Burlington Coaches Clinic: Buffalo Bills quarterback coach Todd Downing to speak on Playaction, QBs

Burlington, Ontario – Buffalo Bills quarterback coach Todd Downing to speak on Saturday

Bio

Todd Downing will begin his first season as the Bills’ Quarterbacks coach after spending the five years with the Detroit Lions, including the past four working with the quarterbacks. He spent his first season with the Lions as an offensive quality control coach. Before his time in Detroit, Downing coached for three seasons with the St. Louis Rams (2006-08) in various defensive assistant positions and three seasons with the Minnesota Vikings (2003-05) as a football systems analyst and an offensive quality control coach.

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TODD DOWNING
QUARTERBACKS COACH
12th year in NFL/1st year with the Bills

COACHING EXPERIENCE

Todd Downing will begin his first season as the Bills’ Quarterbacks coach after spending the five years with the Detroit Lions, including the past four working with the quarterbacks. He spent his first season with the Lions as an offensive quality control coach. Before his time in Detroit, Downing coached for three seasons with the St. Louis Rams (2006-08) in various defensive assistant positions and three seasons with the Minnesota Vikings (2003-05) as a football systems analyst and an offensive quality control coach.

In his five seasons in Detroit, Downing helped tutor Lions QB Matthew Stafford. Stafford has completed 1,485 of his 2,497 pass attempts for 17,457 yards and 109 touchdowns so far in his five-year career. The 17,457 yards is already the franchise record for career passing yards.

• Stafford is the Lions career leader in completions (1,485), attempts (2,497) and yards (17,457). He is second on the all-time list with 109 touchdown passes.

• Under Downing’s tutelage, Stafford completed 371-of- 634 pass attempts in 2013, good for 4,650 yards and 29 touchdowns

• In 2012, Stafford completed 435-of-727 (59.8) passes for 4,967 yards.

• With a two-year tally of 10,005 passing yards, Stafford ranks fourth in the NFL behind only Drew Brees (10,653), Peyton Manning (10,136) and Tom Brady (10,062) for the most passing yards over two seasons.

• Stafford set franchise passing records for yards (5,038), touchdowns (41) in 2011, as well as completions (435) and pass attempts (727) in 2012.

• He also established the team’s all-time best single-season completion percentage (63.5) and passer rating (97.2) in 2011.

• Stafford’s 2011 numbers also ranked among the best in NFL history: 4th quarterback to throw for more than 5,000 yards in a single season; 5th most yards (5,038); 7th most touchdowns (41); 5th most completions (421) and 3rd most attempts (663).

• Stafford was one of three NFL quarterbacks, along with Saints QB Drew Brees and Patriots QB Tom Brady, to finish 2011 in the top five of all six major passing categories: 3rd in yards (5,038); 3rd in touchdown passes (41); 5th in quarterback rating (97.2): 5th in completion-percentage (63.5); 1st in attempts (663); 2nd in completions (421).

• Downing had to deal with injuries at the quarterback position in 2010, but all three of the team’s signal callers maintained production throughout the season and all three led the Lions to victory. In all, the Lions started Stafford (3 games), QB Shaun Hill (10 Games) and QB Drew Stanton (3 games), and the team ranked third in the NFL in completions (383), third in attempts (633), 12th in gross passing yards (4,001) and were tied for 11th in touchdown passes (26).

Before landing in Detroit, Downing served as the defensive assistant/assistant special teams coach in 2006-07 and assistant secondary/defensive quality control coach in 2008 with the St. Louis Rams.

Downing spent his first three NFL seasons with the Minnesota Vikings coaching staff as the offensive quality control coach (2005) and football systems analyst (2003-04). During his time in Minnesota, he helped the Vikings achieve top-five finishes in offense in all three years and a playoff appearance in 2004.

During the summers of 2000-02, Downing played quarterback for a semi-pro team, the Minnesota Maulers.

Before he entered the NFL ranks, Downing began his coaching career with his alma mater, Eden Prairie High School in Minneapolis (1999-2000). In 2000, he helped lead them to the Minnesota Class 5-A state title.

PERSONAL

A native of Eden Prairie, Minn., Downing studied Business Communications at the University of Minnesota (1999-2002) and is married to his wife, Julie.