It’s probably been a while since you’ve heard the name Bob Quinn, but the former Detroit Lions general manager is back in the news.
After the Lions parted ways with Quinn in the middle of the 2020 season, he eventually joined the Cleveland Browns as a senior consultant. The next year, he was promoted to senior personnel/coaching executive, allowing him to work on both the coaching and team personnel side of the business.
But with the Browns’ latest regime dissolved in the midst of a new head coaching search, Quinn is leaving the organization and following former Browns head coach Kevin Stefanski to the Atlanta Falcons. His new role appears to be solely on the coaching side, as his title is senior advisor to the head coach.
It’s an interesting career arc for Quinn, who had worked solely on the personnel side of the business when he joined the Lions in 2016. He rose up the ranks in the New England Patriots’ scouting department for 15 years before landing the general manager job with the Lions. His time in Detroit was very mixed. On one hand, he made some impressive picks along the offensive line (Taylor Decker, Graham Glasgow, Frank Ragnow). On the other hand, he’ll always be haunted by the picks of Jarrad Davis, Teez Tabor, Jahlani Tavai, and Jeff Okudah. What ultimately sank his career the most was the decision to hire Matt Patricia as the team’s head coach—a disaster that set the franchise back several years.
But it speaks volumes that Stefanski—a two-time AP NFL Coach of the Year—trusts Quinn as his right-hand man on the coaching side of football. It appears Quinn has done a good job building out a new career within the NFL world.
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