Football coaching searches are among the most involved processes in sports, so Hines Ward might be getting a golden opportunity with the XFL's San Antonio Brahmas.
The legendary Steelers wide receiver has bounced around as a coach in his post-playing career, having spent time with the Steelers, Jets, and Florida Atlantic. He'll seek stability with the Brahmas as a head coach.
Ward isn't sporting especially notable players on his roster, but he does have a few with previous NFL experience. He's bringing his Steelers history to the XFL.
“That standard is the standard,” Ward said on a Zoom conference, per Steelers Now. “That’s who I am. I mean, it’s hard not to play for a great organization for 14 years and understand what the standard is. That’s kind of been our mantra down here. My standards and my expectations of how we practice each and every day -- of going out there with a purpose, a plan to get better, working on our craft. Just implementing that into our team and our culture has worked wonders. It’s the only thing that I really know. It resonates within me.”
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Hines Ward coaching experience
Ward got his coaching start, perhaps unsurprisingly, with the Steelers.
Ward started as an offensive intern in 2017 with Pittsburgh, six years after his retirement in 2011. He specifically worked with wide receivers.
From Pittsburgh, Ward went to the Jets as an offensive assistant for the 2019 and 2020 seasons, before moving to Florida Atlantic as a wide receivers coach in 2021.
“It was kind of like The Twilight Zone,” Ward said of coaching the Jets last September, per the AP Pro Football podcast. “You wake up and in a weird room or something. For me, I just never donned any other color than the black and gold. It was a great learning experience for me to be a part of another organization to see how they did things and I learned a lot."
The XFL announced in July 2022 that he would be head coach of the Brahmas.
It’s about time, San Antonio. I’m proud to announce that I’m the head coach of your first XFL team. It’s an honor to represent this city and we’re going to play with an edge and resilience you’d expect from the home of the Alamo. pic.twitter.com/5I5VYkZ5s1
— Hines Ward (@mvp86hinesward) July 31, 2022
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Will Hines Ward coach in the NFL?
If things go well with the Brahmas, the 46-year-old Ward does have a legitimate shot at coaching in the NFL.
Although he was announced to be coaching in the XFL in 2021, the Texans did interview Ward before hiring Lovie Smith ahead of the 2022 season.
“I felt it was legit,” Ward told FanSided's Mark Carman about his Texans interview last year. “I got an opportunity to interview for a head coaching job. If someone asked you to go do an interview, what are you going to say, ‘No, I don’t want to do it?’ No. It was great. A great opportunity for me just to go through the process, I learned a lot. They asked me tons of questions. For me I’m blessed, I’m humbled at the opportunity to get that.”
Despite not having much experience as a coach, it seems like he's on the right track. If the NFL does use the XFL as a pipeline, how the Brahmas do this season could indicate Ward's track.
