Brian Duker joined the Miami Dolphins as pass game coordinator/secondary in 2024 after spending the previous three seasons (2021-23) with Detroit.
The 2024 season marks his ninth as an NFL coach working on the defensive side of the ball. He's been part of teams that have won three division titles, made four playoff appearances and had five winning seasons over the past six years.
In 2023, Duker oversaw an improved Lions defensive backs group. Detroit was one of just four NFL teams (Chicago, N.Y. Jets and San Francisco) to have at least three players with three-plus interceptions. All three players were defensive backs – safety Kerby Joseph (four), safety Brian Branch (three) and cornerback Jerry Jacobs (three). Branch's three interceptions were second among all NFL rookies that season. The Lions won the division for the first time since 1993 and advanced to the NFC Championship game.
Duker was promoted to safeties coach in 2022. He worked closely with Joseph, who led the team with four interceptions despite being a third-round pick (97th overall) just a few months prior. Joseph became the first NFL rookie since 2005 to have at least four interceptions, two forced fumbles and one fumble recovery in a season.
Duker's first season with Detroit came in 2021 as a defensive assistant.
From 2018-20, Duker was with Baltimore, where he spent one season (2018) as a defensive staff assistant/coaching analyst and two (2019-20) as defensive coaching analyst. In his three years in Baltimore the Ravens allowed the fewest points (18.2) in the NFL, allowed the fewest net yards (307.8), tied for fourth in forced fumbles (45) and were fifth in passes defensed (227). Baltimore won two AFC North crowns and made the playoffs all three seasons, winning 35 games. Eight different defensive players earned a Pro Bowl nod.
In 2020, the Ravens ranked seventh in total defense (329.8) and second in scoring defense (18.9). The team won 11 games and an AFC Wild Card matchup at Tennessee. Three different Ravens defenders earned Pro Bowl selections – defensive lineman Calais Campbell, linebacker Matthew Judon and cornerback Marlon Humphrey.
Baltimore ranked fourth in total defense (300.6) and third in scoring defense (17.6) during the 2019 season. The Ravens were stout against both the run and pass, ranking fifth in rush defense (93.4) and sixth in pass defense (207.2). The Ravens went 14-2 in the regular season and earned the AFC's No. 1 seed. Four different defensive players earned Pro Bowl selections – Judon, Humphrey, cornerback Marcus Peters and safety Earl Thomas. Humphrey and Peters also earned first-team All-Pro honors.
The Ravens won the AFC North with a 10-win season in 2018. The team led the NFL in total defense (292.9) after finishing in the top five in rush defense (fourth, 82.9) and pass defense (fifth, 210.0). Baltimore ranked second (17.9) in scoring defense. Defensive tackle Brandon Williams, safety Eric Weddle and linebacker C.J. Mosley all earned Pro Bowl nods.
Duker began his NFL coaching career as a defensive intern with Cleveland in 2015 and as a defensive analyst with San Francisco in 2016.
Duker was at Missouri from 2013-14, serving as a graduate assistant in recruiting in 2013 and defensive quality control in 2014. The Tigers won the SEC East both seasons, totaling 23 wins in a two-year span.
His first coaching job was as a defensive graduate assistant at Bryant in 2011.
A Maryland native, Duker is married to his wife, CJ. He earned a bachelor's degree from Towson, where he was a student assistant, and his MBA from Bryant.
