Scott O'Brien (born June 25, 1957) 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 player who is currently serving as an area scout for the

New England Patriots The New England Patriots are a professional American football team based in the Greater Boston area. The Patriots compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the American Football Conference (AFC) AFC East, East division. The Pa ...

of the

National Football League The National Football League (NFL) is a Professional gridiron football, professional American football league in the United States. Composed of 32 teams, it is divided equally between the American Football Conference (AFC) and the National ...

(NFL). A former

defensive end Defensive end (DE) is a defensive position in the sport of gridiron football. This position has designated the players at each end of the defensive line, but changes in formation (American football), formations over the years have substantially ...

linebacker Linebacker (LB) is a playing position in gridiron football. Linebackers are members of the defensive team, and typically line up three to five yards behind the line of scrimmage and so back up the defensive linemen. They play closer to the line ...

, O'Brien served as a special teams coach for three

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 ...

teams and for five NFL franchises during a 35-year long coaching career. In 2015, O'Brien retired from coaching and began his current role as an area scout.

Playing career

O'Brien attended the

University of Wisconsin–Superior The University of Wisconsin–Superior (UW–Superior or UWS) is a Public university, public liberal arts university in Superior, Wisconsin, United States. UW–Superior grants associate, bachelor's, master's and specialist's degrees. The univ ...

where he played

from 1975 through 1978. He signed with 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 of the National Football Conference (NFC) NFC North, North division. They ar ...

in 1979 as a

and also played in the

Canadian Football League The Canadian Football League (CFL; , LCF) is a Professional gridiron football, professional Canadian football league in Canada. It comprises nine teams divided into two divisions, with four teams in the East Division (CFL), East Division and f ...

for the

Toronto Argonauts The Toronto Argonauts (officially the Toronto Argonaut Football Club and colloquially known as the Argos) are a professional Canadian football team based in Toronto, Ontario. The Argonauts compete in the East Division (CFL), East Division of t ...

in 1980.

Coaching career

College

O'Brien began his coaching career with his alma mater, Wisconsin–Superior, as an assistant coach from 1980 through 1982. In 1983, he moved to the

University of Nevada, Las Vegas The University of Nevada, Las Vegas (UNLV) is a Public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in Paradise, Nevada, United States. The campus is about east of the Las Vegas Strip. It was formerly part of the ...

, where he served as UNLV's linebackers and special teams coach from 1983 through 1985. He then spent a season in the same capacity at

Rice University William Marsh Rice University, commonly referred to as Rice University, is a Private university, private research university in Houston, Houston, Texas, United States. Established in 1912, the university spans 300 acres. Rice University comp ...

before becoming the

University of Pittsburgh The University of Pittsburgh (Pitt) is a Commonwealth System of Higher Education, state-related research university in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, United States. The university is composed of seventeen undergraduate and graduate schools and colle ...

's special teams coach in 1987. He held that position through 1990, when he moved to the NFL coaching ranks.

NFL

In 1991, O'Brien was hired by then-

Cleveland Browns The Cleveland Browns are a professional American football team based in Cleveland. The Browns compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the American Football Conference (AFC) AFC North, North division. The team is named after ...

head coach

Bill Belichick William Stephen Belichick ( ; born April 16, 1952) is an American football coach who is the head coach for the North Carolina Tar Heels. Widely regarded as one of the greatest head coaches of all time, he holds numerous coaching records, inc ...

as the Browns' special teams coach, winning the NFL Special Teams Coach of the Year Award in 1994. He stayed with the franchise even after Belichick's departure and the team's move to

Baltimore Baltimore is the most populous city in the U.S. state of Maryland. With a population of 585,708 at the 2020 census and estimated at 568,271 in 2024, it is the 30th-most populous U.S. city. The Baltimore metropolitan area is the 20th-large ...

as the

Baltimore Ravens The Baltimore Ravens are a professional American football team based in Baltimore. The Ravens compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the American Football Conference (AFC) AFC North, North division. The team plays its home g ...

following the 1995 season. O'Brien was the Ravens' special teams coach through the 1998 season before he joined the

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 ...

as their assistant head coach and special teams coach in 1999. He left the Panthers after the 2004 season to join then-

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 ...

head coach

Nick Saban Nicholas Lou Saban Jr. ( ; born October 31, 1951) is an American sportscaster and former Professional gridiron football, professional and college football coach. He serves as an analyst for ESPN's ''College GameDay (football TV program), Colleg ...

as Saban's coordinator of football operations and assistant to the head coach in Saban's two seasons in Miami in the 2005–06 and 2006-07 seasons. O'Brien then joined the

Denver Broncos The Denver Broncos are a professional American football team based in Denver. The Broncos compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the American Football Conference (AFC) AFC West, West division. The team is headquartered in E ...

as their special teams coach in 2007, leaving after the 2008 season to serve the

in the same capacity, re-joining Belichick. On February 3, 2015, two days after O'Brien's special teams unit helped the New England Patriots win

Super Bowl XLIX Super Bowl XLIX was an American football game played to determine the champion of the National Football League (NFL) for the 2014 NFL season, 2014 season. The American Football Conference (AFC) champion 2014 New England Patriots season, New Eng ...

, the Patriots announced that O'Brien would retire from coaching after 24 seasons in the NFL. However, O'Brien was kept on Belichick's staff, moving to the scouting department in his new role as an area scout for the club. O'Brien was a member of the staff when the Patriots defeated the Atlanta Falcons in

Super Bowl LI Super Bowl LI was an American football game played at NRG Stadium in Houston, Houston, Texas, on February 5, 2017, to determine the champion of the National Football League (NFL) for the 2016 NFL season, 2016 season. The American Football Confe ...

. O'Brien earned his third Super Bowl title when the Patriots defeated the Los Angeles Rams in

Super Bowl LIII Super Bowl LIII was an American football game played to determine the champion of the National Football League (NFL) for the 2018 season. The American Football Conference (AFC) champion New England Patriots defeated the National Football Confe ...

References

External links

New England Patriots bioUniversity of Wisconsin–Superior alumni bio
{{DEFAULTSORT:Obrien, Scott 1957 births Living people American football linebackers American football defensive ends Toronto Argonauts players UNLV Rebels football coaches Rice Owls football coaches Pittsburgh Panthers football coaches Cleveland Browns coaches Baltimore Ravens coaches Carolina Panthers coaches Miami Dolphins coaches Denver Broncos coaches New England Patriots coaches New England Patriots scouts Sportspeople from Superior, Wisconsin Players of American football from Wisconsin Wisconsin–Superior Yellowjackets football coaches Wisconsin–Superior Yellowjackets football players Green Bay Packers players