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Steven Bernard Wilks (born August 8, 1969) is an American football coach in the National Football League (NFL). A defensive assistant for most of his career, he was the assistant head coach and defensive backs coach for the Carolina Panthers when they reached Super Bowl 50 and the defensive coordinator for the San Francisco 49ers when they reached Super Bowl LVIII. Wilks was also the head coach of the Arizona Cardinals in 2018 and the interim head coach of the Panthers in 2022.
.jpg) Wilks with the 49ers in 2024 | |
| Personal information | |
|---|---|
| Born: | August 8, 1969 Charlotte, North Carolina, U.S. |
| Career information | |
| High school: | West Charlotte (NC) |
| College: | Appalachian State |
| Position: | Defensive coordinator |
| Career history | |
| As a player: | |
| As a coach: | |
| |
| Head coaching record | |
| Regular season: | NCAA: 5–6 (.455) NFL: 9–19 (.321) |
| Record at Pro Football Reference | |
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Wilks was born in Charlotte and attended West Charlotte High School.[1] He played defensive back from 1987 to 1991 at Appalachian State.[2]
Wilks played one year (1993) in the Arena Football League for the Charlotte Rage as a wide receiver, defensive back, and kick returner.[3]
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College
Wilks served as the head coach at Savannah State College for one season (1999) and compiled a record of 5–6.[4] He coached college-level football until 2005.
Chicago Bears
On February 16, 2006, Wilks was hired by the Chicago Bears as defensive backs coach.[2] On December 30, 2008, the Bears announced that they had fired Wilks.[5]
San Diego Chargers
Wilks was hired as defensive backs coach of the San Diego Chargers in 2009. He worked under former Bears defensive coordinator and then-Chargers defensive coordinator Ron Rivera, with Rivera promoted from defensive backs coach.[6]
Carolina Panthers (first stint)
When Rivera became head coach of the Panthers, he hired Wilks as secondary coach on January 15, 2012. He was promoted to assistant head coach in 2015.[7] He was Pro Football Focus' second runner up to their Secondary Coach of the Year award.[8]
In the 2015 season, Wilks and the Panthers finished 15–1 and reached Super Bowl 50 on February 7, 2016. The Panthers fell to the Denver Broncos by a score of 24–10.[9]
After defensive coordinator Sean McDermott left to become head coach of the Buffalo Bills, Wilks was promoted to McDermott's former position.[10]
After the 2017 season, Wilks was an extremely hot commodity for teams in need of new head coaches. According to Ian Rapoport of the NFL Network, teams were impressed by Wilks' interview with the Los Angeles Rams in the previous offseason before they eventually hired Sean McVay. Wilks also interviewed with the New York Giants, who had hired David Gettleman as general manager.[11] Gettleman previously served as general manager for the Panthers.
Arizona Cardinals
On January 22, 2018, Wilks was hired as head coach of the Arizona Cardinals, replacing Bruce Arians.[12] In the 2018 season opener against the Washington Redskins, Wilks made his head coaching debut with a 24–6 loss.[13] In Week 5, against the San Francisco 49ers, he recorded his first NFL victory as a head coach.[14] He finished coaching the season with a league-worst 3–13 record, the worst record for the Cardinals since 2000.[15] On December 31, 2018, the Cardinals fired Wilks.[16]
Cleveland Browns
On January 14, 2019, Wilks was hired by the Cleveland Browns to be their defensive coordinator under head coach Freddie Kitchens.[17] He was not retained for the 2020 season under new head coach Kevin Stefanski.
Missouri
On January 21, 2021, after 13 seasons with the NFL, Wilks returned to college football. He was hired by the University of Missouri as their defensive coordinator under head coach Eliah Drinkwitz.[18]
Carolina Panthers (second stint)
On February 9, 2022, Wilks returned to the NFL and to the Carolina Panthers, who announced the hiring of Wilks as Matt Rhule's new defensive pass game coordinator and secondary coach.[19] On October 10, 2022, after Rhule was fired, Wilks was named the Panthers' interim head coach for the remainder of the season.[20] Wilks led Carolina to a 6–6 record over the season's remaining 12 weeks, but was passed over for the permanent head coaching position in favor of Frank Reich.
San Francisco 49ers
On February 9, 2023, it was reported that the San Francisco 49ers hired Wilks as their defensive coordinator.[21] During the 2023 NFL Combine, 49ers' general manager John Lynch confirmed that Wilks was hired as their defensive coordinator.[22] On February 14, 2024, he was fired following their loss in Super Bowl LVIII, following a season of inconsistency on defense.[23]
In August 2024, Wilks became a volunteer advisor for the Charlotte 49ers football team.[24]
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College
| Year | Team | Overall | Conference | Standing | Bowl/playoffs | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Savannah State Tigers (Southern Intercollegiate Athletic Conference) (1999) | |||||||||
| 1999 | Savannah State | 5–6 | 3–4 | ||||||
| Savannah State: | 5–6 | 3–4 | |||||||
| Total: | 5–6 | ||||||||
NFL
* – Interim head coach
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Wilks is a Christian.[25] He is married to Marcia Wilks. They have two daughters and one son.[26]
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