The UW Huskies are finalizing a deal to hire Matt Cavanaugh as a senior offensive assistant, On3.com’s Pete Nakos reported Tuesday.
Cavanaugh, 69, is a former NFL quarterback with an extensive coaching history at the pro level.
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The University of Pittsburgh grad was a second-round pick by the New England Patriots in 1978. He went on to have a 12-year pro career as backup and won two Super Bowls (in 1984 with San Francisco and 1990 with the New York Giants).
After his final NFL season in 1991, Cavanaugh returned to his alma mater where he coached tight ends for two seasons. He landed his first NFL gig as Arizona’s quarterbacks coach in 1994 and took over the same role in San Francisco in 1996.
In 1997, Cavanaugh became a first-time offensive coordinator with Chicago. In 1999, he began a a five-year stint as Baltimore’s offensive coordinator, which included a Super Bowl title during the 2000 season.
Cavanaugh made the transition back to college when he joined Pittsburgh’s coaching staff again in 2005 as its offensive coordinator. He returned to the NFL as the New York Jets’ quarterbacks coach from 2009-12 and moved on to the same role with Chicago from 2013-14.
Cavanaugh spent his next five seasons with the Washington Commanders, including two as offensive coordinator. He last held a role on an NFL coaching staff in 2021 as a senior offensive assistant for the Jets.
Cavanaugh is set to join a UW coaching staff that no longer has an offensive coordinator following former OC and quarterbacks coach Jimmie Dougherty’s exit from the team on Feb. 17. Head coach Jedd Fisch, who is the Huskies’ offensive play-caller, recently told On3’s Andy & Ari podcast the team was not planning to hire a new offensive coordinator, but was looking for senior offensive assistant who could help with game planning.
Report: UW Huskies expected to make big change on coaching staff