The Pittsburgh Steelers have lost assistant defensive backs coach Gerald Alexander, as he has been hired by the Las Vegas Raiders as their new safeties coach, NFL Media’s Cameron Wolfe reports.
Alexander has served as Pittsburgh’s assistant defensive backs coach for the last two seasons, and in the two seasons prior to that, he worked as the defensive backs coach for the Miami Dolphins. Now, he returns to lead a position group for Las Vegas, who just recently promoted interim head coach Antonio Pierce to the team’s permanent head coach. Alexander will help replace former Rutgers’ head coach and Ohio State defensive coordinator Chris Ash, who was Las Vegas’ defensive backs coach over the last two years.
Prior to his work as the Dolphins defensive backs coach, Alexander was at Cal, where he coached defensive backs from 2017-2019. He also has collegiate coaching experience with Indiana State, Montana State, Washington, and Arkansas State.
Alexander also spent five years as a safety in the league, retiring after the 2011 season. He accumulated 159 total tackles in a career that included stops with the Detroit Lions, Jacksonville Jaguars, Carolina Panthers, New York Jets, and the Dolphins prior to embarking on a coaching career.
During his two seasons in Pittsburgh, Alexander has helped lead a secondary that’s been among the league’s best. The Steelers led the league with 20 interceptions in 2022, six by safety Minkah Fitzpatrick, and in 2023, Alexander helped a group led by Eric Rowe and Patrick Peterson overcome injuries to Fitzpatrick and Trenton Thompson while dealing with Damontae Kazee’s suspension to win their final three games and make the playoffs.
Pittsburgh may lose another assistant to Las Vegas, as quarterbacks coach Mike Sullivan is interviewing with the Raiders for their offensive coordinator job. Alexander coached in the DB room alongside Grady Brown in Pittsburgh, and he is also set to coach at the Shrine Bowl later this week.
