Coaches

Cioffi spent the past eight seasons working mostly with the Bengals safeties, including the 2009 season when the Cincinnati defense ranked fourth in the NFL in fewest yards allowed (301.4 per game), sixth in fewest passing yards allowed (203.1) and sixth in fewest average points allowed (18.2). The pass defense ranking was Cincinnati’s highest since 1993.

 

During Cioffi’s tenure with the defensive backs in Cincinnati (2003-10), the Bengals collected 150 interceptions, the fifth-highest total in the NFL during that span (Baltimore, Green Bay, New England, Chicago) and 125 of them were by defensive backs.

 

Cioffi spent his first six seasons with the Bengals as a defensive assistant after joining the staff in 1997 when he was hired by head coach Bruce Coslet. Coaching at the age of 23, Cioffi was the youngest full-time assistant coach in the NFL at that time. From 1997-2001 in Cincinnati, Cioffi worked alongside current Cardinals defensive coordinator Ray Horton and current Steelers defensive coordinator Dick LeBeau.

 

While in Cincinnati, Cioffi became very proficient in computer work, and in addition to his on-field duties with players, he handled much of the preparation work for the entire defense on the team’s upcoming opponent.

 

He began his coaching career in 1993 as a staff assistant with the New York Jets as a 20-year old under Coslet, with duties that included assembling playbooks and running video printers on game days. Following two seasons (1993-94) with the Jets, Cioffi coached wide receivers for two seasons (1995-96) at C.W. Post University in Brookville, NY. The 1996 team won the ECAC Division II Championship.  

 

Cioffi was born in Queens, N.Y. and attended college at SUNY-Stony Brook. Along with his wife, Cindy, the couple has two daughters, Cecilia Elle and Corrine, and a son, Sigismondo Connor.