage.
| Wisconsin Badgers | ||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Season | Games | Passing | Rushing | |||||||||||
| GP | GS | Record | Cmp | Att | Yds | Pct | TD | Int | Rtg | Att | Yds | Avg | TD | |
| 2006 | 0 | 0 | — | Redshirted | ||||||||||
| 2007 | 0 | 0 | — | DNP | ||||||||||
| 2008 | 3 | 0 | — | 5 | 8 | 107 | 62.5 | 0 | 1 | 149.9 | 4 | 13 | 3.3 | 1 |
| 2009 | 13 | 13 | 10–3 | 211 | 328 | 2,705 | 64.3 | 16 | 11 | 143.0 | 54 | 8 | 0.1 | 2 |
| 2010 | 13 | 13 | 11–2 | 194 | 266 | 2,459 | 72.9 | 16 | 6 | 165.9 | 30 | −30 | −1.0 | 0 |
| Total | 29 | 26 | 21–5 | 410 | 602 | 5,271 | 68.1 | 32 | 18 | 153.2 | 88 | -9 | -0.1 | 3 |
| Height | Weight | Arm length | Hand span | 40-yard dash | 10-yard split | 20-yard split | 20-yard shuttle | Three-cone drill | Vertical jump | Broad jump | Wonderlic | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 6 ft 2 in (1.88 m) | 212 lb (96 kg) | 30+1⁄2 in (0.77 m) | 10 in (0.25 m) | 5.06 s | 1.79 s | 2.96 s | 4.12 s | 6.84 s | 29.5 in (0.75 m) | 9 ft 8 in (2.95 m) | 38[24] | |
| All values are fromNFL Combine[25][26] | ||||||||||||
After going undrafted in the2011 NFL draft, Tolzien signed with theSan Diego Chargers on July 26, 2011.[27] He threw for 302 yards, one touchdown, and one interception in thepreseason.[28] On September 3, 2011, Tolzien was released by the Chargers during final team cuts.[29]
On September 4, 2011, Tolzien was claimed off waivers by theSan Francisco 49ers.[30] He became the 49ers third-string quarterback behind starterAlex Smith and backupColin Kaepernick. He remained with San Francisco after the conclusion of the 2012 preseason, still slotted as the team's third-string quarterback. He was on the roster for the 49ers appearance inSuper Bowl XLVII. On August 26, 2013, Tolzien was waived by the 49ers.[31]
Tolzien was signed to theGreen Bay Packers practice squad on September 1, 2013.[32] AfterAaron Rodgers suffered aclavicle injury, the Packers brought him up from the practice squad to the active roster. On November 10, 2013, Tolzien entered a game after an early injury to Rodgers's backupSeneca Wallace.[33]
In his regular season debut, Tolzien completed 24-of-39 attempts for 280 yards, one touchdown and two interceptions in a 27–13 loss to thePhiladelphia Eagles, earning him the start in the Packers' next game against theNew York Giants.[34] Against the Giants, Tolzien was 24 of 34 and threw for 339 yards, but also threw 3 interceptions in a 27–13 loss.[35] The next week against the Vikings, Tolzien performed a spin move during a touchdown run before being relieved by quarterbackMatt Flynn who led the Packers to a 26–26 tie against their divisional rival.[36][37][38]
In the 2015 season, he appeared in three games for the Packers and had very limited roles.[39]
On March 11, 2016, Tolzien signed a two-year contract with theIndianapolis Colts worth $3.50 million with $500,000 guaranteed.[40][41] Due to a concussion toAndrew Luck, Tolzien made his first start for the Colts on Thanksgiving on November 24, 2016, throwing for 205 yards, one touchdown, and two interceptions in a 28–7 loss to thePittsburgh Steelers.[42]
With Luck being inactive due to a shoulder injury, Tolzien was named the starting quarterback to begin the 2017 season.[43] On September 10, 2017, he started the season opener against theLos Angeles Rams. Tolzien had 128 passing yards with two interceptions returned for touchdowns, until being benched in favor forJacoby Brissett. The Colts lost by a score of 46–9.[44] Brissett started the next game against theArizona Cardinals with Tolzien as the backup. After being benched, Tolzien had no more action in 2017. At the end of the year the Colts elected not to renew his contract, and he became a free agent.[45]
On November 27, 2018, Tolzien was selected by theBirmingham Iron of theAlliance of American Football in the third round of the2019 AAF QB Draft.[46]
Tolzien never played a down for the Iron as he retired before training camp began; the league would shut down abruptly eight weeks into its season.[47]
| Year | Team | Games | Passing | Rushing | Fumbles | ||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| GP | GS | Cmp | Att | Pct | Yds | Avg | TD | Int | Rtg | Att | Yds | Avg | TD | Fum | Lost | ||||
| 2011 | SF | 0 | 0 | DNP | |||||||||||||||
| 2012 | SF | 0 | 0 | DNP | |||||||||||||||
| 2013 | GB | 3 | 2 | 55 | 90 | 61.1 | 717 | 8.0 | 1 | 5 | 66.8 | 5 | 55 | 11.0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | ||
| 2014 | GB | 0 | 0 | DNP | |||||||||||||||
| 2015 | GB | 3 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 100.0 | 4 | 4.0 | 0 | 0 | 83.3 | 3 | −3 | −1.0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | ||
| 2016 | IND | 3 | 1 | 23 | 37 | 62.2 | 216 | 5.8 | 1 | 2 | 64.7 | 6 | 3 | 0.5 | 0 | 1 | 0 | ||
| 2017 | IND | 1 | 1 | 9 | 18 | 50 | 128 | 7.1 | 0 | 2 | 33.8 | 2 | 2 | 1.0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | ||
| Total | 10 | 4 | 88 | 146 | 60.3 | 1,065 | 7.3 | 2 | 9 | 61.6 | 16 | 57 | 3.6 | 1 | 3 | 0 | |||
TheWisconsin Badgers hired Tolzien as an analyst to work on scouting opponents in2019.[48]
After the hiring of newDallas Cowboys head coachMike McCarthy, Tolzien joined the team's coaching staff under his former head coach as a coaching assistant. On February 24, 2023, Tolzien was promoted to quarterbacks coach.[49] On January 26, 2025, Tolzien and the Cowboys parted ways following the expiration of his contract.[50]
On February 18, 2025, theNew Orleans Saints hired Tolzien to serve as the team's quarterbacks coach.[51]
