Anthony Lynn

Anthony Ray Lynn (born December 21, 1968) is an American football coach and former running back who is the current head coach of the Los Angeles Chargers of the National Football League (NFL). Lynn began his professional coaching career with the Denver Broncos in 2000 as a special teams assistant, then the offensive coordinator for the Buffalo Bills before becoming the Chargers' head coach in 2017.

The 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m) Lynn played at Celina High School, and later for the Texas Tech Red Raiders (1988–1991), where he was an All-Southwest Conference running back in 1990. His senior year was cut short by a knee injury, and concerns about the injury left him undrafted.He was a journeyman reserve running back and special teams player during his NFL career, playing for the Denver Broncos (1993, 1997–1999) and San Francisco 49ers (1995–1996). He retired in 2000 due to repeated neck stinger injuries.Lynn was part of Denver's back-to-back Super Bowl champion teams (1997–1998).

Denver Broncos

Upon retiring in 2000, he joined the Denver coaching staff as an offensive assistant and special teams coach.

Jacksonville Jaguars

Lynn then joined the Jacksonville Jaguars as the running backs coach (2003–2004). He left Jacksonville after being switched to special teams coach following a coaching staff shakeup by head coach Jack Del Rio in 2005.

Dallas Cowboys

After leaving Jacksonville,Lynn quickly joined the Dallas Cowboys staff as the running backs coach.

Cleveland Browns

On January 26, 2007, with the retirement of Bill Parcells as Dallas head coach, Lynn signed on with the Cleveland Browns to fill their running backs coach vacancy.

New York Jets

Lynn was named the assistant head coach/running backs coach for the New York Jets on February 1, 2012, under head coach Rex Ryan, and was subsequently interviewed for the head coach job in January 2015, after Ryan left.

Buffalo Bills

When he did not get the position of head coach of the New York Jets, he followed Rex Ryan to the Buffalo Bills where he took the same position. On September 16, 2016, Lynn was promoted to offensive coordinator / assistant head coach of the Bills when Greg Roman was fired. Then later in September, Lynn was promoted to offensive coordinator. When asked what he wants his offensive identity to be, Lynn responded, "I want to play smart, physical football. I want to be explosive down the field... We're going to play a little bit faster and see if we can put a little pressure on the defense. Just execute." Lynn made his debut as offensive coordinator against the Arizona Cardinals, pulling out a 33–18 win.

Lynn became the interim head coach on December 27, 2016, after Rex Ryan was fired.

Head coach interest

On December 30, 2015, the Miami Dolphins interviewed Lynn for their head coach position. He was the fourth head coaching candidate interviewed that week. Lynn also interviewed for the head coaching job with the New York Jets on January 6, 2015, shortly after head coach Rex Ryan was fired. Lynn knew the organization well and was extremely well-respected.

In January 2016, Lynn was a head coaching candidate for the San Francisco 49ers, but removed his name from consideration before a decision was made. Despite not taking a head coaching position in 2016, media insider Ian Rapoport listed Lynn as one of his candidates in a good position to become a head coach. On January 12, 2017, Lynn was named head coach of the newly christened Los Angeles Chargers and one day later the Chargers officially confirmed his hiring as the new coach.

Los Angeles Chargers

On January 12, 2017, Lynn was hired to become the new head coach of the Los Angeles Chargers, the same day that owner Dean Spanos announced that the Chargers were relocating from San Diego to Los Angeles. Lynn's hire was confirmed by the Chargers one day later on January 13 the team's website. Lynn became the franchise's first African-American head coach in its 56-year history.

In his second season as the Chargers head coach, Lynn led Los Angeles to a 12–4 record, earning its first playoff berth since 2013. The Chargers went on to defeat the Baltimore Ravens in the Wild Card round 23–17, before being eliminated in the Divisional Round by the eventual Super Bowl LIII champion New England Patriots by a score of 41–28.

Lynn has a son, D'Anton, and a daughter, Danielle, with his ex-wife, Cynda. He married journalist Stacey Bell on March 5, 2011, in Dallas, Texas. His son, D'Anton, played college football for the Penn State Nittany Lions, and was signed as an undrafted rookie by the New York Jets following the 2012 NFL Draft. Lynn was supportive of his son's decision to follow in his footsteps, and taught him about the hard work that goes into being a professional football player both on and off the field.

During Cowboys training camp on August 20, 2005, Lynn was a victim of a hit-and-run automobile accident. Lynn and Todd Haley, both offensive assistants for Bill Parcells, were out for pizza after training camp in Ventura, California. As Lynn and Haley were crossing the street, Lynn was hit by drunk driver Sergio Sandoval. Lynn suffered two collapsed lungs, facial and shoulder damage, and temporary paralysis in his lower body. He had four surgeries on his face, knee and shoulder due to the incident. Lynn returned to coaching less than two weeks later. Lynn's story was featured in a Verizon advertisement during Super Bowl LIII in 2019, where he was introduced to the first responders who treated him.

On May 12, 2018, Lynn graduated from the University of Nevada, Las Vegas with a Bachelor of Arts in interdisciplinary studies.

• From 2009 to 2013, with Lynn as running backs coach, the Jets running game produced an NFL-leading 137.0 yards per game.
• In 2013, Lynn helped Chris Ivory establish a team-leading 833 yards on 182 carries.
• Top ranked running game for the Buffalo Bills in the 2015–2016 season.
• Took the Chargers into the playoffs for the first time in 5 years.
• Was in a Super Bowl commercial during Super Bowl LIII.