James Robert Cooter (born July 3, 1984) 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 wi ...
coach who is the
offensive coordinator of the
Indianapolis Colts 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 the
offensive coordinator for the
Detroit Lions from 2015 until 2018, and also worked as running backs coach for the
New York Jets. He played
college football for the
University of Tennessee
The University of Tennessee (officially The University of Tennessee, Knoxville; or UT Knoxville; UTK; or UT) is a public land-grant research university in Knoxville, Tennessee. Founded in 1794, two years before Tennessee became the 16th state ...
, and started out coaching for his
alma mater before becoming an NFL coach.
Early life and education
Jim Bob Cooter attended
Lincoln County High School in
Fayetteville, Tennessee
Fayetteville is a city and the county seat of Lincoln County, Tennessee, United States. The population was 6,994 at the 2000 census, and 6,827 at the 2010 census. A census estimate from 2018 showed 7,017.
History
Fayetteville is the largest cit ...
, and the
University of Tennessee
The University of Tennessee (officially The University of Tennessee, Knoxville; or UT Knoxville; UTK; or UT) is a public land-grant research university in Knoxville, Tennessee. Founded in 1794, two years before Tennessee became the 16th state ...
, where he was a backup
quarterback
The quarterback (commonly abbreviated "QB"), colloquially known as the "signal caller", is a position in gridiron football. Quarterbacks are members of the offensive platoon and mostly line up directly behind the offensive line. In modern Ame ...
for the
Tennessee Volunteers football
The Tennessee Volunteers football program (variously called "Tennessee", "Vols", "UT", or "Big Orange") represents the University of Tennessee (UT).
The Vols have played football for 130 seasons, starting in 1891; their combined record of 862â ...
team.
[ He appeared in three games for the Volunteers, and was named to the Academic All-]Southeastern Conference
The Southeastern Conference (SEC) is an American college athletic conference whose member institutions are located primarily in the South Central and Southeastern United States. Its fourteen members include the flagship public universities o ...
team.
Coaching career
Early career
Cooter served as a graduate assistant for Tennessee in 2007 and 2008. He was then hired as an offensive assistant by the Indianapolis Colts, working for them from 2009 through 2011. Cooter served as the offensive quality control coach for the Kansas City Chiefs
The Kansas City Chiefs are a professional American football team based in Kansas City, Missouri. The Chiefs compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's American Football Conference (AFC) West division.
The ...
in 2012 and then joined the Denver Broncos
The Denver Broncos are a professional American football franchise based in Denver. The Broncos compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's American Football Conference (AFC) West division. The team is headquar ...
as an offensive assistant in 2013 with the support of Peyton Manning.[
]
Detroit Lions
The Lions hired Cooter as their quarterbacks coach in 2014. After the season, they denied a request of the Chicago Bears, who wanted to interview him for their offensive coordinator position.
The Lions promoted Cooter to offensive coordinator during the 2015 season, after former offensive coordinator Joe Lombardi
Joseph Philip Lombardi (born June 6, 1971) is an American football coach and former player. He previously served as the quarterbacks coach for the New Orleans Saints from 2016 to 2020 and was the offensive coordinator for the Detroit Lions fro ...
was fired midseason. He remained the offensive coordinator for the Lions until January 1, 2019, when it was announced that the Lions would not be renewing his contract.
New York Jets
On February 8, 2019, the New York Jets hired Cooter as the running backs coach under new head coach Adam Gase
Adam Joseph Gase (born March 29, 1978) is a former American football coach in the National Football League (NFL). He came to prominence as the offensive coordinator for the Denver Broncos from 2013 to 2014, whose offense set the NFL record for ...
.
Jacksonville Jaguars
On February 17, 2022, Cooter was hired by the Jacksonville Jaguars
The Jacksonville Jaguars are a professional American football team based in Jacksonville, Florida. The Jaguars compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the American Football Conference (AFC) South division. The team pla ...
as their passing game coordinator under head coach Doug Pederson
Douglas Irvin Pederson (born January 31, 1968) is an American football coach and former quarterback who is the head coach for the Jacksonville Jaguars of the National Football League (NFL). Pederson spent most of his 13-season playing career ...
.
Indianapolis Colts
On February 20, 2023, Cooter was hired as an offensive coordinator by the Indianapolis Colts.
Personal life
Cooter is from Fayetteville.[ He was arrested for driving under the influence in June 2006, and was suspended from the Volunteers as a result.][ In 2009, he was charged with aggravated burglary after climbing into a window and getting into a woman's bed.] The charges were later dropped.
References
External links
Indianapolis Colts profile
{{DEFAULTSORT:Cooter, Jim Bob
Living people
1984 births
American football quarterbacks
Denver Broncos coaches
Detroit Lions coaches
Indianapolis Colts coaches
Jacksonville Jaguars coaches
Kansas City Chiefs coaches
National Football League offensive coordinators
People from Lincoln County, Tennessee
Tennessee Volunteers football players