HENDERSON, Nev. – Nick Holz has been named offensive passing game coordinator of the Las Vegas Raiders, the club announced Friday.
Holz, who coached for the Raiders for 10 seasons from 2012-21, served the past two years as the offensive coordinator with the Tennessee Titans. Last season, Holz helped tutor No. 1 overall draft pick Cam Ward, who started all 17 games and threw 15 touchdown passes. During his first year in Tennessee, Holz helped direct a Titans offense that featured running back Tony Pollard and wide receiver Calvin Ridley, who produced 1,000-yard seasons rushing and receiving, respectively. From Week 10 to Week 18, the Titans tied for eighth in the NFL in gross passing yards (2,116) and ranked seventh in yards per attempt (7.64).
Holz joined the Titans after spending the 2023 campaign as the passing game coordinator for the Jacksonville Jaguars. Working in an offense that featured quarterback Trevor Lawrence, Holz helped the unit rank ninth in passing (242.7 yards per game) and 13th in points scored (22.2 points per game).
Before his stint in Jacksonville, Holz was the offensive coordinator for UNLV in 2022, which followed a decade with the Oakland/Las Vegas Raiders. With the Raiders, he served in a variety of roles on offense, mostly focused on wide receivers. He served on the staff of three different Raiders head coaches and worked with a notable list of offensive minds, including Greg Knapp, Greg Olson, Bill Musgrave and Jon Gruden.
With Holz employed as Raiders assistant wide receivers coach in 2021, Hunter Renfrow earned Pro Bowl honors after posting career-best numbers with 103 catches for 1,038 yards and nine touchdowns. The team fielded the league's sixth-ranked passing offense (268.6 yards per game), and the team's wide receivers averaged 9.1 yards per target to finish fourth in the NFL.
In 2020, Holz helped oversee a position group that posted an NFL-best average of 15.2 yards per reception, the highest average yards per reception by a Raiders wide receiving corps since 2004. He continued to aid in the development of Renfrow, as the second-year receiver recorded then-career highs in receptions (56) and receiving yards (656), while adding two touchdown receptions. Holz helped guide fifth-round draft pick Renfrow in 2019 as he recorded one of the most productive rookie campaigns in club history. Renfrow recorded the second-most receptions (49) by a rookie in team annals, while his 30 receptions for first downs ranked first among fifth-round draft picks or later in Raiders franchise history.
In 2018, the Raiders offense featured a 100-yard receiver through the team's first four contests, marking the first time the club had done so since 2005. Holz was named assistant wide receivers coach in 2017 and helped in the development of veteran duo Michael Crabtree and Amari Cooper's continued success. In 2016, Holz helped Cooper earn his second consecutive Pro Bowl selection. Cooper led the team with 1,153 receiving yards on 83 catches (13.9 avg.) with five touchdowns, becoming the third player in NFL history with at least 1,000 yards and 70 catches in each of his first two seasons. With Holz's assistance in 2015, first-round draft pick Cooper set rookie franchise benchmarks for receptions (72), receiving yards (1,070) and 100-yard games (five).
In 2014, Holz groomed the team's receiving corps while helping several free-agent acquisitions adapt into productive roles. Andre Holmes set career highs with 47 receptions and 693 yards, and second-year wideout Brice Butler emerged as a deep threat with 21 receptions and two touchdowns. Holz's first season in Oakland was 2012, when he served on the staff that helped Rod Streater produce one of the most productive campaigns in recent history among undrafted rookies. In Holz's second season with Streater in 2013, the second-year wideout led the offense with 60 catches and 888 yards.
Prior to joining the Raiders, Holz was an assistant at Stanford under head coach Jim Harbaugh (2008-10) and David Shaw (2011). Holz served as an offensive and operations assistant for the Cardinal and helped the team to appearances in the Sun Bowl, Orange Bowl and Fiesta Bowl. As an assistant quarterbacks coach, he helped Andrew Luck earn first-team All-American honors and finish as the runner-up in Heisman Trophy voting two times.
Holz began his collegiate coaching career in 2007 at Nebraska, where he served as offensive quality control coach and video intern for the Cornhuskers under head coach Bill Callahan.
At the University of Colorado, Holz was a three-year letter winner (2004- 06) as a wide receiver and holder. He was voted by teammates as the recipient of The Regiment Award, presented annually to the Colorado senior who makes the greatest contribution to the team with the least recognition. He earned a bachelor's degree in communications.
A native of Danville, Calif., Holz attended De La Salle High School in Concord, Calif., where he was part of the school's national-record 151-game winning streak and a No. 1 national ranking. He was named the team's most inspirational player following the Spartans' 2002 national championship season.
