Coaching lineages are a staple of NFL culture, and Aden Durde is quietly building his own legacy as the British figure who helped bring the Super Bowl to an international audience. One of his protégés is former quarterback-turned-coach George Reynolds. The most recent conversation I had with Reynolds took place in 2020. At that time he was the inaugural starting quarterback for the groundbreaking NFL Academy and one of only ten players invited to showcase their skills against American high school athletes at the NFL Pro Bowl challenges in Orlando.
After that experience, Reynolds headed north to the University of Ottawa in Canada, where he continued his development on the field. He eventually pivoted toward coaching, dividing his time between the Academy, the International Player Pathway (IPP) program, and a stint with the Baltimore Ravens during the most recent offseason. "I always knew coaching was something I wanted to do," Reynolds told Sky Sports. "As an international player, the path to America felt like a massive wall.
I wanted to knock that wall down for the guys who follow me because I've lived through the whole process. If I can give someone a better opportunity than I had, that means a lot to me. That's really why I got into coaching, and the Academy has helped me grow every day. I feel ready to take that next step and prove I belong at the highest level." Durde, who made history as the first British coordinator to win a Super Bowl in February, has long spoken about the ripple effect of his unlikely journey and hinted that more "British‑born" success stories are on the horizon.
"I try to mirror what he's done through my own journey," Reynolds said of Durde’s relentless climb. "Whenever an opportunity presented itself—whether it was an internship or a coaching role—he seized it, learned from it, and moved forward. He was brutally honest about what he deserved and went after it.
That’s exactly where I want to be. He’s also been an incredible mentor.
We keep in touch, and he’s given me concrete advice on the steps I need to take and the materials I should prepare to give myself the best shot at coaching at the next level." Reynolds’ transition into coaching began after his return from Canada. He reached out to former Kent Exiles teammate James Cook, now Senior Director of Player Development for the Cleveland Browns, to explore a role at an IPP combine in London. "That was an opportunity I couldn’t pass up," Reynolds recalled. "I showed up at 6 a.m., was the first at the table, and stayed until 11 p.m.
doing whatever was needed. I wanted to prove my value in every way possible." That dedication opened the door for Reynolds to serve as an assistant tight‑ends coach for the IPP program—the brainchild of Durde—stateside, and eventually led to his current position as wide‑receiver and tight‑ends coach at the Loughborough‑based NFL Academy. "I worked with Steve Hagan, who is now the Academy’s head coach," Reynolds explained.
"We coached Patrick Murtagh, who suffered an injury after signing with the Lions but still made it to the NFL a year later. When Coach Hagan returned to Europe to lead the Academy, he called me immediately and asked me to join his staff." Reynolds was part of the Academy’s inaugural class when it launched in 2019, helping to lay the groundwork for an unprecedented pathway that gives international athletes a chance to earn U.S. college scholarships and, ultimately, professional contracts. Since its inception, the Academy has produced more than 40 U.S.
college football scholarships, with 28 alumni playing Division I football in the 2025‑2026 season. The current roster features athletes from 20 different nationalities and a variety of sporting backgrounds—some are learning American football from scratch, while others have left their home countries for the first time to train in the United Kingdom. That diversity creates a unique coaching environment. "You have to learn to communicate in a completely different way to someone who has been playing the game for a decade," Reynolds said.
"If I can explain the fundamentals to a kid from Nigeria who has never touched a football, or to an Australian who comes from a rugby background, I’m building a skill set that makes coaching any player easier. It forces you to break the game down to its purest elements." Reynolds also broadened his résumé during the last offseason with a stint in Baltimore, where he worked alongside then‑tight‑ends coach George Godsey and offensive assistant Danny Breyer—now the Browns’ passing‑game coordinator. "That was one of the most valuable experiences of my career," he said. "Being around NFL players, hearing how they talk the language of the game, and forming connections that still exist today gave me a clear picture of the standard required to coach at that level.
It also gave me a stepping stone—if my name becomes recognizable within an organization, doors start to open for the next opportunity." "I love coaching at the Academy and could see myself staying here forever if the circumstances were right," Reynolds added. "But as I grow, I want to test myself on a college team or an NFL staff and help those teams win. If that means drawing up plays for the first year, I’m ready to do it. All I need is the right environment and the right mentors to keep me moving forward." His time with the Ravens came as a Bill Walsh internship, a route similar to the one Durde took when he first joined the Atlanta Falcons in 2016 after interning with the Dallas Cowboys in 2014‑15.
Durde later became the Dallas defensive‑line coach, then the Seattle Seahawks defensive coordinator under Mike Macdonald in 2024, where he helped craft one of the league’s most feared defenses en route to a Super Bowl victory and earned head‑coach interview offers this offseason. "It’s not surprising that Durde has reached this level," Reynolds noted.
"What people often overlook is how hard he worked to get there. He’s been an advocate for international football, traveling everywhere, coaching everywhere, and building a reputation based on relentless work ethic. He always told me you have to show your value and bring something to the organization.
They want people who are willing to work hard, and that’s the message I carry with me every day." Durde’s story proves that deep football knowledge can be cultivated outside the United States, and Reynolds stands among the brightest of the new generation eager to leave their imprint on an increasingly global game.