Tim Lewis


Tim Lewis is an American football coach and former player. He played college football for the University of Pittsburgh and was drafted by the Green Bay Packers of the National Football League in the first round of the 1983 NFL Draft. Following a neck injury that cut his playing career short after four seasons, he began serving as a coach in the collegiate and professional levels and obtained his first head coaching position with the Birmingham Iron of the Alliance of American Football in 2019. He currently serves as the defensive backs coach for the St. Louis BattleHawks of the XFL.
He is the younger brother of former Memphis Express General Manager Will Lewis.

College Career

Lewis joined the Pittsburgh Panthers in 1980, playing his freshman season on a team that included eight other future NFL players: Dan Marino, Mark May, Dwight Collins, Rickey Jackson, Russ Grimm, Jimbo Covert, Bill Maas, Hugh Green, three of whom would eventually make to the Pro Football Hall of Fame. In his three seasons at Pitt, Collins intercepted four passes and returned 26 kickoffs for 679 yards.

Playing career

Lewis was a first round pick out of the University of Pittsburgh by the Green Bay Packers in the 1983 NFL Draft. A standout cornerback, he was considered to be one of the more skilled players on what was a relatively weak Packers team. He led or shared the team in interceptions in 1983 & 1985, finishing with a career total of 16. His 99-yard interception return for a touchdown against the Los Angeles Rams on November 18, 1984, remains the Packer team record. His career was cut short by a severe neck injury suffered in a Monday Night game against the Chicago Bears in the third week of the 1986 season.

Coaching career

Beginning his coaching career in 1987 at Texas A&M, Lewis served under his former college coach at Pittsburgh, Jackie Sherrill. He would later spend time at defensive coordinator for the Pittsburgh Steelers and the New York Giants. The 2013 season marked his third year as the secondary coach for the Atlanta Falcons. In 2015, Lewis became the defensive backs coach of the San Francisco 49ers, but was let go once the season ended as part of a complete coaching overhaul. He was named the head coach of the Birmingham Iron of the Alliance of American Football on June 6, 2018. With two games remaining in the 10-week inaugural AAF season, Lewis and the Iron clinched a playoff birth, though due to the AAF's overall underfunding and ownership disputes, the playoffs were never played.
Lewis then signed on as defensive backs coach for the St. Louis BattleHawks of the XFL.

Head coaching record

Alliance of American Football