Tim Lewis

Tim Lewis
Date of birth	December 18, 1961 (1961-12-18) (age 47)
Place of birth	Quakertown, Pennsylvania
Position(s)	Defensive back Assistant coach
College	University of Pittsburgh
NFL Draft	1983 / Round 1 / Pick 11
Career record	0-0
Playing stats	DatabaseFootball
Team(s) as a player
1983-86	Green Bay Packers
Team(s) as a coach/administrator
1987-88 1989-92 1993-94 1995-99 2000-03 2004-06 2007-2008 2009–present	Texas A&M (assistant coach) Southern Methodist University (defensive backs coach) University of Pittsburgh (defensive backs coach) Pittsburgh Steelers (defensive backs coach) Pittsburgh Steelers (defensive coordinator) New York Giants (defensive coordinator) Carolina Panthers (defensive backs coach) Seattle Seahawks (defensive backs coach)

Tim Lewis (born December 18, 1961 in Quakertown, Pennsylvania) is the current defensive backs coach for the NFL's Seattle Seahawks, signing a contract on January 22, 2008 to replace Jim Mora, who was elevated to head coach. He is also a former player for the Green Bay Packers.

Playing career

Lewis was a first round pick (11th player chosen overall) out of the University of Pittsburgh by the Green Bay Packers in the 1983 NFL Draft. A standout cornerback, he was considered to be one of the more skilled players on what was a relatively weak Packers team. He led or shared the team lead in interceptions in 1983 & 1985, finishing with a career total of 16. His 99-yard interception return for a touchdown against the Los Angeles Rams on November 18, 1984, remains the Packer team record. His career was cut short by a severe neck injury suffered in a Monday Night game against the Chicago Bears in the third week of the 1986 season.

Coaching career

Beginning his coaching career in 1987 at Texas A&M, Lewis served under his former college coach at Pitt, Jackie Sherrill. He would later spend time at defensive coordinator for the Pittsburgh Steelers and the New York Giants.

Despite his aggressive defensive schemes during his time in Pittsburgh, Lewis reverted to soft defense in his last two years in Pittsburgh and while in New York. In the case of the Steelers, it was cited as the primary reason that after the 2003 season that head coach Bill Cowher dismissed Lewis, the only defensive coordinator in Cowher's 15-year tenure in Pittsburgh to be fired. He would subsequently be replaced by current defensive coordinator Dick LeBeau, who served the team in the same capacity from 1995-1996. Years later, Steelers linebacker James Harrison (who was cut by the team three times during Lewis's tenure) would mention how he hated how he was treated by Lewis, and that one of the reasons he agreed to come back for a fourth time in 2004 was because Lewis was gone.

Sam Madison, best known for his play as a man to man coverage cornerback, has been dropped back into zone on defense. Another player in the New York Giants defensive unit, LaVar Arrington, has also been dropped back into zone coverage time and time again, despite the fact that his three Pro Bowl seasons in Washington came while Arrington was being sent in on blitzes. Lewis' soft defensive schemes, including a diminished use of blitzing, led to unpopularity among several New York Giants faithful. This is despite his being considered a head coaching candidate by other teams before the 2006 season.^[1] The New York Giants defense in 2006 finished 25th overall, 28th against the pass and 14th against the run, as the team barely made the playoffs at 8-8. He was fired on January 11, 2007.

References