Bill Cowher coached in the NFL from 1985 to 2006, spanning 22 seasons with 3 organizations. He served as head coach of the Pittsburgh Steelers. His roles included Defensive Coordinator, Linebackers, Defensive Backs, and Special Teams Coordinator. He worked under Marty Schottenheimer and Marty Schottenheimer. 9 of his former assistants went on to become NFL head coaches.

Coaching Tree

Head Coach Offense Defense Special Teams General

Career Timeline

Career History

Year	Team	Role(s)
2006	Pittsburgh Steelers	Head Coach HC
2005	Pittsburgh Steelers	Head Coach HC
2004	Pittsburgh Steelers	Head Coach HC
2003	Pittsburgh Steelers	Head Coach HC
2002	Pittsburgh Steelers	Head Coach HC
2001	Pittsburgh Steelers	Head Coach HC
2000	Pittsburgh Steelers	Head Coach HC
1999	Pittsburgh Steelers	Head Coach HC
1998	Pittsburgh Steelers	Head Coach HC
1997	Pittsburgh Steelers	Head Coach HC
1996	Pittsburgh Steelers	Head Coach HC
1995	Pittsburgh Steelers	Head Coach HC
1994	Pittsburgh Steelers	Head Coach HC
1993	Pittsburgh Steelers	Head Coach HC
1992	Pittsburgh Steelers	Head Coach HC
1991	Kansas City Chiefs	Defensive Coordinator, Linebackers under Marty Schottenheimer
1990	Kansas City Chiefs	Defensive Coordinator, Linebackers under Marty Schottenheimer
1989	Kansas City Chiefs	Defensive Coordinator, Linebackers under Marty Schottenheimer
1988	Cleveland Browns	Defensive Backs under Marty Schottenheimer
1987	Cleveland Browns	Defensive Backs under Marty Schottenheimer
1986	Cleveland Browns	Special Teams Coordinator under Marty Schottenheimer
1985	Cleveland Browns	Special Teams Coordinator under Marty Schottenheimer

Worked Under (2)

Coach	Team	Years
Marty Schottenheimer	Cleveland Browns	4
Marty Schottenheimer	Kansas City Chiefs	3

Protégés (9)

Coach	First HC Job	Year
Dom Capers	Carolina Panthers	1995
Chan Gailey	Dallas Cowboys	1998
Jim Haslett	New Orleans Saints	2000
Dick LeBeau	Cincinnati Bengals	2001
Marvin Lewis	Cincinnati Bengals	2003
Mike Mularkey	Buffalo Bills	2004
Ken Whisenhunt	Arizona Cardinals	2007
Bruce Arians	Arizona Cardinals	2013
Dave Culley	Houston Texans	2021