Coaches

Todd Downing enters his fourth season with the Lions and his third working with quarterbacks. He spent his first season with Detroit as an offensive quality control coach. Before joining the Lions, he coached three seasons with St. Louis as an assistant secondary/defensive quality control coach (2008) and a defensive assistant coach/assistant special teams coach (2006-07).

LIONS COACHING HIGHLIGHTS:

Downing coaches a quarterback corps led by QB Matthew Stafford who has emerged as one of the top young quarterbacks in the NFL.

• Stafford set franchise passing records for yards (5,038), touchdowns (41), completions (421) and attempts (663).
• He also established the team’s all-time best single-season completion percentage (63.5) and passer rating (97.2). Based on NFL qualifier of minimum 244 attempts.
• Stafford’s numbers also ranked among the best in NFL history: 4th quarterback to throw for more than 5,000 yards in a single season; 5th most yards (5,038); 7th most touchdowns (41); 5th most completions (421) and 3rd most attempts (663).
• Stafford was one of three NFL quarterbacks, along with Saints QB Drew Brees and Patriots QB Tom Brady, to finish 2011 in the top five of all six major passing categories: 3rd in yards (5,038); 3rd in touchdown passes (41); 5th in quarterback rating (97.2): 5th in completion-percentage (63.5); 1st in attempts (663); 2nd in completions (421).
• Despite injuries at the Lions quarterback spot in 2010, all three of the team’s signal callers maintained production throughout the season and all three have led the Lions to victory. In all, the Lions started Stafford (3 games), QB Shaun Hill (10 Games) and QB Drew Stanton (3 games), and the team ranked third in the NFL in completions (383), third in attempts (633), 12th in gross passing yards (4,001) and were tied for 11th in touchdown passes (26).
• The 2010 quarterback unit also produced 26 touchdown passes and 16 interceptions for a +10 difference. The last team to finished the season having three quarterbacks start three games and finished with a +10 TD to Int ratio was the Philadelphia Eagles in 1993 (+10, 23 TD to 13 Int; Randall Cunningham, Bubby Brister and Ken O’Brien).

Downing originally entered the NFL with the Minnesota Vikings, spending three years on the Vikings coaching staff as the Offensive Quality Control Coach (2005) and football systems analyst (2003-04), helping the Vikings to a Top 5 Offense in all three years and a playoff appearance in 2004. During the summers from 2000-02, Downing played quarterback for a semi-pro team, the Minnesota Maulers.

Before entering the NFL ranks, Downing began his coaching career with Eden Prairie High School in Minneapolis (1999-2000). In 2000, he helped his alma mater to the Minnesota Class 5-A state title.

A native of Eden Prairie, MN, Downing studied Business Communications at the University of Minnesota (1999-2002) and now resides in Michigan with his wife Julie.