Mark Olson enters his 25th NFL season and seventh with the Lions after joining the club in 2016. He has spent time as a regional scout as well as a national scout for Detroit. Prior to the Lions, Olson spent 18 seasons as a member of the Atlanta Falcons' personnel department, including the last three as a national scout.
Before his time as Atlanta's national scout, Olson served in a variety of roles with the Falcons, including western regional college scout and pro scout. As a pro scout, Olson was responsible for advance scouting as well as evaluating players and assisting Atlanta with preparation for free agent acquisitions.
Olson originally joined the Falcons as a scouting assistant in 1998. His past experience includes stints with the Washington Commanders, Minnesota Vikings and Montreal Alouettes of the Canadian Football League. A native of Hudson, Wis., Olson graduated from the University of Wisconsin-River Falls with a degree in journalism and later earned his master's degree in sports management from the University of Minnesota in 1997. Olson currently resides in Park City, Utah.
