Ex-NFL coach Jack Del Rio arrested for DUI after his car 'hit a street sign and then smashed into a fence'

Jack Del Rio, a former NFL head coach, has been arrested by police in Madison, Wisconsin for driving a vehicle while intoxicated.

Del Rio, who is currently serving as a senior advisor to University of Wisconsin head coach Luke Fickell, was arrested on Friday after a car he was driving hit a street sign and broke a fence.

According to Madison Police (via ESPN’s Adam Rittenberg), Del Rio ‘showed signs of impairment’. 

In a statement to ESPN, the University of Wisconsin said, ‘We take matters like this very seriously and we are continuing to gather information.’ 

Del Rio joined Wisconsin this offseason after previously serving as the defensive coordinator for the Washington Commanders.

When explaining his decision to hire him, Fickell said, ‘There’s a lot of different things that I was looking for and didn’t find somebody. So it wasn’t like we were just going to do it. 

‘Then in camp Jack came to visit and spent two-and-a-half days with us. And it just kind of was one of those things that was pretty unique. He was actually open to doing something and I had been kind of talking about that.’

‘So for me to have somebody in here who’s obviously got a different eye and a uniqueness to be able to communicate with me, but also to give us some other perspectives on things, I think it can be a really good thing for us.’

Del Rio spent over 20 seasons in the NFL as a coach in some capacity – beginning as an assistant strength coach with the New Orleans Saints in 1997.

He then served as the linebackers coach for New Orleans before jumping to the Baltimore Ravens in 1999. He’d stay there for three seasons, helping them win Super Bowl XXXV before making the move to the Carolina Panthers as their defensive coordinator.

After just a single season in Charlotte, Del Rio would become the head coach of the Jacksonville Jaguars – a role he’d hold from 2003-2011. In that time, he compiled a record of 68-71 and reached the playoffs twice – losing the first game both times to the New England Patriots.

He was fired from Jacksonville in 2011 after starting the season 3-8.

Del Rio is best known as the head coach of the Jacksonville Jaguars (L) and Oakland Raiders (R)

From there, he moved to the Denver Broncos – becoming their defensive coordinator and helping the team win an AFC title in the 2013 NFL season before they lost to the Seattle Seahawks in Super Bowl XLVIII.

Del Rio got his second crack at a head coaching gig with the Oakland Raiders from 2015-2017. He led Oakland to a playoff appearance in 2016 where they lost to the Houston Texans.

He was fired in 2017 after compiling a record of 6-10, leaving his all-time head coaching record at 93-94.

After three years away from football, he joined Ron Rivera’s coaching staff with the then-named Washington Football Team in 2020 as the defensive coordinator. 

He stayed in Washington through two whole seasons and part of a third season, before being fired in November 2023 after losing to the rival Dallas Cowboys 45-10.

Before his coaching days, Del Rio was an All-American linebacker at USC before spending a decade as a player in the NFL – in which he earned a Pro Bowl nod in 1994.