Joseph Anthony Philbin (born July 2, 1961) is an

American football American football (referred to simply as football in the United States and Canada), also known as gridiron, is a team sport played by two teams of eleven players on a rectangular field with goalposts at each end. The offense, the team wit ...

coach who, until recently, served as the offensive line coach for the

Dallas Cowboys The Dallas Cowboys are a professional American football team based in the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex. The Cowboys compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's National Football Conference (NFC) East divis ...

of the

National Football League The National Football League (NFL) is a professional American football league that consists of 32 teams, divided equally between the American Football Conference (AFC) and the National Football Conference (NFC). The NFL is one of the ma ...

. He was the

head coach A head coach, senior coach or manager is a professional at training and developing athletes. They typically hold a more public profile and are paid more than other Coach (sport), coaches. In some sports, the head coach is instead called the "manage ...

of the

Miami Dolphins The Miami Dolphins are a professional American football team based in the Miami metropolitan area. They compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member team of the league's American Football Conference (AFC) East division. The team pl ...

, a position he held from

2012 File:2012 Events Collage V3.png, From left, clockwise: The passenger cruise ship Costa Concordia lies capsized after the Costa Concordia disaster; Damage to Casino Pier in Seaside Heights, New Jersey as a result of Hurricane Sandy; People gather ...

2015 File:2015 Events Collage new.png, From top left, clockwise: Civil service in remembrance of November 2015 Paris attacks; Germanwings Flight 9525 was purposely crashed into the French Alps; the rubble of residences in Kathmandu following the April ...

. Philbin was also the offensive coordinator of the

Green Bay Packers The Green Bay Packers are a professional American football team based in Green Bay, Wisconsin. The Packers compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the National Football Conference (NFC) North division. It is the th ...

from

2007 File:2007 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: Steve Jobs unveils Apple's first iPhone; TAM Airlines Flight 3054 overruns a runway and crashes into a gas station, killing almost 200 people; Former Pakistani Prime Minister Benazir Bhutto ...

to 2011, helping them win

Super Bowl XLV Super Bowl XLV was an American football game between the American Football Conference (AFC) champion Pittsburgh Steelers and the National Football Conference (NFC) champion Green Bay Packers to decide the National Football League (NFL) champio ...

over the

Pittsburgh Steelers The Pittsburgh Steelers are a professional American football team based in Pittsburgh. The Steelers compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the American Football Conference (AFC) North division. Founded in , the Stee ...

. Most recently, Philbin served as interim head coach of the Packers for the final four games of the 2018 season after serving as the offensive coordinator for the first part of the season.

Early life

Philbin was born in Springfield, Massachusetts to Paul and Mary Philbin. He attended

Longmeadow High School Longmeadow High School (LHS) is an American public high school located in Longmeadow, Massachusetts, Longmeadow, Massachusetts. Founded in 1956, it enrolls approximately 1,000 students.Get The Feeling: Masacksic 1988, Vol. 32. The school's mascot ...

and did a post-grad year at

Worcester Academy Worcester Academy is a private school in Worcester, Massachusetts. It is the oldest educational institution founded in the city of Worcester, Massachusetts, and one of the oldest day-boarding schools in the United States. A coeducational prepara ...

. He graduated from

Washington & Jefferson College Washington & Jefferson College (W&J College or W&J) is a private liberal arts college in Washington, Pennsylvania. The college traces its origin to three log cabin colleges in Washington County established by three Presbyterian missionaries to ...

in 1984, where he obtained a B.A. in sociology and played one year on the

football team A football team is a group of players selected to play together in the various team sports known as football. Such teams could be selected to play in a match against an opposing team, to represent a football club, group, state or nation, an all-s ...

. He was a member of the

Lambda Chi Alpha Lambda Chi Alpha (), commonly known as Lambda Chi, is a college fraternity in North America which was founded at Boston University in 1909. It is one of the largest social fraternities in North America, with more than 300,000 lifetime members a ...

fraternity. He pursued a Master of Education in administration and supervision from

Tulane University Tulane University, officially the Tulane University of Louisiana, is a private research university in New Orleans, Louisiana. Founded as the Medical College of Louisiana in 1834 by seven young medical doctors, it turned into a comprehensive pu ...

in 1986.

Coaching career

College

From 1984 to 2002, Philbin coached at the collegiate level. As the offensive coordinator, he helped win an

NCAA Division III Football Championship The NCAA Division III Football Championship began in 1973. The Division III playoffs begin with 32 teams selected to participate in the Division III playoffs. The Division III championship game, known as the Amos Alonzo Stagg Bowl or Stagg Bowl ...

with

Allegheny College he, תגל ערבה ותפרח כחבצלת , mottoeng = "Add to your faith, virtue and to your faith, knowledge" ( 2 Peter 1:5)"The desert shall rejoice and the blossom as the rose" (Isaiah 35:1) , faculty = 193 ...

in 1990. In 1998, he was offered the position of head football coach at his alma mater, Washington & Jefferson, but turned down the position to coach at

Iowa Iowa () is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern region of the United States, bordered by the Mississippi River to the east and the Missouri River and Big Sioux River to the west. It is bordered by six states: Wiscon ...

