This Davenport Native Could Become an NFL Head Coach

A local boy who came from Davenport and vaulted his way up the coaching ranks and got his first opportunity with an NFL team two years ago, is now being tapped by multiple teams for head coaching interviews.

Last year, I wrote about Nathan Scheelhaase. The-then 33-year-old served as Iowa State's offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach for the 2023 season. Prior to that, he served as the running backs coach, wide receivers coach, and running game coordinator at various points dating back to 2018. In 2024, Scheelhaase was hired by Sean McVay of the Los Angeles Rams to serve as an offensive assistant/pass game coordinator.

Nathan Scheelhaase's Rapid Rise:

It's been a fast climb for the Davenport native, who attended the University of Illinois from 2009 - 2013, and then started his coaching career in 2015. Scheelhaase is an intriguing coaching candidate for a few different reasons. Chief of all is his relationship to Sean McVay, one of the five best coaches in the NFL since he was hired by the Rams in 2017.

But while Scheelhaase doesn't coordinate the Rams' offense nor call plays, he's clearly someone with experience designing offenses, and McVay apparently leans on him heavily when developing game-plans.

Who is Interviewing Nathan Scheelhaase?:

Scheelhaase's name will undoubtedly be unfamiliar to even die-hard NFL fans. As of this writing, he has received interview requests from the Baltimore Ravens and Pittsburgh Steelers. The Ravens fired head coach John Harbaugh last week after 18 seasons. This week, Mike Tomlin resigned as head coach of the Steelers after 19 seasons at the helm.

Both jobs are insanely attractive due to their ownership stability, front offices, scouting departments, and long legacies of sustained success.

Furthermore, given the fact that the Ravens have only had three head coaches in their history, and the Steelers have only had three coaches dating back to 1969 (if you can believe it), they would logically seek a candidate in their 30s or 40s with whom they can entrust the franchise for at least a decade.

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The Ravens hired Harbaugh when he only had experience as a special teams coordinator. Tomlin only spent one year as the Minnesota Vikings' defensive coordinator before the Steelers plucked him. By comparison, while Scheelhaase was an offensive coordinator for one year with Iowa State, he does not have formal coordinating experience (offense, defense, special teams) in the NFL.

And yet, it's the smartest organizations, in football and beyond, who see promise in young candidates and give them the opportunity before anyone else has time to consider it. Nathan Scheelhaase is a name to know and one to watch. Read more about him on his Wikipedia page, and find out more about his upcoming interviews here.