David Shaw says he "probably turned down three" NFL interviews a year as Stanford coach
After spending over a decade as head coach at his alma mater, Stanford, David Shaw made his way back to the pros as a senior personnel advisor for the Broncos last year.
But Shaw has put his coaching hat back on for 2025, as he'll serve as Detroit's passing game coordinator.
It's been two decades since Shaw was last an NFL coach, though he's apparently had several opportunities to return to the league. Shaw told reporters on Tuesday that on average, he 'probably turned down three' NFL interviews a year during his first decade as Stanford's head coach.
'I had a great job and I wanted to get the most out of it,' Shaw said, via Dave Birkett of the Detroit Free Press. 'So that was the thing for me was I always wanted to go back to the NFL, but so much of is about timing and I loved what I was doing. I loved where I was doing it and I loved who I was doing it with.
'And for a decade, we were a top-10 winning team, which not only Stanford but no academically high-ranking team has ever had a run like that. And I wanted to finish that run, knowing that whatever was next was going to be next.'
Now Shaw is with Detroit, coaching alongside offensive coordinator John Morton — who called Shaw his best friend. The two first worked together with the Raiders back in 1998, and Morton said landing Shaw is 'a big deal for me because he's my soundboard.'
With the Lions, Shaw says he doesn't want to 'disturb any of the positives' from the last few years when the offense was led by now-Bears head coach Ben Johnson.
'We're not saying we're going to come back and do a carbon copy of last year,' Shaw said. 'Last year's dead. It's gone. It's in the history books. We got a chance to write another chapter, so we're not going to be ogling at what happened last year.
'We're also not going to be held to it, either. Brand new year, different players, different coaches, different opponents. So it's really taking stock in who we have and what we have and make sure that we get the most out of everybody in the building. Coaches, players, everybody.'
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