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Keith Rowen will serve as the Falcons Tight Ends coach after serving as the Offensive Coordinator of the Arizona Cardinals since 2005. Rowen returns to Atlanta after spending four years with the Falcons from 1990-93 where he served in different capacities.
In his first season as the Offensive Coordinator for the Cardinals in 2005, Rowen helped guide the Cardinals to the No. 1 rated passing offense (4,437 yards and 277.3 yards per game average) in the NFL for the first time in team history. The 2005 Cardinals offense also set team passing records for gross passing yards (4,723), pass attempts (670), completions (419) and completion percentage (62.5%), and finished the season with 5,575 yards, the team's highest yardage total since 1988 and the third-highest single-season total in franchise history. In addition, the Cardinals offense ended the season ranked eighth overall in the League, which marked the highest ranking for the team since 1993 when they also finished eighth.
The 2005 Arizona offense featured two receivers who both recorded over 100 receptions in Larry Fitzgerald (103) and Anquan Boldin (102), making them the first pair of receivers to accomplish the feat since Herman Moore and Brett Perriman in 1995 with the Detroit Lions. Quarterbacks Kurt Warner and Josh McCown combined to throw for a League-high seven 300+ passing games while using eight different offensive line combinations.
Rowen came to the Cardinals after spending the previous six seasons with the Kansas City Chiefs as the Tight Ends coach. While in Kansas City, Rowen helped develop one of the most prolific tight ends in the NFL in Tony Gonzalez, who enjoyed six consecutive Pro Bowl seasons, all of which came under Rowen's guidance. Gonzalez established a new NFL record for receptions in a single-season by a tight end in League history with 102 in 2004. Gonzalez also led all NFL tight ends with 71 receptions and 10 touchdowns in 2003 and paced all AFC tight ends with 916 receiving yards. In 2003, he also bypassed WR Henry Marshall as the all-time leading receiver in Chiefs history, joining Cleveland's Ozzie Newsome and Denver's Shannon Sharpe as the only tight ends in NFL history to become their franchise's career leader in receptions. Also in 2003, Gonzalez became the first player in Chiefs history to register six consecutive seasons with 50 or more receptions.
In 2000, Gonzalez shattered the franchise single-season record with 93 receptions and amassed 1,203 receiving yards, the most ever by a Chiefs tight end. It was also the fourth-highest total by a tight end in NFL annals and the fourth-best mark of any Kansas City player in their rich team history. Gonzalez also established an NFL record for tight ends in 2000 by producing six 100-yard receiving games, a mark which tied as the most ever by any Chiefs receiver. The '97 first-round draft choice became the first-ever Chiefs tight end to receive a Pro Bowl invitation following the '99 campaign when he caught 76 passes, the fourth-highest total by any player in Kansas City annals. Gonzalez's 11 touchdown catches in '99 ranked just one shy of the franchise single-season record, as well.
Prior to joining the Chiefs, Rowen spent two seasons tutoring the offensive line of the Oakland Raiders, while also serving as the Assistant Head Coach for the silver & black. During his two seasons with the Raiders, Rowen helped rejuvenate Oakland's ground game. RB Napoleon Kaufman racked up 2,215 yards in those two seasons under Rowen's watchful eye, including a career-high 1,294 yards in 1997, while G Steve Wisniewski earned a Pro Bowl berth under Rowen's tutelage.
Prior to his time in Oakland, Rowen spent three years as an Offensive Line Coach with the Minnesota Vikings from 1994-96. During Rowen's three-year tenure with the Vikings, G Randall McDaniel earned All-Pro honors and started in three Pro Bowls. He was also instrumental in the development of future Vikings Pro Bowl offensive linemen Jeff Christy and Todd Steussie.
Rowen experienced his original stint with the Falcons from 1990-93. In his first year, he coached special teams and tight ends before serving as the Offensive Line Coach the following three seasons. In three of the four years he was with Atlanta, the Falcons ranked in the top 10 in total offense. In 1991, Falcons T Chris Hinton received Pro Bowl recognition under Rowen after receiving that same honor four straight seasons (1985-88) when Rowen served as the Offensive Line and Special Teams Coach for the Indianapolis Colts. In 1990, Rowen's special teams units ranked as the best in the League by The Dallas Morning News.
As Tight Ends Coach with New England in 1989, Rowen helped rookie TE Eric Sievers from Maryland lead the Patriots in receiving with 54 catches. The New York native began his pro career as the offensive coordinator/offensive line coach for the USFL's Boston/New Orleans Breakers for two seasons (1983-84). He then entered the NFL ranks in 1984 as the Running Backs Coach for the Cleveland Browns.
A three-year letterman as a tackle at Stanford from 1972-74, Rowen earned All-America honors during his senior campaign. Rowen then began his coaching career at his alma mater in 1975 as the team's Assistant Defensive Line Coach. After a two-year stint (1975-76) at Stanford, Rowen moved to Long Beach State as the Offensive Line Coach for two years (1977-78) before spending the 1979-82 seasons at Arizona.
An 11th-round draft choice of the Philadelphia Eagles in 1975, Rowen remained with the Eagles until that year's final cut down before beginning his coaching career at Stanford. An academic All-America at Stanford, Rowen earned a master's degree from that institution in 1977 and also holds a doctorate in athletic administration from the University of Southern California. He comes from a football back-ground as his father, Vic, served as the longtime head football coach at San Francisco State.
Born September 2, 1952 in New York, New York, Rowen and his wife Kimberly have four children, Mandee, Holly, Kelly and Michael. | 