Working for Former Player Gets Haslett Closer to Having Done It All

NASHVILLE – Jim Haslett concedes that he has “seen probably everything.”

Yet the long-time NFL coach never has looked up to one of his former players as his boss. Until now.

As one of this offseason’s additions to the Tennessee Titans staff, the 64-year-old reports to Mike Vrabel, who broke into the NFL as a linebacker with the Pittsburgh Steelers in 1997. Haslett was the Steelers’ defensive coordinator at the time.

“Yeah, I don’t know how many times that comes up,” Haslett said Tuesday in a video conference with Titans media.

It’s not the first time for the Titans. Each of the last two years, the staff included Dean Pees, who was Vrabel’s position coach and later defensive coordinator for five seasons with the New England Patriots.

Pees, who turned 70 at the start of last season, retired in January. Enter Haslett, who was not brought in to be defensive coordinator (Vrabel has yet to name anyone to that role). Rather, the inside linebackers coach is the experienced hand for a defensive staff that includes two who had never been position coaches in the NFL before they were named to their current posts.

“I’ve seen probably everything, so I kind of give (the other coaches) different perspectives on how things are played and why they’re played,” Haslett said. “Whether I’m right or wrong – I’ll do anything I can to help win, so it’s good that they’ll listen to me and I’m glad that some guys listen.

“Hopefully I can interact enough that I can give them a little something that can help us win games and that’s the No. 1 thing. That’s really all I care about.”

Haslett’s first job in the NFL came in 1993, when he was named linebackers coach for the Los Angeles Raiders. He has been a defensive coordinator for three franchises and was head coach of the New Orleans Saints from 2000-05. All of that followed an eight-year playing career that started when he was a second-round pick by Buffalo in 1979.

After three years as linebackers coach in Cincinnati (2016-18), he took a year off when that franchise rebooted when long-time head coach Marvin Lewis was fired and most of his staff was not retained. Haslett took the time to tend to some nagging health issues that were tied to his playing career.

“Once you get out for a year, you just don’t know if you’re going to get back in,” he said. “I had a couple opportunities and I thought this was the best opportunity for myself and my family.”

It was also a chance to experience something new.

“I was involved in drafting (Vrabel) when we coached in Pittsburgh, and I coached him for a few years,” Haslett said. “… As a player, he was kind of how he is now. He was really smart, played a lot of different positions, tough as nails, loved the game. You could tell his love for the game and [he] still (does) today. That’s a common (trait) you want to work with and work for.”