Mike Devlin enters his first season as the offensive line coach for the Chargers, bringing nearly three decades of NFL experience as a player and coach. He has tutored eight players to be selected to a combined 17 Pro Bowls, including former Jets center Nick Mangold, who Devlin helped coach to seven Pro Bowl nods and a pair of Associated Press first-team All-Pro selections.
Over the last two seasons, Devlin helped tutor an offensive front in Baltimore that helped the Ravens lead the AFC and ranked No. 2 in the NFL over that span in rushing offense, averaging 158.3 yards per game on the ground. Last season, the group protected quarterback Lamar Jackson to be named AP Most Valuable Player for the second time in his career after throwing for 3,678 yards and 24 touchdowns while also adding a team-high 821 yards and five scores on the ground. With the help of Devlin and the offensive line, Baltimore posted a league-best 13-4 record to hold the No. 1 seed in the AFC playoffs.
Devlin joined the Ravens after a six-season tenure as the offensive line coach for the Houston Texans (2015-20). He coached tackle Laremy Tunsil to back-to-back Pro Bowl selections to close out his time with Houston. Devlin tutored an offensive line that protected quarterback Deshaun Watson to be named a Pro Bowler three times, including in 2020 when he recorded career highs in passing yards (4,823) passing touchdowns (33) and passer rating (112.4). In 2018, Devlin's group paved the way for a rushing attack that averaged 126.3 yards per game, ranking fourth in the AFC and No. 8 in the NFL.
Prior to his time in Houston, Devlin spent nine seasons with the New York Jets (2006-14), where he helped coach the team to three playoff berths and a pair of appearances in the AFC Championship Game. He helped Nick Mangold earn six of his seven Pro Bowl career selections during his tenure in The Big Apple. Devlin exclusively coached the New York offensive line for three years (2007, '13-14), while serving as tight ends/assistant offensive line coach in 2006 and from 2008-12.
Devlin tutored the offensive line in 2014 to lead the AFC in rushing offense, averaging 142.5 yards per game. A year earlier, his unit paved the path for the rushing attack to rank No. 6 in the NFL (134.9). While working with the tight ends, Devlin coached Dustin Keller to lead the Jets offense in 2011 with a career-high 65 receptions for 815 yards (12.5 avg.) and five touchdowns. A year earlier, Keller was the first Jets tight end in 25 years to lead the team in receptions.
A graduate of Cherokee High School in Marlton, N.J., Devlin was born in Blacksburg, Va., when his father, John Devlin, was a coach at Virginia Tech during his three decades on the sidelines as a college and professional coach. After graduating from Cherokee High, Devlin played four seasons at the University of Iowa (1989-92), earning Big Ten Offensive Lineman of the Year and first-team All-American honors following his senior season. He also was recognized as a first-team All-Big Ten recipient in 1991.
Devlin then was selected by the Buffalo Bills in the fifth round (136th overall) of the 1993 NFL Draft, going on to appear in 101 regular-season games, including 27 starts, for the Buffalo Bills (1993-95) and Arizona Cardinals (1996-99). As a rookie, he helped the Bills claim their fourth-straight AFC Championship and appear in Super Bowl XXVIII.
Following his seven-year playing career in the NFL, Devlin immediately joined the coaching ranks as an offensive quality control coach for the Cardinals, working in that role for the 2000 season before being promoted to assistant offensive line coach. He assisted the offensive line from 2001-03, helping the team post a third-down rushing conversion rate of 52.4 percent over that span, good for No. 6 in the NFL.
Devlin's first opportunity overseeing an offensive line occurred in 2004 when he led the group at the University of Toledo, spending two seasons coaching the Rockets' offensive front — a stretch in which Devlin's unit helped Toledo claim the Mid-American Conference title in 2004 and tutored eventual third-round pick in the 2005 NFL Draft, tackle Nick Kaczur.
Off of the gridiron, the Devlin family has founded and championed various charitable organizations, including Devlin's Helping Hands and two events that benefit a number of organizations, The Devlin Football Camp and The John S. Devlin Golf Tournament.
Devlin and his wife, Julie, have two sons, Zachary and Matthew, and two daughters, Hallie and Carlie. The couple also has a granddaughter, Isla Kate.
