Former Pittsburgh Steelers quarterback Bruce Gradkowski has taken his first NFL job, hired by the Detroit Lions as an offensive assistant. ESPN’s Adam Schefter shared the news on Twitter/X Thursday morning.
As Schefter notes, Gradkowski had most recently served as the UFL St. Louis Battlehawks’ offensive coordinator for the past two seasons. In fact, the UFL issued a press release yesterday that, in part, announced Gradkowski’s return as OC for the upcoming 2025 spring season. Now, he’s headed to the NFL.
He’ll help re-tool a Lions coaching staff gutted this offseason, losing both coordinators and former Steelers WR Antwaan Randle El, who followed Ben Johnson to Chicago.
A longtime NFL quarterback, Gradkowski is a Pittsburgh native who played college ball at Toledo. A sixth-round pick in 2006, he spent time with six NFL teams and his final four years as a backup in Pittsburgh. With the Steelers, Gradkowski only appeared in two games and threw three passes, all coming in a 2014 Wild Card loss to the Baltimore Ravens. He completed two of them for 22 yards. Injuries played a role in his limited snap count and Gradkowski’s career ultimately ended after pulling his hamstring during the 2016 preseason.
For his career, Gradkowski appeared in 37 games making 20 starts. He started 11 games as a rookie for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers and predictably struggled, posting a 3-8 record with a 1:1 TD to INT ratio. His career was a tour of the AFC North, joining the Cleveland Browns in 2008, the Cincinnati Bengals in 2011, and the Steelers in 2013.
Gradkowski made three starts against the Steelers and is best-known for leading an upset against Pittsburgh while a member of the Oakland Raiders. Despite being 15-point underdogs, Gradkowski threw for three touchdowns at Heinz Field in a 27-24 stunner.
After retiring, Gradkowski began coaching at the high school level and served as head coach at St. Francis de Sales High School in Toledo for the 2021 season. The Battlehawks tabbed him as their offensive coordinator in September 2022.
