Raiders Name Greg Olson Offensive Coordinator

ALAMEDA, Calif. – Greg Olson has been named the offensive coordinator of the Oakland Raiders, the club announced Friday. Olson, who brings 31 years of coaching experience to the post, will begin his second stint with the Raiders, having previously served as the team's offensive coordinator from 2013-14.

Olson will be entering his 17th NFL coaching season in 2018, with 10 seasons of experience as an offensive coordinator with the Detroit Lions (2005), St. Louis Rams (2006-07), Tampa Bay Buccaneers (2009-11), Raiders (2013-14) and Jacksonville Jaguars (2015-16).

Last season, Olson served as the quarterbacks coach for the Los Angeles Rams, helping the Rams win the NFC West and overseeing the development of second-year quarterback Jared Goff. Under Olson, Goff enjoyed a breakout season in 2017, earning a selection as a Pro Bowl alternate and throwing for 3,804 yards on 296-of-477 passing (62.1 percent), 28 touchdowns and just seven interceptions.

In the first season of his second stint with Jacksonville in 2015, Olson revamped the Jaguars offense into the NFL's 14th-ranked scoring unit (23.5 points per game) after placing 32nd in 2014. The Jaguars also scored 127 more points in 2015 (376) than they did in 2014 (249), and their 376 points scored were the most for the franchise since 2007.

Prior to rejoining the Jaguars, Olson spent two seasons (2013-14) with the Raiders as offensive coordinator, where he tutored 2014 second-round draft pick Derek Carr. Olson played a key role in the development of Carr, who threw for 3,270 yards and 21 touchdowns, a franchise rookie record and tops in the NFL among rookie quarterbacks that year.

In 2013, the Raiders ranked 12th in the NFL in rushing (125.0 yards per game), sixth in yards per rush (4.6) and third with 18 rushes of 20-plus yards. The Raiders became the first team since 1978 to have four different players record a 100-yard rushing game in the same season. Pryor set the single-season franchise record for a quarterback with 576 rushing yards and ranked second among NFL quarterbacks.

Olson served as assistant head coach/quarterbacks for the Jacksonville Jaguars in 2012, overseeing the quarterback duo of Blaine Gabbert, the 10th overall pick in the 2011 draft, and Chad Henne, a second-round selection in 2008. With an injury-depleted rushing attack, Gabbert and Henne combined to rank 11th in the NFL with both 586 pass attempts and an average of 36.6 attempts per game.

Prior to joining the Jaguars, Olson served four seasons with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, including the final three as offensive coordinator. He was responsible for the development of Josh Freeman, the 17th overall pick in the 2009 NFL Draft. Under Olson's guidance, Freeman threw for 8,898 yards and 51 touchdowns in his first three seasons as a starter. Olson helped give the Buccaneers one of their best offensive seasons in team history, setting franchise records for yards per play (5.61), average yards per rush (4.64), average yards per pass attempt (7.21), passer rating (96.2) and fewest interceptions (six).

Olson went to Tampa Bay after serving two seasons as offensive coordinator for the St. Louis Rams. Under Olson's direction, the 2006 Rams became just the fourth team in NFL history to produce a 4,000-yard passer (Marc Bulger), a 1,500-yard rusher (Steven Jackson) and two 1,000-yard receivers (Isaac Bruce and Torry Holt).

Olson was also the offensive coordinator/quarterbacks coach (2005) and quarterbacks coach (2004) for the Detroit Lions and quarterbacks coach for the Chicago Bears (2003). He entered the NFL as quarterbacks coach with the San Francisco 49ers in 2001, helping Jeff Garcia post career highs with 32 touchdowns, a 94.8 passer rating and a 62.7 completion percentage.

From 1997-2000 as quarterbacks coach at Purdue, Olson played a key role in the development of Pro Bowl and Super Bowl-winning quarterback Drew Brees, who was a Heisman Trophy finalist in 1999 and 2000, and recipient of the Maxwell Award as the nation's most outstanding player in 2000.

Olson began his coaching career as a graduate assistant at Washington State (1987-89). He spent four seasons at Central Washington (1990-93), developing future NFL starter Jon Kitna, and two years as an assistant at Idaho (1994-96).

A native of Richland, Wash., Olson played quarterback at Spokane Falls Junior College (1981-82) and Central Washington (1983-84).

Greg Olson's Coaching Background