AP Images/Detroit Lions
ALAMEDA, Calif. – Brian Callahanhas been named quarterbacks coach of the Oakland Raiders, the club announced Monday. Callahan is entering his ninth season as an NFL coach, having spent six seasons with the Denver Broncos (2010-15) and two years with the Detroit Lions (2016-17).
Callahan joins the Raiders after serving as the quarterbacks coach of the Detroit Lions for the previous two years, overseeing the development of quarterback Matthew Stafford. Over the course of his two-year stint with the Lions, Stafford ranked in the top-10 in touchdown passes (53), passing yards (8,773), completions (759), completion percentage (65.5) and pass interception percentage (1.7).
Last season, Stafford ranked third in the NFL and first in the NFC in passing yards (4,446), fourth in passing touchdowns (29) and sixth in completion percentage (65.7 percent), the second-best mark of his career.
In his first year with Detroit in 2016, Callahan coached Stafford to an NFL-best eight fourth-quarter game-winning drives, the most by a signal caller in a single season since the 1970 AFL-NFL Merger. In the season's finale and Stafford's 109th career game, he set an NFL record by crossing the 30,000-yard barrier in the fewest games in NFL history, breaking the previous mark of 114 that was set by Hall of Fame quarterbacks Dan Marino and Kurt Warner.
Prior to joining the Lions, Callahan broke in to the NFL with the Denver Broncos, spending six years with the club in numerous offensive roles, entering as a coaching assistant in 2010, quality control – offensive from 2011-12, offensive assistant in 2013-14 and finished as an offensive assistant/quarterbacks coach in 2015.
Prior to joining the NFL coaching ranks, Callahan spent two years (2008-09) at Junipero Serra High School in nearby San Mateo, Calif., as the team's offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach. From 2006-07, Callahan was a graduate assistant at UCLA, serving in the Bruins' football operations department in 2006 before expanding his role in 2007 by working with the wide receivers, breaking down opponent game film and assisting with game preparation.
A native of Champaign, Ill., Callahan appeared in 13 games for UCLA as a holder on point after attempts as a former walk-on quarterback. He received his bachelor's degree in sociology from the institution in 2006 before leaving the school in 2008 with a master's degree in education.
BRIAN CALLAHAN'S COACHING BACKGROUND
Years College/Pro Team Position Coached
2006-07 UCLA Graduate Assistant
2010 Denver Broncos Coaching Assistant
2011-12 Denver Broncos Quality Control – Offense
2013-14 Denver Broncos Offensive Assistant
2015 Denver Broncos Offensive Assistant/Quarterbacks
2016-17 Detroit Lions Quarterbacks
