Gerald Alexander (born June 28, 1984) is an

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

coach and former

safety Safety is the state of being protected from harm or other danger. Safety can also refer to the control of recognized hazards in order to achieve an acceptable level of risk. Meanings The word 'safety' entered the English language in the 1 ...

. He played

college football College football is gridiron football that is played by teams of amateur Student athlete, student-athletes at universities and colleges. It was through collegiate competition that gridiron football American football in the United States, firs ...

for the

Boise State Broncos The Boise State Broncos are the intercollegiate athletic teams that represent Boise State University, located in Boise, Idaho. The Broncos compete at the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) Division I level as a member of the Mount ...

, and was selected by the

Detroit Lions The Detroit Lions are a professional American football team based in Detroit. The Lions compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) NFC North, North division. The team plays their home game ...

in the second round of the

2007 NFL draft The 2007 NFL draft was the 72nd annual meeting of National Football League franchises to select newly eligible American football players. It took place at Radio City Music Hall in New York City, New York, on April 28 and April 29, 2007. The draf ...

. He also played for the

Jacksonville Jaguars The Jacksonville Jaguars are a professional American football team based in Jacksonville, Florida. The Jaguars compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the American Football Conference (AFC) AFC South, South division. The team ...

Carolina Panthers The Carolina Panthers are a professional American football team based in Charlotte, North Carolina. The Panthers compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) NFC South, South division. The t ...

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

, and

New York Jets The New York Jets are a professional American football team based in the New York metropolitan area. The Jets compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the American Football Conference (AFC) AFC East, East division. The team p ...

. He is currently the defensive backs coach for 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 of the American Football Conference (AFC) AFC North, North division. Founded in 1933 P ...

. Alexander was a former graduate assistant with

Arkansas State University Arkansas State University (A-State or ASU) is a public university, public research university in Jonesboro, Arkansas, United States. It is the flagship campus of the Arkansas State University System and the second-largest university in the st ...

and

University of Washington The University of Washington (UW and informally U-Dub or U Dub) is a public research university in Seattle, Washington, United States. Founded in 1861, the University of Washington is one of the oldest universities on the West Coast of the Uni ...

. In July 2015, he became the defensive backs coach at

Indiana State University Indiana State University (ISU) is a public university in Terre Haute, Indiana, United States. It was founded in 1865 and offers over 100 undergraduate majors and more than 75 graduate and professional programs. Indiana State is classified ...

. In December 2015, he accepted the position of defensive backs coach at

Montana State University Montana State University (MSU) is a public land-grant research university in Bozeman, Montana, United States. It enrolls more students than any other college or university in the state. MSU offers baccalaureate degrees in 60 fields, master's d ...

, working under head coach

Jeff Choate Jeff Choate (born July 15, 1970) is an American college football coach. He is the head coach at the University of Nevada, Reno. Choate served as the head football coach at Montana State University from 2016 to 2019. Playing career Choate graduat ...

Early life

Alexander attended Rancho Cucamonga High School from 1998 to 2002, where he was a

track and field Track and field (or athletics in British English) is a sport that includes Competition#Sports, athletic contests based on running, jumping, and throwing skills. The name used in North America is derived from where the sport takes place, a ru ...

athlete as well. He was one of the players who helped lead Boise State to their improbable

Fiesta Bowl The Fiesta Bowl is an annual American college football bowl game played annually in the Phoenix metropolitan area since 1971. From its beginning until 2006, the game was hosted at Sun Devil Stadium in Tempe, Arizona. Since 2007, the game has be ...

win over

Oklahoma Oklahoma ( ; Choctaw language, Choctaw: , ) is a landlocked U.S. state, state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States. It borders Texas to the south and west, Kansas to the north, Missouri to the northea ...

in the 2006 season. While at Boise State, Alexander was a four-time First-team All- WAC selection.

Professional career

Detroit Lions

Alexander played all 16 games of his rookie season when safety Daniel Bullocks suffered a season-ending knee injury during a preseason game against the Indianapolis Colts. During that 2007 season Gerald recorded 81 tackles, 59 solo and 22 assisted. He also had 2 sacks, interceptions and fumble recoveries.

Jacksonville Jaguars

On June 26, 2009, he was traded to the Jacksonville Jaguars for

Dennis Northcutt Dennis LaMont Northcutt (born December 22, 1977) is an American former professional football player who was a wide receiver and punt returner for 10 seasons in the National Football League (NFL). He played college football for the Arizona W ...

. On October 19, 2010, the Jaguars released Alexander.

Carolina Panthers

On November 23, the Panthers signed Alexander. He became a free agent after the season.

Miami Dolphins

Alexander signed with the

on August 28, 2011. Alexander was released on September 2, 2011, by the Miami Dolphins. Re-signed on October 19, 2011.

