Mike Shanahan Michael Edward " Mike " Shanahan ( born August 24 , 1952 ) is the 28th and current head coach of the Washington Redskins of the National Football League . Shanahan also holds the title of Vice President of Football Operations with the Redskins , giving him full control over player personnel with the team . Shanahan previously coached the Los Angeles Raiders and the Denver Broncos . He led the Broncos to back - to - back Super Bowl victories in 1997 and 1998 . Early career . Shanahan played high school football at East Leyden High School , Franklin Park , Illinois , where he played wishbone quarterback for legendary Eagles coach Jack Leese ' s 1968 and 1969 teams . He held the single - game rushing record of 260 yards on 15 carries ( which was set in a 32 – 8 win over Hinsdale South on September 20 , 1969 ) until it was broken in 1976 by Dennis Cascio . He graduated from high school in June 1970 . He was a quarterback at Eastern Illinois University , where he joined Delta Sigma Phi Fraternity . During a practice in the 1970s , a hard hit on the practice field ruptured one of his kidney s , which caused his heart to stop for thirty seconds and nearly killed him . A priest was summoned to administer the last rites to Shanahan , a devout Roman Catholic . With his playing career abruptly ended , Shanahan entered coaching . After graduation , he served as an assistant coach at Northern Arizona University and the University of Oklahoma . He then returned to his alma mater as offensive coordinator and helped his school win the Division II football championship . Shanahan worked as the offensive coordinator for the University of Minnesota for a single season , before accepting the same position at the University of Florida under head coach Charley Pell in 1980 . Shanahan stayed with the Gators through 1983 . NFL career . Assistant coaching stints . Shanahan first served as a quarterbacks coach and later offensive coordinator for the Broncos under Dan Reeves in the 1980s . It was his skill as an offensive mind that garnered Shanahan the attention of maverick Los Angeles Raiders owner Al Davis . After Shanahan and the Raiders parted ways in 1989 , Shanahan returned to the Broncos as an assistant . He was fired several years later by Reeves after finding himself in the middle of a growing feud between Reeves and quarterback John Elway . Los Angeles Raiders . Shanahan was hired by the Raiders in 1988 to replace longtime Raiders coach Tom Flores . He was the Raiders ' first head coach hired from outside the organization since Davis himself 23 years earlier . Shanahan ( who proved very unpopular with the players ) and the micromanaging Davis clashed almost immediately , and this was only exacerbated after the Raiders finished a disappointing 7 - 9 . Tensions increased towards the end of the season when wide receivers coach and Shanahan loyalist Nick Nicolau got into a heated argument with assistant coach Art Shell ( a Davis loyalist ) in which Nicolau reportedly accused Shell of only having a job by virtue of his friendship with Davis . When Shell went to Davis later to ask if this was true , Davis ' response was to immediately fire Nicolau . Shanahan responded by firing running backs coach Joe Scannella and offensive coordinator Tom Walsh ( both Davis hires ) , but Davis ordered them both back to work . At the end of the season , Shanahan fired defensive assistants Willie Brown and Charlie Sumner . An enraged Davis re - hired Brown to a different position in the organization . When the Raiders began 1 - 3 in 1989 , Shanahan himself was fired and replaced by Shell . Shanahan ' s final Raiders record was 8 – 12 in less than two seasons . San Francisco 49ers . In 1992 , Shanahan was hired as offensive coordinator for the San Francisco 49ers on George Seifert ' s staff , capping his rise with a victory in Super Bowl XXIX after the 1994 season . His years under Seifert placed him in the Bill Walsh coaching tree . In 1994 while coaching for the 49ers , Shanahan added to the ongoing feud between him and Oakland Raiders owner Al Davis when he had then QB Elvis Grbac throw a football at Davis ' s head . Denver Broncos . Shanahan ' s success with the 49ers earned him a head coaching spot once more , this time back in Denver with the Broncos beginning in 1995 . He led the Broncos to back - to - back Super Bowl championships in the 1997 and 1998 seasons , during which time the Broncos set a then - record for victories in two seasons . Between 1996 - 1998 , the Broncos set the NFL record for victories by going 46 – 10 over a three - year span . The 1998 Broncos won their first 13 games on their way to a 14 – 2 mark . Shanahan , taking his cue from West Coast offense guru Bill Walsh , was well known for scripting the first 15 offensive plays of the game , and helped the 1998 Broncos set an NFL record for first quarter points scored in a season . In 2005 , he passed