Bills make Kathryn Smith the NFL’s first full-time female coach
Woo! On Wednesday, the Buffalo Bills announced that Kathryn Smith would be their next quality control-special teams coach, making her the NFL’s first full-time coach ever. We’ve written about female opportunities at the major league level before, including Jen Welter and Becky Hammon, but this may be the biggest step yet. From head coach Rex Ryan to former players, glowing praise and compliments have surrounded this massive promotion. In a statement released by the Bills, Ryan said:
“Kathryn has been working in a football administrative role and assisted the assistant coaches for years. She has proven that she’s ready for the next step, so I’m excited and proud for her with this opportunity.”
Although it may seem small in the immediate, it’s a big step towards creating more gender equality in professional sports. In a sport that has had trouble with injuries, scandals, and other large scale events, it’s nice to see football take an unequivocally positive leap forward. Someday, coaching hires like Smith will no longer be a surprise, they’ll be expected. There are so many brilliant footballing minds out there, we just have to let them in!
Congrats again, Kathryn!
(Thanks to the Bills for the photo too!)
Buffalo Bills — Bills name Smith quality control-special teams coach
