A former NFL safety who was in the league as recently as 2016, Jordan Kovacs now enters his fifth season as a Bengals and NFL coach. 2023 marks his second season as assistant linebackers coach, after serving as a defensive quality control coach with a specific focus on linebackers the previous three years.
In 2021, Kovacs worked with a young LB corps that featured two starters under the age of 26 in Germaine Pratt and Logan Wilson. Wilson led the Bengals with four INTs, tying for the most in the NFL by an LB, while netting a career-high 98 tackles. He led all players in the postseason with 39 tackles and made key plays during Cincinnati's run to Super Bowl LVI, including a late-game INT in the Divisional Playoff at Tennessee. Pratt, meanwhile, had 88 tackles in the regular season and clinched the Bengals' Wild Card win over Las Vegas with an INT in the game's final minute.
During the 2020 campaign, Kovacs helped guide a Bengals LB corps that featured three rookie draft picks and an unrestricted free agent signee. The steady development of those young LBs paralleled the Bengals' improved defense as the season went along, as they helped hold opposing QBs to just a 62.8 completion percentage, sixth-best in the NFL.
In 2019, his first season as an NFL coach, Kovacs and the staff keyed a substantial defensive turnaround. Cincinnati notched 11 more sacks in the second half of 2019 compared to the first eight games, and allowed 84.1 fewer yards per game. Opposing QBs completed just 59.3 percent of their passes against the Bengals the second half of the season, compared to 64.3 percent over the first eight contests.
Prior to joining the Bengals in 2019, Kovacs spent two seasons (2017-18) working for the football program at his alma mater, the University of Michigan. In 2018, Kovacs was a defensive graduate assistant with a focus on the defensive line, and he helped the Wolverines finish second in the nation in both total defense (275.2 yards per game) and pass defense (147.8). Kovacs' work with Michigan's defensive line helped guide DEs Rashan Gary and Chase Winovich to first-team All-Big Ten honors.
In 2017, Kovacs was a coaching intern at Michigan with the defense and special teams. That season, the Wolverines led the nation in both passing defense and third-down conversion percentage allowed. Michigan was the only team in the country in 2017 to hold five opponents to fewer than 200 yards of total offense. No other Big Ten school had accomplished that feat in the previous 20 years. Eleven of 13 opponents were held under 200 yards passing as well.
Prior to his coaching career, Kovacs played safety for the Miami Dolphins for parts of three seasons (2013-15), after originally signing with the team as a college free agent in '13. He played in 28 career games for the Dolphins, totaling 10 tackles and a sack. Kovacs also spent time briefly on the Philadelphia Eagles' practice squad in 2014, and with the Kansas City Chiefs and L.A. Rams during the 2016 preseason.
Kovacs had a standout collegiate career as a safety at Michigan from 2009-12, after originally joining the program as a walk-on in '08. He was a four-year letter winner and four-year starter for the Wolverines, appearing in 50 total games with 46 starts. Kovacs became just the 15th player in school history to record 300 career tackles, and left the program ranked 12th in that category (331).
As a senior in 2012, Kovacs earned Michigan's Bo Schembechler Most Valuable Player Award, as well as second-team All-Big Ten honors. He was also a finalist for the Burlsworth Trophy, presented annually to the top FBS college football player who began their career as a walk-on. Kovacs was named All-Big Ten honorable mention in 2010 and '11, and was an Academic All-Big Ten selection in '11 and '12.
Kovacs was born June 12, 1990, in Curtice, Ohio, outside of Toledo. He graduated from Michigan in 2012 with a degree in kinesiology. He and his wife, Kat, live in Cincinnati.
