Joe Woods (born June 25, 1970) 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 who is the

defensive coordinator A defensive coordinator is a coach responsible for a gridiron football (American football) team's defense. Generally, the defensive coordinator, the offensive coordinator and the special teams coordinator represent the second level of a team's c ...

for the

New Orleans Saints The New Orleans Saints are a professional American football team based in New Orleans. The Saints compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the league's National Football Conference (NFC) South division. Since 1975, the te ...

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). A coaching veteran of 26 years, Woods has previously served as an assistant coach for the

San Francisco 49ers The San Francisco 49ers (also written as the San Francisco Forty-Niners) are a professional American football team based in the San Francisco Bay Area. The 49ers compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the league's National ...

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 headquart ...

Oakland Raiders The Oakland Raiders were a professional American football team that played in Oakland from its founding in 1960 to 1981 and again from 1995 to 2019 before relocating to the Las Vegas metropolitan area where they now play as the Las Vegas Raide ...

Minnesota Vikings The Minnesota Vikings are a professional American football team based in Minneapolis. They compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the National Football Conference (NFC) North division. Founded in 1960 as an expansion ...

and

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 ...

, as well as defensive coordinator for the

Cleveland Browns The Cleveland Browns are a professional American football team based in Cleveland. Named after original coach and co-founder Paul Brown, they compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the American Football Conference ( ...

College career

Woods lettered four times as a

cornerback A cornerback (CB) is a member of the defensive backfield or secondary in gridiron football. Cornerbacks cover receivers most of the time, but also blitz and defend against such offensive running plays as sweeps and reverses. They create tur ...

and

safety Safety is the state of being "safe", the condition of being protected from harm or other danger. Safety can also refer to risk management, the control of recognized hazards in order to achieve an acceptable level of risk. Meanings There are ...

during his collegiate career at

Illinois State University Illinois State University (ISU) is a public university in Normal, Illinois. Founded in 1857 as Illinois State Normal University, it is the oldest public university in Illinois. The university emphasizes teaching and is recognized as one of th ...

, graduating from the school in 1992 with a degree in

criminal justice Criminal justice is the delivery of justice to those who have been accused of committing crimes. The criminal justice system is a series of government agencies and institutions. Goals include the Rehabilitation (penology), rehabilitation of o ...

. He was team captain as a senior in 1991 and went on to earn first-team All-Gateway Conference honors following his final season.

Coaching career

Early years

Woods began his coaching career as a defensive backs coach at

Muskingum College Muskingum University is a private liberal arts college in New Concord, Ohio. Chartered in 1837 as Muskingum College, the institution is affiliated with the Presbyterian Church (USA). Collectively, the university's alumni are referred to as the ...

in 1992 and moved on to become a graduate assistant coach at

Eastern Michigan University Eastern Michigan University (EMU, Eastern Michigan or simply Eastern), is a public research university in Ypsilanti, Michigan. Founded in 1849 as Michigan State Normal School, the school was the fourth normal school established in the United Sta ...

in 1993. Woods also served as defensive backs coach at

Kent State University Kent State University (KSU) is a public research university in Kent, Ohio. The university also includes seven regional campuses in Northeast Ohio and additional facilities in the region and internationally. Regional campuses are located in As ...

(1997) and

Grand Valley State University Grand Valley State University (GVSU, GV, or Grand Valley) is a public university in Allendale, Michigan. It was established in 1960 as Grand Valley State College. Its main campus is situated on approximately west of Grand Rapids. The universit ...

(1994-96) following a stint coaching linebackers during the spring of 1994 at

Northwestern State University Northwestern State University of Louisiana (NSU) is a public university primarily situated in Natchitoches, Louisiana, with a nursing campus in Shreveport and general campuses in Leesville/Fort Polk and Alexandria. It is a part of the Univer ...

. He coached the same position with Hofstra University from 1998 to 2000, helping the school make consecutive trips to the 1-AA playoff quarterfinals. Woods then became the defensive backs coach for three seasons (2001-03) at

Western Michigan University Western Michigan University (Western Michigan, Western or WMU) is a public research university in Kalamazoo, Michigan. It was initially established as Western State Normal School in 1903 by Governor Aaron T. Bliss for the training of teachers ...

NFL

Tampa Bay Buccaneers

In 2004, Woods was hired by the

as the defensive backs coach. During his first two seasons with Tampa Bay, Woods coached a talented secondary led by cornerbacks

Ronde Barber Jamael Orondé "Rondé" Barber (born April 7, 1975) is an American former football cornerback who spent his entire 16-year professional career playing for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers of the National Football League (NFL). He is the identical twin ...

and Brian Kelly. Barber, an NFL 2000s All-Decade performer, earned first-team All-Pro recognition from the

Associated Press The Associated Press (AP) is an American non-profit news agency headquartered in New York City. Founded in 1846, it operates as a cooperative, unincorporated association. It produces news reports that are distributed to its members, U.S. newspa ...

following each of his two seasons playing for Woods.