New York Jets

Alexander was signed by the

on December 13, 2011, to add depth to the safety position following a season-ending injury to starting safety

Jim Leonhard James Andrew Leonhard (born October 27, 1982) is an American professional American football, football coach and former player who is the defensive pass game coordinator and assistant head coach for the Denver Broncos of the National Football Le ...

. He was released on March 14, 2012.

Statistics

Coaching career

Arkansas State

Alexander served as an undergraduate assistant on the coaching staff of Arkansas State for the 2013 season.

Washington Huskies

Alexander joined the Washington Huskies coaching staff as a graduate assistant in 2014 under head coach

Chris Petersen Christopher Scott Petersen (born October 13, 1964) is an American former college football coach. He was the head coach for eight seasons at Boise State University; Petersen guided the Broncos to two BCS bowl wins in the 2007 and 2010 Fiesta ...

Indiana State

After participating in the Bill Walsh Minority Internship Program with the

Tennessee Titans The Tennessee Titans are a professional American football team based in Nashville, Tennessee. The Titans compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the American Football Conference (AFC) AFC South, South division. They play the ...

during the team's 2015 training camp, Alexander served as the defensive backs coach for Indiana State.

Montana State

Alexander again participated in the Bill Walsh Minority Internship Program in the summer of 2016, this time with the

Tampa Bay Buccaneers The Tampa Bay Buccaneers (colloquially known as the Bucs) are a professional American football team based in Tampa, Florida. The Buccaneers compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) NFC S ...

. Following the two-week program, Alexander coached Montana State's secondary.

California

Alexander joined

University of California The University of California (UC) is a public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university, research university system in the U.S. state of California. Headquartered in Oakland, California, Oakland, the system is co ...

's coaching staff in

2017 2017 was designated as the International Year of Sustainable Tourism for Development by the United Nations General Assembly. Events January * January 1 – Istanbul nightclub shooting: A gunman dressed as Santa Claus opens fire at the ...

as their defensive backs coach. He served in that role through the

2019 season Nineteen or 19 may refer to: * 19 (number) * One of the years 19 BC, AD 19, 1919, 2019 Films * ''19'' (film), a 2001 Japanese film * ''Nineteen'' (1987 film), a 1987 science fiction film * '' 19-Nineteen'', a 2009 South Korean film * '' Dici ...

Miami Dolphins

On January 24, 2020, it was reported that Alexander was hired by the

to serve as the team's defensive backs coach under head coach

Brian Flores Brian Francisco Flores (born February 24, 1981) is an American professional football coach who is the defensive coordinator for the Minnesota Vikings of the National Football League (NFL). He began his NFL career with the New England Patriots, ...

. He missed the team's week 9 game against the

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. The ...

on November 8, 2020, in accordance with

COVID-19 Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is a contagious disease caused by the coronavirus SARS-CoV-2. In January 2020, the disease spread worldwide, resulting in the COVID-19 pandemic. The symptoms of COVID‑19 can vary but often include fever ...

protocols. On February 10, 2022, Alexander was fired by the Dolphins. Alexander was in his second year as the team's assistant defensive backs coach.

Pittsburgh Steelers

In his first season with the

, Alexander assisted with a Steelers secondary that tied for first in the League in interceptions with 20 in 2022. Safety

Minkah Fitzpatrick Minkah Annane Fitzpatrick Jr. (born November 17, 1996) is an American professional American football, football Safety (gridiron football position), safety for the Pittsburgh Steelers of the National Football League (NFL). He played college footba ...

led the group with a career-high and League-leading six interceptions, earning Pro Bowl and First Team All-Pro honors.

Las Vegas Raiders

Alexander was hired by the Las Vegas Raiders under new head coach

Antonio Pierce Antonio Durran Pierce (born October 26, 1978) is an American professional football coach and former linebacker. He served as the head coach for the Las Vegas Raiders of the National Football League (NFL) in 2023 and 2024. Pierce played nine seas ...

and general manager

Tom Telesco Thomas Francis Telesco (born December 12, 1972) is an American professional football executive who most recently served as the general manager of the Las Vegas Raiders of the National Football League (NFL) in 2024. He previously served as the ge ...

Pittsburgh Steelers (second stint)

On February 8, 2025, the

hired Alexander as their assistant defensive backs coach.

References

External links

Detroit Lions bio
{{DEFAULTSORT:Alexander, Gerald 1984 births Living people American football safeties Arkansas State Red Wolves football coaches Boise State Broncos football players California Golden Bears football coaches Carolina Panthers players Detroit Lions players Indiana State Sycamores football coaches Jacksonville Jaguars players Miami Dolphins coaches Miami Dolphins players Montana State Bobcats football coaches New York Jets players Players of American football from Rancho Cucamonga, California Tennessee Titans coaches Washington Huskies football coaches Rancho Cucamonga High School alumni Coaches of American football from California Las Vegas Raiders coaches