One of the most overlooked stories of the Washington Commanders’ season in 2024 was the miraculous job Adam Peters and Dan Quinn did in rebuilding a greatly aligned coaching staff.
One of the most encouraging developments so far this offseason has been how the Commanders have been able to retain nearly all of those pieces.
Coordinators Kliff Kingsbury and Joe Whitt Jr. were in demand on the head coaching cycle. The assistants associated with the development of Jayden Daniels — Brian Johnson, Tavita Pritchard, and David Bough — all reportedly drew interest from other clubs. But so far, Washington has lost just one — assistant special teams coach John Glenn.
Glenn worked under Pete Carroll on the Seattle Seahawks for many seasons. When the experienced figure took over as Las Vegas Raiders head coach, he brought him on board to coach linebackers.
The Commanders moved quickly to fill the void. The man they hired, Brian Schneider, continues the recently established trend of acquiring highly experienced coaches in support positions.
Schneider will be the new assistant special teams coach under coordinator Larry Izzo. In 2018-to-2019, the roles were reversed in Seattle.
He had an excellent track record with the Seahawks. Schneider arrived from USC along with Carroll when the latter became Seattle's head coach in 2010. He coached special teams for a decade. Part of that tenure overlapped with Quinn's stint as defensive coordinator.
Brian Schneider brings a wealth of experience to the Commanders' coaching staff
The Seahawks had a tradition of top-flight special teams dating back to the days of local Washington favorite Rusty Tillman, who had been their coordinator in the 1980s. When Schneider ran the show, his units generally finished in the upper echelon of the league in most major categories.
And you could generally count on a couple of tricks. Jon Ryan, the veteran punter during most of Schneider’s tenure in Seattle, averaged one fake each year — either from his punter position or as a holder on field goal attempts.
The most memorable fake came in the NFC Championship game against the Green Bay Packers. The Seahawks were attempting a Super Bowl return after winning it the previous year. They trailed 16-0 at half-time. In the third quarter, they began a comeback keyed by a bold fake field goal call. Ryan threw to rookie offensive tackle Garry Gilliam for a 19-yard touchdown to make the score 16-7. Seattle would go on to win in overtime.
Earlier that season, Schneider’s aggressiveness paid off in a Monday Night Football game against Washington, who had fallen behind 17-0 but were attempting a comeback. A Kirk Cousins-to-Desean Jackson touchdown and a Kai Forbath field goal closed the gap to seven. The defense forced three straight three-and-outs to begin the second half.
Then Seattle began to move the ball. They advanced to Washington’s 32-yard line, but Marshawn Lynch was stopped short on a 3rd-and-1. Stephen Hauschka came on to attempt a 50-yard field goal. But Schneider called for the fake.
Ryan took the snap, running left for five yards and a first down. Seattle scored a touchdown a few plays later and the game was essentially over.
During the game, Ryan also punted six times, pinning Washington inside its 20-yard line on all six. One was a touchback, but the now-Commanders committed a penalty and were pushed back to the 10. The other five were downed by Seattle. The last three, when they were desperately trying to catch up, were all downed inside the 10.
Over the decade, Schneider’s special teams were both reliable and aggressive. They led the league in turnovers created and were second in blocked kicks. He ended up taking a leave of absence for undisclosed personal reasons just before the 2020 season. That paved the way for Izzo to assume the coordinator role.
A year later, Schneider again stepped away from his job — this time as Jacksonville Jaguars special teams — for personal reasons that have never been explained.
He was back the following year, hired by Adam Peters’ team — the San Francisco 49ers — to coach their special teams. That run from 2022-to-2024 came to a rocky end when Schneider was fired last month.
The Niners' special teams in 2024 were among the league's worst. A few reporters who cover the team, have speculated that San Francisco’s persistent special teams problems may run deeper than the coordinator.
Now he is reunited with Izzo as an assistant. Schneider brings a wealth of experience and a history of bold gambles with solid production. He becomes the eighth former coordinator to join the Commanders as they continue to build one of the best coaching staffs in the NFL.