Minnesota Vikings

Woods was brought to Minnesota in 2006 along with Defensive Coordinator

Mike Tomlin Michael Pettaway Tomlin (born March 15, 1972) is an American football coach who is the head coach for the Pittsburgh Steelers of the National Football League (NFL). Since joining the Steelers in 2007, he has led the team to ten playoff runs, se ...

, who worked with him as a secondary coach in Tampa Bay. Woods spent eight seasons coaching defensive backs in Minnesota. The Vikings finished among the NFL's top 10 defenses in four of his first five years with the team, capturing back-to-back

NFC North The National Football Conference – Northern Division or NFC North is one of the four divisions of the National Football Conference (NFC) in the National Football League (NFL). Nicknamed the "Black and Blue Division" for the rough and tough ri ...

Division titles from 2008 to 2009 and making an NFC Championship Game appearance following the 2009 season.

Oakland Raiders

Woods coached the Raiders’ defensive backs in 2014, working with veteran safety

Charles Woodson Charles Cameron Woodson (born October 7, 1976) is a former American football defensive back who played in the National Football League (NFL) for 18 seasons with the Oakland Raiders and Green Bay Packers. He played college football at Mic ...

, who led the team with 160 tackles (105 solo) and four interceptions in his 17th NFL season.

Denver Broncos

In Woods’ first season coaching the Broncos’ secondary in 2015, Denver finished first in the NFL against the pass (199.6 ypg) while the defensive backfield accounted for 11 interceptions, 56 passes defensed, nine forced fumbles and four touchdowns. The Broncos posted three interceptions against just one passing touchdown allowed during Denver's postseason run that ended with a victory in

Super Bowl 50 Super Bowl 50 was an American football game to determine the champion of the National Football League (NFL) for the 2015 season. The American Football Conference (AFC) champion Denver Broncos defeated the National Football Conference (NFC) cha ...

. In 2016, the Broncos’ secondary held opponents to the fewest yards per game (185.8), yards per attempt (5.8) and passing touchdowns (13) in the NFL. After the departure of defensive coordinator

Wade Phillips Harold Wade Phillips (born June 21, 1947) is an American football coach who is currently the head coach of the Houston Roughnecks of the XFL. He has served as head coach of the Denver Broncos, Buffalo Bills, and Dallas Cowboys. He has also serve ...

, Woods was chosen to be promoted to defensive coordinator for the 2017 season. Denver finished first in the NFL in pass defense in both 2015 (199.6 ypg) and 2016 (185.8) with Woods coaching the team's defensive backs. All four of Denver's starting defensive backs made at least one Pro Bowl playing for Woods from 2015 to 2016, including cornerbacks

Chris Harris Jr. Christopher Harris Jr. (born June 18, 1989) is an American football cornerback for the New Orleans Saints of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football at Kansas. He was signed by the Denver Broncos as an undrafted free age ...

(2015-16) and

Aqib Talib Aqib Talib (born February 13, 1986) is a former American football cornerback. He played college football at the University of Kansas, where he received consensus All-American honors, and was drafted by the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in the first rou ...

(2015-16), who were also named first-team All-Pro selections by the

in 2016. Safeties

T. J. Ward Terrell Ray "T. J." Ward Jr. (born December 12, 1986) is a former American football safety who played for eight seasons in the National Football League (NFL). He played college football at Oregon, and was drafted by the Cleveland Browns in the s ...

(2015) and

Darian Stewart Darian Stewart (born August 4, 1988) is a former American football strong safety. He was signed by the St. Louis Rams as an undrafted free agent after the 2010 NFL Draft and has also played for the Baltimore Ravens. As a member of the Denver Bro ...

(2016) also earned Pro Bowl recognitions while playing for Woods. In Woods’ first season as defensive coordinator in 2017, the Broncos finished third in the NFL in total defense, giving up just 290.0 yards per game. The Broncos’ fifth-ranked run defense in 2017 was particularly impressive as it improved by more than 40 yards per game after finishing 28th in the NFL in 2016.

San Francisco 49ers

In January 2019, the San Francisco 49ers hired Joe Woods as defensive back coach and passing game coordinator.

Cleveland Browns

On February 7, 2020, Woods was hired by the

as their defensive coordinator under head coach

Kevin Stefanski Kevin Lawrence Stefanski (born May 8, 1982) is an American football coach who is the head coach for the Cleveland Browns of the National Football League (NFL). He began his NFL career as an assistant coach for the Minnesota Vikings from 2006 to ...

. He was fired on January 9, 2023.

References

External links

New Orleans Saints bio
{{DEFAULTSORT:Woods, Joe 1970 births Living people American football defensive backs Cleveland Browns coaches Denver Broncos coaches Eastern Michigan Eagles football coaches Grand Valley State Lakers football coaches Hofstra Pride football coaches Illinois State Redbirds football players Kent State Golden Flashes football coaches Minnesota Vikings coaches Muskingum Fighting Muskies football coaches National Football League defensive coordinators New Orleans Saints coaches Northwestern State Demons football coaches Oakland Raiders coaches Sportspeople from Armstrong County, Pennsylvania Players of American football from Pennsylvania Tampa Bay Buccaneers coaches Western Michigan Broncos football coaches