The Buccaneers named a new member of the coaching staff today, passing the torch of Tight Ends Coach to Justin Peele, former 10-year NFL veteran and seasoned position coach. Peele joins the Tampa Bay staff after spending the previous three seasons as tight ends coach for the Atlanta Falcons.
This continues a league wide trend of hiring “Player’s Coaches”. Affectionately called this due to players closely bonding with them, they are usually former players themselves and understand the dynamics of an NFL locker room, not to mention the experience playing the game; making them best suited to command respect from current players.
Some #Bucs coaching news:
Justin Peelle (peel) has been named the new TE’s coach. Former TE’s coach John Van Dam has transitioned into a new role as pass game assistant.
Peele spent the last 3 seasons with the Falcons. He also coached Zach Ertz & Dallas Godert in Philadelphia.
— JC Allen (@JCAllenNFL) March 20, 2024
In his playing career, Justin Peele was drafted in the 2002 draft and logged ten years as an NFL tight end. He played on the active roster for the Chargers, Dolphins, Falcons, and 49ers before spending a year as a practice squad member for the Pittsburgh Steelers. After 2012, he was brought on as the Assistant Tight Ends Coach in Philadelphia, a position he would hold for two seasons before taking the head Tight Ends Coach job in 2015, a job he would remain in through 2020, managing a Super Bowl win on the 2017 Eagles team.
In 2021, Peele moved to Atlanta to take over a tumultuous Atlanta Falcons tight end room where he would stay through the end of last season. He has worked most recently with standout tight end Kyle Pitts, and will now shift his focus to Tampa Bay, where John Van Dam (Bucs’ former TE Coach) will move to Passing Game Coordinator. Terms of Justin Peele’s contract have not been specified yet.
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