Derek Frazier is in his third season as the Bengals' assistant offensive line coach after joining the staff in 2022.
In 2023, Frazier helped a pair of O-line starters in G Alex Cappa and OT Jonah Williams return from injuries that caused them both to miss time during the '22 postseason. Each player started all 17 regular-season games, with Williams making the transition from left tackle to right tackle for the first time in his career. Frazier also worked with Orlando Brown Jr., a marquee free agent acquisition who lined up at left tackle for 97.3 percent of the team's offensive snaps in his first Bengals season.
In 2022, Frazier helped guide a new-look offensive line that featured four new starters, including LG Cordell Volson, the team's fourth-round draft pick. Working with Frazier, Volson played 100 percent of Cincinnati's offensive snaps during the regular and postseason. The unit improved as the year progressed, allowing 17 fewer sacks in the second half of the season (14) compared to the first (31), and holding opponents to no more than two sacks in each of the final eight games.
Frazier came to Cincinnati after spending the 2021 season as offensive line coach at the University of Wyoming. He coached a line that helped the Cowboys average 195.1 rushing yards per game, second most in the Mountain West Conference. Three Wyoming offensive linemen earned All-Mountain West honors under Frazier's tutelage.
Frazier spent the 2019-20 seasons as assistant offensive line coach with the N.Y. Jets, working alongside current Bengals offensive line coach/ run game coordinator Frank Pollack. In 2020, Frazier helped first-round draft pick Mekhi Becton earn numerous all-rookie honors. In 2019, the Jets fought through a wave of injuries that forced the team to use 11 different starters (second most in NFL) along the line. The group showed improvement as the season progressed, allowing 22 fewer sacks in the second half of the year compared to the first.
Prior to his first NFL coaching position with the Jets, Frazier spend four seasons (2015-18) at Central Michigan University, where he served as offensive line coach and had the added distinction of run game coordinator from '17-18. Frazier helped CMU appear in three consecutive bowl games from 2015-17.]
Frazier spent the 2012-14 seasons as offensive line coach at Colorado State University, helping the program increase its win total from four to 10 over a three-year period. He coached two offensive linemen — Ty Sambrailo and Weston Richburg — to first-team All-Mountain West honors, with Richburg becoming a second-round draft choice by the N.Y. Giants.
Frazier had two coaching stints at Fresno State, the latter of which from 2006-11. He served as the offensive line coach for the 2006-08 seasons and added the responsibility of run-game coordinator from '09-11. He previously spent the 2003-04 campaigns as a graduate assistant. During his years at Fresno State, Frazier helped the Bulldogs earn six bowl game bids with three wins against Power 5 opponents. He helped develop All-American OL Logan Mankins, who went on to play 11 seasons in the NFL with the New England Patriots and Tampa Bay Buccaneers.
Frazier was the offensive coordinator and offensive line coach at Adams State College in Alamosa, Colo., for two seasons (2001-02), where he also served as the weight throws coach for the track & field program. He spent the 2000 season as offensive coordinator and offensive line coach at Nichols College in Dudley, Mass., helping lead the team to a 7-3 record and the first postseason appearance in school history.
A four-year letterman at the University of Northern Colorado (1992-96), Frazier was the starting center on the Bears' NCAA Division II National Championship team in 1996. That season, he received the team's Most Inspirational Offensive Player Award.
Frazier earned his bachelor's degree in business administration from Northern Colorado in 1997 and received a master's degree from Nichols College in 2000. He is married with two children.
Playing and coaching history: 1992-96—Played OL at Northern Colorado. 1998-2000—Assistant Coach (AC), Nichols College (Mass.). 2001-02—AC, Adams State College (Colo.). 2003-04—AC, Fresno State. 2005—AC, Northern Arizona. 2006-11—AC, Fresno State. 2012-14—AC, Colorado State. 2015-18—AC, Central Michigan. 2019-20—AC, N.Y. Jets. 2021—AC, Wyoming. 2022-present—AC, Cincinnati Bengals.
