Coaches

Jonathan Hayes, an NFL tight end for 12 seasons, returns for his ninth year as Bengals tight ends coach in 2011.

Last season, Hayes was handed a crucial assignment — the development of Cincinnati’s No. 1 draft pick Jermaine Gresham. The results were more than encouraging:

• Gresham’s 52 catches tied for the lead among AFC rookies and tied for third among NFL rookies. His total was a Bengals rookie TE record, topping the mark of 44 set by Tony McGee in 1993. He tied 2011 teammate Jordan Shipley for the most catches by any Bengals rookie since 1985.
• Gresham’s 471 receiving yards were the most by any Bengals TE since 1995.
• His four TD catches tied the most by any Bengals tight end since 1998 and were the most ever by a Bengals rookie playing strictly TE.
• The 260-pounder displayed consistent effort and great potential as an NFL blocker.

Veteran Reggie Kelly returned to the Bengals TE lineup last season, after missing all of 2009 with an injury, and together with Gresham, he helped the offense rank second in the AFC and sixth in the NFL in fewest sacks allowed per passing play. Opponents totaled only 28 sacks in 618 passing plays, an average of one every 22.07 plays.

The Bengals did not allow a sack for 100 consecutive passing plays to close the season. The streak of 100 began in the fourth quarter of Game 13 and continued through the final three games.
 
And twice since 2005, the tight ends’ blocking has helped Cincinnati set a club record for fewest sacks allowed. A record of 21 was set in 2005, and that mark was rewritten at 17 in ’07.

The tight ends’ run blocking helped RB Cedric Benson to a second consecutive 1000-yard season in 2010. Benson finished with 1111 yards and scored a career-high eight TDs.

Prior to joining the Bengals, Hayes spent four years (1999-2002) at the University of Oklahoma as tight ends coach and special teams coordinator. He helped the Sooners to a four-year record of 44-9, including a 13-0 mark in 2000 for the NCAA championship.

Under Hayes’s tutelage, tight end Trent Smith finished his Oklahoma career in 2002 as the school’s No. 2 all-time receiver, with 148 catches. Also in 2002, Sooners special teams blocked seven kicks and had three punt returns for TDs.
 
Hayes began his NFL playing career in 1985 with the Kansas City Chiefs, as a second-round draft pick out of Iowa. He played for the Chiefs through 1993, serving as a team captain, and closed his NFL career with three seasons in Pittsburgh (’94-96). He had 153 career receptions for 1718 yards with 13 TDs.
He saw action in 184 NFL games with 122 starts, and he played all 16 games in each of his final six seasons. He played in three AFC Championship games and a Super Bowl (for Pittsburgh vs. Dallas in SB XXX).

At the University of Iowa, he earned first-team All-America honors as a senior TE and was a team captain. He holds a degree from Iowa in general studies.
Hayes’s older brother, Jay, is Bengals defensive line coach.

Hayes’s hometown is South Fayette, Pa. He attended South Fayette High School. He and his wife have four children.

PLAYING AND COACHING HISTORY - 1981-84: Played linebacker and tight end at Iowa. 1985-93: NFL tight end, Kansas City Chiefs. 1994-96: NFL tight end, Pittsburgh Steelers. 1999-2002: Assistant coach (AC), Univ. of Oklahoma. 2003-present: AC, Bengals.