Danny Crossman

Danny Crossman enters his 18th season as an NFL coach and second season as special teams coordinator with the Dolphins after being named to that position on Feb. 8, 2019.

Crossman has been a special teams coach for all 27 years of his coaching career, including 17 seasons in the NFL. For the past 14 years, Crossman has been a special teams coordinator with Carolina (2005-09), Detroit (2010-12), Buffalo (2013-18) and Miami (2019-present).

Crossman's special teams units had several memorable moments in his first season with Miami in 2019. Kicker Jason Sanders earned two AFC Special Teams Player of the Week award and was named AFC Special Teams Player of the Month for December, after he kicked 13 successful field goals in the final month of the season. It was the most field goals in one month by an NFL kicker since December 2018 (Justin Tucker). Sanders broke a Dolphins single-game record with seven field goals on Dec. 8, 2019 at the N.Y. Jets. One of Sanders' player of the week honors came after he caught a 1-yard touchdown pass from punter Matt Haack on Dec. 1, 2019 vs. Philadelphia. The fake field goal was named the NFL Bridgestone Clutch Performance Play of the Year at NFL Honors and marked the first time since 1964 a player who led his team in punts threw a touchdown to a player who led his team in field goal attempts. Wide receiver Jakeem Grant had a 101-yard kickoff return for a touchdown on Nov. 17, 2019 vs. Buffalo, making him the franchise record-holder with three career special teams return touchdowns.

Prior to Miami, Crossman spent six seasons (2013-18) as Buffalo's special teams coordinator. In 2018, his punt team forced opponents to start inside their own 20 on 31 occasions, which was ninth in the NFL, despite using three different punters. His kickoff coverage unit was 10th in the NFL, allowing just 22.2 yards allowed per kickoff return. Additionally, his special teams units did not allow any points scored against them.

The Bills special teams ranked seventh in the NFL in 2017, according to the annual rankings compiled by NFL writer Rick Gosselin. Kicker Stephen Hauschka set an NFL record with 13 consecutive made field goals from 50-plus yards.

In 2016, the Bills were second in net punting average against (36.2), fourth in gross punting average against (43.2), sixth in the NFL in punt return average (11.2) and sixth in punt return average against (6.7). The 2015 Bills had the NFL's best kickoff coverage team, limiting opponents to 17.2 yards per kickoff return. Punter Colton Schmidt set a franchise record with a net average of 41.3 yards per punt. Kicker Dan Carpenter scored 125 points, becoming the first Buffalo player in a decade to top 100 points for three consecutive seasons (2013-15). The Bills also tied for the NFL lead with four special teams takeaways. Crossman helped the Bills finish among the NFL's best special teams in 2014 as the team finished second in Gosselin's rankings. The team's kickoff coverage team was third in the NFL, allowing just 20.0 yards per kickoff return. Buffalo's punt return unit was fourth in the league, averaging 6.5 yards per punt return. Carpenter set a team record with 34 field goals made in a season while kickoff specialist Jordan Gay set a team record with 49 touchbacks. Schmidt's 21 punts inside the 20 were the second-most in team history. Running back Boobie Dixon blocked two punts, becoming the first Bills player since 1990 (Steve Tasker) to block multiple punts in the same season.

In Crossman's first season in Buffalo in 2013, Carpenter made 91.7 percent of his field goals, the secondbest percentage in team history. Wide receiver Marcus Easley led the NFL with 23 special teams tackles (19 solo). Prior to his tenure in Buffalo, Crossman spent three seasons (2010-12) as the special teams coordinator for Detroit. In 2012, kicker Jason Hanson set a franchise record with 134 points. His 134 points were the most in his 21-year NFL career.

Crossman began his NFL coaching career in 2003 with Carolina as a special teams assistant. He was promoted to special teams coordinator in 2005. In his seven seasons with the Panthers, the team made three playoff appearances, won the NFC South twice and won the NFC Championship in 2003. Crossman spent 10 seasons as a collegiate coach and worked with the special teams units in all 10 seasons. He began his collegiate coaching career at the U.S. Coast Guard Academy as a special teams/defensive backs coach in 1993. From there he moved to Western Kentucky, where he was a special teams/secondary (1994-95) and special teams/outside linebackers (1996) coach. He spent the 1997-98 seasons at Central Florida, coaching special teams and defensive backs. Crossman moved to Georgia Tech in 1999 and coached special teams/defensive ends from 1999-2000 and special teams/defensive backs in 2001. In 2002, he was a special teams/linebackers coach at Michigan State.

Crossman was an All-American and All-Big East defensive back as a three-year letterman (1987-89) at Pittsburgh. He also started at fullback in the 1988 season. As a senior in 1989, Crossman was a team captain and named the team's MVP, earning second-team All-America honors after posting 62 tackles and one interception. He began his collegiate playing career at Kansas, where he was a Freshman All-American in 1985. Crossman spent time with Washington (1990) and Detroit (1991) at training camp following his college playing career. He was a team captain and earned All-League honors with the London Monarchs of the World League of American Football in 1991-92. He led the Monarchs to an inaugural World Bowl title in 1991 and was named MVP of the game after securing three interceptions.

Crossman earned a bachelor's degree in business administration and communications from Pittsburgh. He and his wife, Susan, have a son, Kyle, and a daughter, Kaylie.