David Patrick Ragone (born October 3, 1979) is an
American football
American football (referred to simply as football in the United States and Canada), also known as gridiron, is a team sport played by two teams of eleven players on a rectangular field with goalposts at each end. The offense, the team with ...
coach and former player who is the
offensive coordinator
An offensive coordinator is a member of the coaching staff of an American football or Canadian football team who is in charge of the team's offense. Generally, along with the defensive coordinator and the special teams coordinator, this coach re ...
for the
Atlanta Falcons
The Atlanta Falcons are a professional American football team based in Atlanta. The Falcons compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's National Football Conference (NFC) South division. The Falcons joined th ...
of the
National Football League
The National Football League (NFL) is a professional American football league that consists of 32 teams, divided equally between the American Football Conference (AFC) and the National Football Conference (NFC). The NFL is one of the ...
(NFL). He previously served as an assistant coach for the
Chicago Bears
The Chicago Bears are a professional American football team based in Chicago. The Bears compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's National Football Conference (NFC) North division. The Bears have won nine NF ...
,
Washington Redskins
The Washington Commanders are a professional American football team based in the Washington metropolitan area. The Commanders compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's National Football Conference (NFC) N ...
and
Tennessee Titans
The Tennessee Titans are a professional American football team based in Nashville, Tennessee. The Titans compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the American Football Conference (AFC) South division, and play their h ...
.
Ragone played
college football
College football (french: Football universitaire) refers to gridiron football played by teams of student athletes. It was through college football play that American football rules first gained popularity in the United States.
Unlike most ...
at the
University of Louisville
The University of Louisville (UofL) is a public research university in Louisville, Kentucky. It is part of the Kentucky state university system. When founded in 1798, it was the first city-owned public university in the United States and one of ...
and played in the NFL and
NFL Europe
NFL Europe League (simply called NFL Europe and known in its final season as NFL Europa League) was a professional American football league that functioned as the developmental minor league of the National Football League (NFL). Originally f ...
for four seasons.
Early years
Ragone attended
St. Ignatius High School and was a
letterman
Letterman may refer to:
* Letterman (sports), a classification of high school or college athlete in the United States
People
* David Letterman (born 1947), American television talk show host
** ''Late Night with David Letterman'', talk show that ...
in football and basketball. In football, as a senior quarterback, he was an All-State first-team honoree and led his team to the State Semi-Final game, losing 20–19 against Canton McKinley. Also as a senior, he was a starter on the basketball team that went on to be the State Runner-Up.
In the fall of 2009, Ragone was inducted into the Saint Ignatius Athletic Hall of Fame.
Playing career
College
During his college career at the
University of Louisville
The University of Louisville (UofL) is a public research university in Louisville, Kentucky. It is part of the Kentucky state university system. When founded in 1798, it was the first city-owned public university in the United States and one of ...
, he went 27–11 as a starting quarterback, including an 11–1 mark in 2001. Ragone finished his college years as Louisville's second all-time leading passer. He was a three-time
All-American honorable mention and three-time Conference USA Offensive Player of the Year.
National Football League
Ragone was selected in the third round of the
2003 NFL draft
The 2003 NFL draft was the procedure by which National Football League (NFL) teams selected amateur college football players. The draft is known officially as the "NFL Annual Player Selection Meeting" and has been conducted annually since 1936 NF ...
by the
Houston Texans
The Houston Texans are a professional American football team based in Houston. The Texans compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the American Football Conference (AFC) AFC South, South division, and play their home ga ...
and
started in two games behind
David Carr. In 2005, Ragone was named
NFL Europe
NFL Europe League (simply called NFL Europe and known in its final season as NFL Europa League) was a professional American football league that functioned as the developmental minor league of the National Football League (NFL). Originally f ...
's Offensive MVP, leading the
Berlin Thunder
The Berlin Thunder were a professional American football team in NFL Europe.
History
The Thunder came into existence as an expansion team, after the London/England Monarchs franchise shut down operations, prior to the 1999 season. Home games f ...
to
World Bowl XIII
World Bowl XIII, officially known as Yello Strom World Bowl XIII, was NFL Europe's 2005 championship game. It was played at the LTU arena in Düsseldorf, Germany on June 11, 2005. In this match-up, the 6–4 Amsterdam Admirals got back to the W ...
