Strain Will Be Name of Game With This Packers Special Teams Coach Candidate

GREEN BAY, Wis. – Tom McMahon replaced Rich Bisaccia as special teams coordinator of the Raiders in 2022. Could he replace Bisaccia again as special teams coordinator for the Green Bay Packers?

Packers coach Matt LaFleur is racing to replace Bisaccia, who stepped down this week after four years at the helm. McMahon, who has been a coordinator since 2009, is expected to be interviewed, according to a source.

With the veteran pool severely depleted given the late stage of the hiring cycle, McMahon stands almost alone among the remaining candidates because of his experience.

McMahon was the outside linebackers and special teams coach at Louisville in 2006, when new defensive coordinator Jonathan Gannon was a graduate assistant. In 2007, both coaches were hired by the Atlanta Falcons, with McMahon an assistant special teams coach under coordinator Jerry Rosburg. In 2008, the Falcons had a new coordinator but kept McMahon.

In 2009, McMahon was hired as special teams coordinator for the St. Louis Rams. He’s been a coordinator ever since, including 2012 with the Kansas City Chiefs, 2013 through 2017 with the Indianapolis Colts, 2018 through 2021 with the Denver Broncos and 2022 through November 2025 with Las Vegas.

He was fired at midseason by then-Raiders coach Pete Carroll after a blocked punt late in the third quarter led to the decisive points in a 10-7 loss to the Broncos.

McMahon isn’t the only candidate. As Packers On SI reported, the team is expected to interview two experienced coordinators (Cameron Achord and Matthew Smiley) and one former Packers assistant (former NFL linebacker Kyle Wilber). More will be interviewed.

Coaching Philosophy

LaFleur loves to use the word “strain” in terms of wanting his players to play “through the echo of the whistle.” He’ll find a kindred spirit when he interviews McMahon.

“Strain is going to be our top word from the standpoint of, if you’re straining, every single player straining, that takes care of the compete, that takes care of effort,” McMahon said upon joining the Raiders in 2022. “What you want is teams around the league to say, ‘Hey, look, that’s a team that’s going to strain.’

“All of those things, tackling, effort, compete, blocking; they come down to one word and that’s strain. And we’re going to out-strain people and (Bisaccia) did a good job of establishing that. We’re not going to lose that. We’re going to out-practice people, but it’s going to come down to the word ‘strain.’”

In the Packers On SI NFL Special Teams Rankings, which focus mostly on field position gained and lost on kickoffs and punts, the Raiders finished 24th in 2025 but were second in 2024 and fourth in 2023. In Rick Gosselin’s more expansive special teams rankings, the Broncos were below average all four seasons.

By special teams DVOA, the Raiders were 28th in 2025, 17th in 2024, 13th in 2023 and 12th in 2022. The Broncos were 30th in McMahon’s final year with Denver in 2021.

“The biggest philosophy I have is half-court offense and full-court defense,” he said before his first season in Denver, when his kicker was Brandon McManus. “Offensively, from a return standpoint, we want to give our offense a half court to work with. We want to give our defense a full court. In essence, what we’re really trying to do is field position.

“If we get a turnover, for example, we don’t call it a turnover on our special teams. We’ll call it points. Any turnover on special teams, because of the ball being punted 50 yards or kicked 60 yards, when you get a turnover, it’s already in field-goal range. We call it points. All we’re trying to do is half-court offense and full-court defense and control field position.”

Can McMahon Be Mr. Fix It?

The Packers haven’t had a difference-making special teams in almost two decades. Well, at least one that made a positive difference.

Last year was another dismal season for the Packers. While the coverage units were strong and punter Daniel Whelan had an All-Pro-caliber season, Bisaccia’s units allowed blocked kicks in Week 3 at Cleveland and Week 4 at Dallas, endured a rough stretch with an injured McManus, botched an onside kicker at Chicago in Week 16 and gave up two long punt returns in the playoff game at Chicago.

“I don’t get into the past,” McMahon said before Year 1 in Denver. “I’m a big fix guy. I’m not going to be a fault guy. Anything that happens, which you’ll find out with me in the media, anything that goes down there that goes bad on special teams, it’s on me.

“I’m going to fix it though, I guarantee that. I’m a fix guy. I’m going to go to the fix part of it and never ever be a fault guy. I’ve got a job to do. I’m going to get those guys (right). If there is 12 on the field, that’s on me. We’re going to fix that and it’s going to be right going forward.”

McMahon, who started his coaching career at Carroll College, which is located in his hometown of Helena, Mont., is a member of the Montana Sports Hall of Fame.

When he was 4, he was horseback riding and suffered a fractured skull.

“When I was young, I had a head injury and I had to end up getting a plate in my head (at age 4),” he told Colts.com in 2016. “My dad actually operated on me with a Swiss Army knife. We were back in the woods 30 miles. He knew I was going to die. He was a surgeon, so he knew I was going to die if he didn't relieve the pressure. To make a long story short, they put a plate in my head.”

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