Matt Daniels joins the Cowboys coaching staff in 2020 after spending the previous two seasons working with new Dallas Special Teams Coordinator John Fassel and the LA Rams special teams units.
The Rams deployed one of the most aggressive and creative special teams groups in recent years, and from 2018-19 they had the most fake kicks (eight), recorded six punt returns of 20-plus yards and finished second in the league in net punting average (43.0) in 2018. Also in 2018, Cory Littleton was named to the Pro Bowl as the special teams player for the NFC after blocking two punts and deflecting another.
Daniels joined the Rams after a four-year stint as a player in the NFL and a one-year graduate assistantship at the University of Colorado in 2017. Daniels played in seven games over the course of his four-year NFL career for the Rams (six) and Los Angeles Chargers (one). He also spent time on the practice squads for Jacksonville and the Chargers.
Collegiately, Daniels earned first-team All-ACC and second-team All-America honors as a senior after leading Duke in tackles with 126. In his final season as a Blue Devil, he finished second in the balloting for ACC Defensive Player of the Year accolades. Daniels played in 46 career games at Duke and compiled totals of 324 tackles, 13.0 tackles for loss, four interceptions, seven caused fumbles, three fumble recoveries and 27 pass breakups. He was named a team captain for the 2011 season.
As a prep at Fayette County High School in Fayetteville, Ga., Daniels was a three-time all-region pick and two-time all-county choice. Additionally, he was named Fayette County's Offensive and Defensive Player of the Year as both a junior and senior, setting the school single-game rushing record with 348 yards on 18 carries. Daniels also participated in track and field at Fayetteville and was honored with the Watkins Award, an honor presented annually to the top African-American high school student-athlete in the country.
Daniels holds a degree in public policy studies with a minor in markets & management studies from Duke. He and his wife, Tiffany, have a daughter, Yara.
