Steve Oliver enters his fifth season with the Lions in 2025 and his third as the team's assistant offensive line coach after originally joining the team as an offensive quality control coach in 2021. Prior to entering the NFL ranks, he spent the first five years of his coaching career at the collegiate level.
In 2024, Oliver helped lead an offensive line that paved the way for a franchise record in rushing touchdowns (29) and games with 100 rushing yards (16) while also tying an NFL single-season record for games with 100 rushing yards and a rushing touchdown (15). The Lions had three offensive linemen (T Taylor Decker, C Frank Ragnow, T Penei Sewell) earn berths to the Pro Bowl for the first time since 1957, with Sewell earning his second-straight First-Team AP All-Pro selection and Ragnow earning his third-career Second-Team AP All-Pro honor. Sewell joins Lou Creekmur (1954, 1956-57) and George Christiansen (1931, 1934) as the only Lions tackles to earn multiple First-Team AP All-Pro honors.
During the 2023 season, Oliver helped orchestrate an offensive line that ranked fourth in the NFL in sack percentage allowed (4.8%) while guiding the ground attack to 2,311 rushing yards and 27 rushing touchdowns. Behind the team's stout offensive line, the Lions captured their first division title in 30 years and advanced to their second-ever NFC Championship Game.
A former offensive lineman for the University of San Diego, Oliver played for the Toreros from 2011-15 and was coached by current Lions Offensive Line Coach Hank Fraley during the 2012 season. After concluding his playing career, Oliver began his coaching career as a graduate assistant at the University of Idaho in 2016 as an offensive assistant, working primarily with the offensive line for two seasons.
During the 2018 spring football season, Oliver was named an assistant coach at Montana State-Northern, serving as the offensive line coach, run game coordinator and recruiting coordinator. He went on to become Idaho's director of operations in 2018 and oversaw the day-to-day operations of the program including team travel, logistics, meal planning and community involvement.
In 2019, Oliver was named Idaho's tight ends coach before returning to his alma mater in 2020 to oversee the tight ends.
He earned his bachelor's degree in finance in 2016. A native of Chandler, Ariz., Oliver is married to his wife, Abby, and together they have a son, Cooper.
