Shaun Dion Hamilton enters his fifth season coaching with the Lions and his second as the team's linebackers coach in 2026. He was elevated to the role after spending the 2023-24 seasons as the team's assistant linebackers coach. Hamilton originally transitioned from playing linebacker for Detroit into the coaching ranks as a part of the Lions' WCF Minority Coaching Assistantship in September of 2022.

Shaun Dion Hamilton enters his fifth season coaching with the Lions and his second as the team's linebackers coach in 2026. He was elevated to the role after spending the 2023-24 seasons as the team's assistant linebackers coach. Hamilton originally transitioned from playing linebacker for Detroit into the coaching ranks as a part of the Lions' WCF Minority Coaching Assistantship in September of 2022.

In 2025, Hamilton oversaw a linebacker unit that ranked first in sacks (12.5) and run stops (94), tied-forsecond in tackles for loss plus no gain (34) and third in pressures (56) among all NFL linebacker groups. The team's 12.5 sacks from linebackers were the most for the Lions since 2019. Individually, LB Jack Campbell tied for second among all NFL off-ball linebackers with 5.0 sacks while LB Derrick Barnes tied for sixth with 4.0 sacks.

Under Hamilton's tutelage, Campbell has emerged as one of the League's most productive linebackers. He posted at least 125 tackles in 2024 and 2025, becoming the fourth player in franchise history to accomplish the feat in consecutive seasons. Last season, Campbell's 166 total tackles were the secondmost by a Detroit player since 1987 and ranked third in the NFL. He led all linebackers in run defense stops (44) and ranked tied-for-second in sacks (5.0) and forced fumbles (three). Campbell secured FirstTeam AP All-Pro and Pro Bowl selections for the first time in his career in 2025.

In his first year directing the linebackers, Hamilton led Campbell to his breakout season in only his second-career season in the League in 2024. Campbell became the third Lions player to record 125 tackles, five tackles for loss, five pass defenses and a forced fumble in a season since at least 1994. He also became the first Lions player to produce at least 85 tackles and five tackles for loss in each of their first two-career seasons since at least 1994.

In 2023, Hamilton helped LB Alex Anzalone become the third player in franchise history to produce a season with at least 125 tackles and 3.0 sacks. Over the 2022-23 seasons, Anzalone produced a franchise record-long streak of 30 games with at least five tackles.

Hamilton also guided Campbell to immediate success as a rookie in 2023, ranking second among all NFL rookies with 89 tackles. In 2022, Hamilton aided LB Malcolm Rodriguez in becoming Detroit's first rookie selected in the sixth round-or-later to start in Week 1 of his same draft year since 1987.

Prior to spending two training camps with Detroit as a player (2021-22), Hamilton spent his first three seasons (2018-20) with the Washington Commanders, where he appeared in 46 games (seven starts) and registered 89 tackles (63 solo), nine tackles for loss, 2.5 sacks, two forced fumbles, one fumble recovery 59 and one interception. He was originally drafted by Washington in the sixth round (197th overall) of the 2018 NFL Draft out of Alabama.

A native of Montgomery, Ala., Hamilton played four seasons for the Crimson Tide from 2014-17, helping the team to College Football Playoff National Championships following the 2015 and 2017 seasons. He was named a permanent team captain as a senior in 2017.

While at Alabama, Hamilton earned both his undergraduate degree in business administration and master's degree in sports management in under four years. He attended Carver High School, where he was named class valedictorian and Alabama Sports Writers Association 6A All-State. Hamilton and his wife Samaria have one daughter, Sasha.