. Ragone was waived by the Texans and claimed by the
Cincinnati Bengals
The Cincinnati Bengals are a professional American football team based in Cincinnati. The Bengals compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's American Football Conference (AFC) AFC North, North division. The c ...
in May 2006. In June 2006, the Bengals traded Ragone to the
St. Louis Rams
The St. Louis Rams were a professional American football team of the National Football League (NFL). They played in St. Louis from 1995 to the 2015 season, before moving back to Los Angeles, where the team had played from 1946 to 1994.
The arr ...
.
Ragone was released by the Rams during training camp prior to the 2006 season. He then began a sports talk show on
Louisville, Kentucky
Louisville ( , , ) is the largest city in the Commonwealth of Kentucky and the 28th most-populous city in the United States. Louisville is the historical seat and, since 2003, the nominal seat of Jefferson County, on the Indiana border ...
radio station
WQKC.
Coaching career
Hartford Colonials
On March 19, 2010, Ragone was named the wide receiver/quarterback coach for the
Hartford Colonials
The Hartford Colonials, originally the New York Sentinels, were a professional American football team that played in the United Football League in its 2009 and 2010 seasons. A charter member of the UFL, the Sentinels began play in 2009 nominally ...
of the
United Football League. Under his coaching, quarterback
Josh McCown
Joshua Treadwell McCown (born July 4, 1979) is an American football quarterback who is a free agent. He attended Jacksonville High School in Jacksonville, Texas, where he was named the East Texas Player of the Year and earned All-State honorabl ...
was named Offensive Player of the Week on September 20, 2010.
He would also lead the league in passer rating & touchdown passes.
Tennessee Titans
On February 22, 2011, Ragone was hired by the
Tennessee Titans
The Tennessee Titans are a professional American football team based in Nashville, Tennessee. The Titans compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the American Football Conference (AFC) South division, and play their h ...
as their
wide receivers coach
In American football, a position coach is a team official in charge of coaching a specific position group. Position coaches have more specialized duties than the head coach, assistant coach, and the Offensive coordinator, offensive and Defensive c ...
, following his head coach
Chris Palmer who was named offensive coordinator on the 15th. During the 2011 season, the Titans went 9–7 and missed the playoffs for the third consecutive season. Under his coaching, wide receiver
Nate Washington
Nate Washington (born August 28, 1983) is a former American football wide receiver. He was signed by the Pittsburgh Steelers as an undrafted free agent in 2005 and played on two Super Bowl-winning teams during four seasons with the Steelers. He t ...
eclipsed 1,000 yards and recorded seven touchdowns.
During the 2012 NFL draft, the Titans selected wide receiver
Kendall Wright
Kendall Thomas Wright (born November 12, 1989) is an American football wide receiver who is a free agent. He played college football at Baylor, where he is the career leader in receptions, receiving yards, and receiving touchdowns. Wright w ...
with the 20th pick. Wright would go on to lead all NFL rookies with 64 receptions. The Titans went 6-10 in 2012, and missed the playoffs for the fourth straight year.
On January 18, 2013, Ragone was reassigned from wide receiver to quarterbacks coach, replacing
Dowell Loggains who was promoted to offensive coordinator after the Titans fired
Chris Palmer on November 26, 2012. The Titans went 7-9 and missed the playoffs for the fifth straight year. At the end of the season, head coach
Mike Munchak
Michael Anthony Munchak (born March 5, 1960) is an American professional football coach and former player. A graduate of Penn State, Munchak played left guard for the Houston Oilers from 1982 until 1993 and was a nine-time selection to the Pro B ...
was fired, leaving Ragone without a job.
Washington Redskins
On February 27, 2015, Ragone was hired as the offensive quality control coach for the
Washington Redskins
The Washington Commanders are a professional American football team based in the Washington metropolitan area. The Commanders compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's National Football Conference (NFC) N ...
.
