BUFFALO, N.Y. (AP) – The Buffalo Bills promoted Kathryn Smith to be their special teams quality control coach, making her the first full-time female member of an NFL coaching staff.
The team announced the move in a release Wednesday night.
Smith was an administrative assistant this season for Bills assistant coaches under Rex Ryan, with whom she has worked for seven years.
She spent the previous 12 seasons working for the New York Jets in various capacities, including a player personnel assistant from 2007-13. Ryan became Jets coach in 2009. Smith served as Ryan’s assistant in 2014, his final season in New York before he was fired and then hired by the Bills.
In her new role, Smith will assist special teams coordinator Danny Crossman and his assistant Eric Smith.