Hidden figures: Gradkowski's road to Detroit followed McVay interest, 3 years as a PFF analyst and coordinating in UFL

Note: This is the second installment in a multi-part series that explores the background, responsibilities, and aspirations of the Detroit Lions’ lower-level assistant coaches. Today, we’re looking at offensive assistant Bruce Gradkowski.

Allen Park — Bruce Gradkowski started 20 games during his NFL career and won six of them. He completed fewer than 53% of his throws and tossed more interceptions than touchdowns.

Despite that production, Gradkowski, a sixth-round pick for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in 2006, stuck around the league for a decade. That's no accident.

There’s long been a gulf between the league's starting quarterbacks and their backups. The value of a reliable No. 2 is often less about what they do on Sundays and more about the work they put in Monday through Saturday. Maybe they don’t have the arm strength or accuracy to consistently connect on the 15-yard out route to the far side of the field. However, they have an advanced understanding of the game that helps them run the scout team or present in the meeting room to prepare both the team’s defense and the starting quarterback for the upcoming opponent.

In that background role while with the Cincinnati Bengals — his fifth franchise through his first six seasons — Gradkowski first developed a strong interest in coaching.

“I really enjoyed putting together presentations and film cut-ups for the offense, whether a protection meeting or routes, because when I was there with A.J. Green, Andy Dalton, Marvin Jones and Mohamed Sanu, they were all rookies,” Gradkowski explained. “Andrew Whitworth was our left tackle. We were the veterans, and it was like putting a Friday meeting together. We would go over tougher looks or new concepts we had put in. I really enjoyed that.”

Gradkowski left the Bengals after the 2012 season, finishing his career with Pittsburgh, where he was born and raised five miles south of the city in Mount Lebanon. With the Steelers, Gradkowski had the opportunity to watch longtime coach Mike Tomlin operate, gaining an appreciation not only for his mastery of X’s and O’s, but also his managing relationships and egos to get the best out of star players like Ben Roethlisberger, Le'Veon Bell and Antonio Brown. It only added to the appeal of crossing to the coaching side after Gradkowski finished his playing career.