Chicago Bears
On January 22, 2016, Ragone was named quarterbacks coach of the
Chicago Bears
The Chicago Bears are a professional American football team based in Chicago. The Bears compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's National Football Conference (NFC) North division. The Bears have won nine NF ...
under head coach
John Fox. The Bears went 3–13 and missed the playoffs, the worst record for the franchise since the NFL moved to 16-game seasons in 1978. Although Ragone was tasked with coaching quarterback
Jay Cutler
Jay Christopher Cutler (born April 29, 1983) is an American former professional football player who was a quarterback in the National Football League (NFL) for 12 seasons, primarily with the Chicago Bears. He played college football for the Van ...
, Cutler and the team struggled with injuries, forcing backups
Brian Hoyer
Axel Edward Brian Hoyer (born October 13, 1985) is an American football quarterback for the New England Patriots of the National Football League (NFL). Since joining the NFL in 2009 as an undrafted free agent, he has started for seven different ...
and
Matt Barkley
Matthew Montgomery Barkley (born September 8, 1990) is an American football quarterback for the Buffalo Bills of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football at USC, and was drafted by the Philadelphia Eagles in the fourth roun ...
into action. The Bears also went 0–8 on the road for the first time in franchise history.
During the 2017 NFL Draft, the Bears selected quarterback
Mitchell Trubisky
Mitchell David Trubisky (born August 20, 1994) is an American football quarterback for the Pittsburgh Steelers of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football at North Carolina and was drafted second overall by the Chicago ...
with the 2nd overall pick. They also signed former
Tampa Bay Buccaneers
The Tampa Bay Buccaneers are a professional American football team based in Tampa, Florida. The Buccaneers compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's National Football Conference (NFC) NFC South, South divisio ...
starting quarterback
Mike Glennon
Michael Joseph Glennon (born December 12, 1989) is an American football quarterback who is a free agent. He played college football at NC State and was drafted by the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in the third round of the 2013 NFL Draft. He has also pl ...
in free agency. The Bears went 5–11 and missed the playoffs for the fourth consecutive season.
When Fox was fired after the 2017 season, Ragone was retained by new coach
Matt Nagy
Matthew Nagy ( or ; born April 24, 1978) is an American football coach, and former arena football quarterback, who is the senior assistant and quarterbacks coach for the Kansas City Chiefs of the National Football League (NFL). He was the head ...
; he was the lone offensive assistant from the Fox regime to stay with the Bears. The Bears went 12–4 in 2018, earning a winning season for the first time since 2012, making the playoffs and winning the NFC North for the first time since 2010. They would go on to lose to the
Philadelphia Eagles
The Philadelphia Eagles are a professional American football team based in Philadelphia. The Eagles compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's National Football Conference (NFC) East division. The team plays ...
in the wild card round 16–15 with Trubisky setting numerous franchise passing records. Under his coaching, Trubisky would be selected to the Pro Bowl.
The Bears went 8–8 in 2019 and missed the playoffs. On January 16, 2020, Nagy hired
John DeFilippo
John Eugene DeFilippo (born April 12, 1978) is an American football coach who is the head coach for the New Orleans Breakers (2022), New Orleans Breakers of the United States Football League (2022), United States Football League (USFL). He playe ...
as quarterbacks coach and Ragone was promoted to passing game coordinator.
Atlanta Falcons
On January 21, 2021, Ragone was hired by the
Atlanta Falcons
The Atlanta Falcons are a professional American football team based in Atlanta. The Falcons compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's National Football Conference (NFC) South division. The Falcons joined th ...
as their offensive coordinator under head coach
Arthur Smith.
References
External links
Louisville Cardinals bioTennessee Titans bio
{{DEFAULTSORT:Ragone, Dave
1979 births
Living people
Saint Ignatius High School (Cleveland) alumni
American football quarterbacks
Louisville Cardinals football players
Houston Texans players
Berlin Thunder players
St. Louis Rams players
Hartford Colonials coaches
Tennessee Titans coaches
Washington Redskins coaches
Chicago Bears coaches
Players of American football from Ohio
People from Middleburg Heights, Ohio
Atlanta Falcons coaches
National Football League offensive coordinators