Detroit Lions OC Candidate: Exploring pros and cons of Seahawks passing game coordinator Jake Peetz
This is our third piece in what will be an ongoing series, evaluating the pros and cons of the offensive coordinator candidates connected to the Detroit Lions’ vacancy.
Who: Jake Peetz
Age: 40
Background and coaching history: A multi-sport high school athlete, Peetz spent a year at the University of Arizona before transferring to and walking on at Nebraska, where he served as a reserve defensive back and long snapper.
Upon graduating with an exercise science degree, which he practically applied serving as an intern with Nebraska’s strength staff while sitting out a year following his transfer, former Cornhuskers coach Bill Callahan encouraged Peetz to consider coaching.
After working at some coaching clinics and spending several months as a trainer, Peetz got his first coaching opportunity, a varied role at Santa Barbara City College, where he coordinated special teams, worked with the safeties and ran the strength program.
Peetz briefly bounced back to training, working for the Indiana Pacers for a year before signing on as a low-level defensive assistant at UCLA through a Callahan connection.
Peetz found his way to the NFL a year later, spending three years as a scout for the Jacksonville Jaguars before transitioning back to coaching, where he helped out multi-time coordinator Greg Olson with the team’s quarterbacks.
The next several years were a whirlwind. Peetz would have a one-year stint with Nick Saban at Alabama as an offensive analyst, a year with Washington in the NFL, where he overlapped with Sean McVay (more on that in a moment), two years with the Raiders, working with quarterbacks again, another year with Saban at Alabama, followed by two with the Carolina Panthers, where Peetz first worked with the running backs, then quarterbacks, with Teddy Bridgewater as his starter.
That led to Peetz’s big break, a chance to coordinate at LSU in 2021. However, when head coach Ed Orgeron left the program at the end of that season, Peetz departed soon after, taking a job with McVay as an offensive assistant in Los Angeles. That led to a promotion to passing game specialist the next year, before Peetz jumped to Seattle for a pass game coordinator position in 2024.
Interestingly, between the two most recent jobs, Peetz turned down an opportunity to return to his alma mater as an offensive coordinator, where he would have reconnected with former Panthers coach Matt Rhule.
Whew, got all that? There will be a quiz at the end of the week.
Why he’d be a fit
This won’t be Peetz’s first NFL coordinator interview. He previously talked to the Buccaneers in 2024 before the team hired another McVay disciple, Liam Coen, who is currently enjoying success as the first-year head coach of the Jacksonville Jaguars.