Bucs hire Sullivan to lead offense

The Tampa Bay Buccaneers hired former Giants assistant Mike Sullivan as their offensive coordinator late Friday, according to the team.

"We are very fortunate to add someone like Mike Sullivan to lead our offensive coaching staff," head coach Greg Schiano said in a statement. "He is a man of character and a complete football coach, who fits with the kind of football team we are building here. His work with the Giants over the past eight seasons speaks for itself.

"Mike was an integral part of that team winning two Super Bowls in the last five years and we look forward to him bringing that experience and expertise to our club."

Sullivan, a former Army Ranger and Giants receivers coach, is known for using some unique teaching tools.

One such drill called for Giants quarterbacks to dodge to their left and right, then run away from a supposed defender and deliver the ball while off balance to better simulate a game situation.

Manning bounced back from a 25-interpcetion season in 2010 to throw for a franchise record 4,933 yards and win the Super Bowl this season, he said, because of drills such as that.

A receivers coach with the Giants for six years, Sullivan took over as the quarterbacks coach in 2010 and Manning's 25-interception season was blamed in part on Sullivan's lack of experience with the position. Sullivan too often approached the job from the receiver's standpoint, Manning said, but the two worked out their differences early in the offseason.

In 2009, Sullivan's group of wideouts caught 236 passes, including a franchise record 107 by Steve Smith, who became the first Giants receiver to play in the Pro Bowl in 41 years.

Sullivan began his NFL coaching career with the Jacksonville Jaguars as their defensive quality control coach in 2002 before becoming a Jaguars' offensive assistant in 2003. Prior to joining the Jaguars, Sullivan spent nine years coaching at the college level: Humboldt State (1993), Army (1995-96 and 1999-00), Youngstown State (1997-98) and Ohio University (2001).

In 1997 at Youngstown State, Sullivan coached under Jim Tressel as the Penguins won the Division 1-AA national championship.

Sullivan was a defensive back at Army, where he received a Bachelor of Science degree in 1989. He also has a master's degree from Humboldt State and is a graduate of the U.S. Army Airborne, Ranger and Air Assault schools.

Sullivan will have a core of young players to work with in Tampa Bay, where quarterback Josh Freeman will look to bounce back from a 2011 season in which he threw 16 touchdowns and 22 interceptions.

The Bucs were 4-12 last season and lost their final 10 games, leading to the dismissal of head coach Raheem Morris and his entire staff.

Schiano was hired on Jan. 25 after 11 seasons as the head coach at Rutgers University and has spent the past two weeks interviewing potential staff members. Sullivan is the first to be announced.