San Diego Chargers hire Metzelaars as tight ends coach
By Jeff Adcox
The San Diego Chargers hired Pete Metzelaars to coach the team’s tight ends, the team recently announced.
Metzelaars played tight end in the NFL for 16 seasons before transitioning into coaching. A third-round pick by the Seattle Seahawks in 1982, Metzelaars also played for the Buffalo Bills, Carolina Panthers and Detroit Lions. He spent 10 of his 16 pro seasons in Buffalo where he played in four Super Bowls.
Metzelaars retired after the 1997 season having played in 235 career games, which at the time was the most by a tight end in NFL history, including a stretch of 169 consecutive games from 1984-95. His final career totals included 383 catches for 3,686 yards and 29 touchdowns. Two of the more notable catches during his career were a touchdown catch in Super Bowl XXVI on Jan. 26, 1992 against the Washington Redskins and in 1995 he caught the first touchdown pass in Carolina Panthers’ franchise history.
Metzelaars moved into coaching immediately after retiring as a player. In 2003, he completed a training camp internship with the Indianapolis Colts. A year later in 2004, Metzelaars joined the Colts full-time as an offensive quality control coach and spent eight seasons there.
In 2010, his first season overseeing the offensive line in Indianapolis, the Colts allowed just 16 sacks, tied for the fewest in the NFL, despite starting four different combinations along their line during the season. Metzelaars’ tenure in Indianapolis ended in 2011 and he spent the 2012 season coaching tight ends for the Buffalo Bills.