Dan Reeves as the winningest coach in franchise history . Shanahan is known for a run - heavy variation of the West Coast offense he coached in San Francisco . He has often found unheralded running back s from later rounds of the annual NFL Draft and then turned them into league - leading rushers behind small - but - powerful offensive lines . Examples of this phenomenon are Terrell Davis , Mike Anderson , Olandis Gary , Clinton Portis , Reuben Droughns and Tatum Bell , all of whom have had at least one 1 , 000 - yard season in a Denver uniform over the past 10 years . After Elway ' s retirement and Davis ' career - ending injuries , Shanahan went seven years without a playoff win ( including three seasons when the Broncos didn ' t even make the playoffs ) , a drought which caused some criticism from fans . The playoff drought ended on January 14 , 2006 when the Broncos defeated the two - time defending Super Bowl champion New England Patriots in the of the playoffs at Invesco Field at Mile High . In 1999 , with the assistance of writer Adam Schefter , Shanahan penned " Think Like a Champion " , a motivational book about leadership . It was published by Harper Collins . In 2006 , he cooperated with Stefan Fatsis ' s endeavor to spend a year as a Broncos place - kicker , and much of the resulting book " A Few Seconds of Panic " ( 2008 ) covers Shanahan ' s coaching from the player ' s point of view . On December 30 , 2008 , Shanahan was fired after the Broncos failed to make the playoffs during the 2008 NFL season . It was the third consecutive year in which Denver didn ' t make the playoffs and the Broncos had spent most of the season well ahead of their division . Washington Redskins . In the early part of the 2009 season , it was reported that the Washington Redskins were interested in naming Shanahan their head coach , replacing Jim Zorn . Although this was reported by several media outlets , the Redskins ' Vice President of Football Operations , Vinny Cerrato , stated that a coaching change would not be considered until the end of the season . On November 18 , 2009 ESPN ' s Adam Schefter reported that the Buffalo Bills had contacted Shanahan about their head coaching vacancy after the team parted ways with former coach Dick Jauron . On January 5 , 2010 , Shanahan was formally introduced as the Redskins ' 24th full - time head coach . As part of the deal , he was also named vice president of football operations , with the final say on football matters . He is one of three coaches who also has the title or powers of general manager , along with New England ' s Bill Belichick and Kansas City ' s Andy Reid . Shanahan was signed to a five - year , $ 35 million contract . Several months earlier , Bruce Allen was named the team ' s general manager . It is likely that Shanahan and Allen will split the duties held by a general manager , with Shanahan having the final say . This model is similar to how Belichick and Scott Pioli worked during their eight years in New England . Despite Shanahan ' s combined 11 - 21 in his first two seasons as Redskins coach , as well as the Redskins 3 - 6 start to the 2012 season , the Redskins are considering negotiating a contract extension in the 2013 offseason with Shanahan This is due to the Redskins seven game winning streak to end the 2012 season which resulted in the team ' s first NFC East title and home playoff game since the 1999 season . The Redskins secured the division crown with a 28 - 18 victory over the Dallas Cowboys at FedEx Field on December 30 , 2012 . The Redskins lost in in the Wild Card round of the 2012 NFL Playoffs to the Seattle Seahawks with a score of 14 - 24 . Quarterback Robert Griffin III originally injured his knee ( Grade 1 LCL Sprain ) on Dec . 9 . Griffin ' s knee buckled underneath him during the fourth quarter of the playoff game attempting to field a bad snap from center Will Montgomery . It was later determined that Griffin had sustained a tear of his LCL and a damaged ACL . Griffin underwent reconstructive surgery of his knee for an LCL tear and damaged ACL on Jan . 9 . Griffin has made comments regarding the injury and expects to play in the Redskins ' Week 1 game of the 2013 NFL Season . Coaching tree . NFL head coaches under whom Mike Shanahan has served : Assistant coaches under Mike Shanahan who became NFL head coaches : Assistant coaches under Mike Shanahan who became NCAA head coaches : Personal . Shanahan is a devout Roman Catholic . He and his wife , Peggy , have two children — a son , Kyle , a graduate of the University of Texas and currently the Washington Redskins ’ offensive coordinator , and a daughter , Krystal , also a graduate of the University of Texas . Shanahan is also a Brother in the Delta Sigma Phi Fraternity . In May 2008 , Shanahan attended the wedding of George W . Bush ' s daughter Jenna Bush , who was the former college roommate of Shanahan ' s daughter .