For the better part of the past eight years Joe Woods has been an NFL Defensive Coordinator. But his career started as a defensive backs coach and among his early NFL jobs was with the Raiders. Now he’s back with the Raiders, given the title of defensive pass game coordinator.
Former #Saints DC Joe Woods is joining Pete Carroll’s #Raiders staff as defensive pass-game coordinator, per source.
Woods, a two-time defensive coordinator, is traveling to Las Vegas today. pic.twitter.com/6yfme5hFaP
— Jeremy Fowler (@JFowlerESPN) February 6, 2025
Woods was the DC in New Orleans the past two seasons under Dennis Allen. It was under Allen in 2014 that Woods worked for the Raiders. And so he has twice seen Allen get fired midseason and had to move on.
Between his time with the Raiders and the Saints, Woods was a DB coach and then defensive coordinator in Denver, then defensive passing game coordinator in San Francisco while Robert Saleh was the DC and the 49ers made the Super Bowl that year.
After that, Woods was named DC in Cleveland (2020-22) before heading to the Saints in 2023.