. He served under

Kirk Ferentz Kirk James Ferentz (born August 1, 1955) is an American football coach. He is the current head football coach at the University of Iowa, a position he has held since the 1999 season. From 1990 to 1992, Ferentz was the head football coach at the ...

at Iowa from 1999–2002.

Green Bay Packers

In 2003, Philbin joined the

coaching staff. He spent nine years in Green Bay. During his tenure as offensive coordinator (2007–2011), the Packers offense ranked in the top 10 in the

NFL The National Football League (NFL) is a professional American football league that consists of 32 teams, divided equally between the American Football Conference (AFC) and the National Football Conference (NFC). The NFL is one of the maj ...

for points scored and total yards every year, including their 2010 Super Bowl-winning season.

Miami Dolphins

In January 2012, Philbin was named the tenth head coach of the

, beating out interim coach

Todd Bowles Todd Robert Bowles (born November 18, 1963) is an American football coach and former player who is the head coach of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers of the National Football League (NFL). He previously served as the head coach of the New York Jets. He ...

and Denver Broncos offensive coordinator Mike McCoy, who were the other two finalists for the job. Philbin praised the Dolphins as a team with a "strong nucleus to build around," and the "passion" of the fans, players and management. Dolphins owner

Stephen M. Ross Stephen Michael Ross (born May 10, 1940) is an American real estate developer, philanthropist, and sports team owner. Ross is the chairman and majority owner of The Related Companies, a global real estate development firm he founded in 1972. Rel ...

stated that Philbin has all of the attributes that he was looking for in a head coach. Philbin guided the team to a 24–28 record during his time as the Dolphins head coach, unable to lead it to a winning record or make the playoffs. Through his first three seasons, the offense improved from a ranking of 27 to 11, but the defense slid from 7th to 20th. Philbin was fired by the Dolphins after a 1–3 start to the 2015 season. Reaction about the end of Philbin's tenure was met favorably by most fans and media alike.

Tight end The tight end (TE) is a position in American football, arena football, and Canadian football, on the offense (sports), offense. The tight end is often a hybrid position with the characteristics and roles of both an offensive lineman and a wide ...

s coach

Dan Campbell Daniel Allen Campbell (born April 13, 1976), nicknamed "Motor City Dan Campbell", or "MCDC" for short, is an American football coach and a former tight end who is the head coach for the Detroit Lions of the National Football League (NFL). He pr ...

replaced Philbin as the team's interim head coach.

Indianapolis Colts

Philbin was hired by the Colts as offensive line and assistant head coach ahead of the 2016 season. He replaced Hal Hunter, who was let go following the 2015 campaign.

Return to Packers

On January 10, 2018, Philbin was hired by the

to once again serve as offensive coordinator, which he previously did from 2007 until 2011 when he was hired as the Dolphins head coach. On December 2, 2018, after a 17–20 Packers home loss to the 2–9

Arizona Cardinals The Arizona Cardinals are a professional American football team based in the Phoenix metropolitan area. The Cardinals compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) NFC West, West division, an ...

(their first home loss to the Cardinals in 69 years), Philbin was named interim head coach of the Packers, after

Mike McCarthy Michael John McCarthy (born November 10, 1963) is an American football coach who is the head coach of the Dallas Cowboys of the National Football League (NFL). From 2006 to 2018, he was the head coach of the Green Bay Packers. In 2011, he led ...

was fired. He was not retained under new head coach

Matt LaFleur Matthew Patrick LaFleur ( ; born November 3, 1979) is an American football coach who is the head coach for the Green Bay Packers of the National Football League (NFL). He has served as the quarterback coach of the Washington Redskins, Notre Dame, ...

Dallas Cowboys

On January 9, 2020, Philbin was hired by the Dallas Cowboys as their new offensive line coach. The move reunited Philbin with new Cowboys head coach

, whom Philbin served as an assistant to with the

from 2006 to 2011 and again in 2018 before McCarthy's firing. Philbin was among five Cowboys coaches let go at the conclusion of the 2022 season.

Head coaching record

* – Interim head coach

Personal life

Philbin is married to Diane Marie Philbin (née Donahue). Their son, Michael, was reported missing on January 8, 2012. The following evening, a body pulled from the Fox River in Oshkosh was confirmed to be 21-year-old Michael Philbin. Toxicology results later showed that Michael had been under the influence of alcohol at the time of his death. In 2014 in Florida, Philbin's son Matthew crashed his vehicle into another car and fled the scene of the accident. Matthew is currently a Section 8 landlord in San Diego.

References

External links

Green Bay Packers profile

Miam Dolphins profile
{{DEFAULTSORT:Philbin, Joe 1961 births Living people Allegheny Gators football coaches Dallas Cowboys coaches Green Bay Packers coaches Harvard Crimson football coaches Indianapolis Colts coaches Iowa Hawkeyes football coaches Merchant Marine Mariners football coaches Miami Dolphins head coaches National Football League offensive coordinators Northeastern Huskies football coaches Ohio Bobcats football coaches Tulane Green Wave football coaches Washington & Jefferson Presidents football players WPI Engineers football coaches Sportspeople from Springfield, Massachusetts Coaches of American football from Massachusetts Players of American football from Massachusetts Green Bay Packers head coaches