Joe DeCamillis

Joe DeCamillis
Texas Longhorns
Position: Special assistant to the head coach
Personal information
Born: June 29, 1965
Arvada, Colorado, U.S.
Career information
High school: Arvada (CO)
College: Wyoming
Career history
As a coach:
Career highlights and awards
As a coach

Joe DeCamillis (born June 29, 1965) is an American football coach. DeCamillis was formerly the special teams coordinator in the National Football League (NFL) for the Los Angeles Rams for two seasons. Before that, he coached for the Chicago Bears, Dallas Cowboys, New York Giants, Atlanta Falcons, and Jacksonville Jaguars.

Wrestling career

DeCamillis did not play football in college. DeCamillis wrestled for the University of Wyoming where he was an All-American by virtue of finishing 8th at the 1988 NCAA Division I Wrestling Championships.

Football coaching career

Early career

DeCamillis began his NFL career as an administrative assistant to his father-in-law, then Denver Broncos head coach Dan Reeves. In 1991, DeCamillis joined the coaching staff as a special teams assistant under Harold Richardson. When Reeves became head coach of the New York Giants in 1993, DeCamillis joined his staff as special teams coach. He followed Reeves again in 1997, becoming the special teams coach of the Atlanta Falcons. He was one of nine assistants retained by Reeves' successor Jim Mora. In 2007 he was hired to coach special teams for the Jacksonville Jaguars.

Dallas Cowboys

In 2009, DeCamillis joined the coaching staff of the Dallas Cowboys. He had previously worked with Cowboys head coach Wade Phillips in Denver and Atlanta. On May 2, 2009, the Dallas Cowboys practice facility collapsed during a wind storm. The collapse left DeCamillis and 11 other Cowboys players and coaches injured. DeCamillis and Rich Behm, the team's 33-year-old scouting assistant, received the most severe injuries. DeCamillis suffered fractured cervical vertebrae and had surgery to stabilize fractured vertebrae in his neck, and Behm was permanently paralyzed from the waist down after his spine was severed. DeCamillis received much praise from the media and fans in the months following the incident for continuing to coach in his high energy style, wearing a neck brace, only 9 days following the incident. He was finally able to remove the brace on August 10, 2009. The Cowboys gave him and Kyle Kosier the Ed Block Courage Award for 2009.

Chicago Bears

On January 16, 2013, DeCamillis was hired by the Bears. He had been interviewed by the Bears for their head coaching position, but was later hired as special teams coach and assistant head coach. On January 19, 2015, DeCamillis was replaced by Jeff Rodgers.

Denver Broncos

On January 20, 2015, DeCamillis was hired by the Denver Broncos.

On February 7, 2016, DeCamillis was part of the Broncos coaching staff that won Super Bowl 50. In the game, the Broncos defeated the Carolina Panthers by a score of 24–10.

On October 13, 2016, DeCamillis served as the interim head coach for Denver's game against the San Diego Chargers while Gary Kubiak was recovering from an illness. The Broncos lost 21–13 in his head coaching debut.

Jacksonville Jaguars

On January 13, 2017, DeCamillis was named as the special teams coordinator for the Jacksonville Jaguars.

Los Angeles Rams

He was hired by the Los Angeles Rams on January 21, 2021, as the special teams coordinator. DeCamillis won his second Super Bowl ring when the Rams defeated the Cincinnati Bengals in Super Bowl LVI. He was fired on January 18, 2023.

Texas

In 2023, DeCamillis joined the staff of the Texas Longhorns football team as a special assistant to the head coach.

Head coaching record

Team Year Regular season Postseason
Won Lost Ties Win % Finish Won Lost Win % Result
DEN 2016 0 1 0 .000 – – – – –
DEN Total 0 1 0 .000 – – –
Total 0 1 0 .000 – – –


Personal life

DeCamillis and his wife Dana have two children, Caitlin and Ashley. His wife is the daughter of former NFL coach Dan Reeves.