NASHVILLE, TENN. — Dave McGinnis, a longtime NFL coach and Tennessee Titans radio broadcaster known as "Coach Mac," died Monday at the age of 74. He died in the afternoon at Ascension St. Thomas Midtown Hospital in Nashville, Tenn., with his family by his side, after being hospitalized with an illness since early March.

McGinnis had been given his last rites by a Catholic priest on Monday morning. He coached in the NFL from 1986 to 2016, a career that spanned three decades and included work with multiple franchises.

He began his coaching career as a graduate assistant at Texas Christian University in 1973 and held coaching positions at the University of Missouri, Indiana State University, and Kansas State University before reaching the NFL. He served as a linebackers coach for the Chicago Bears early in his professional career, where he coached players including Mike Singletary, Wilber Marshall, and Otis Wilson.

From 2000 to 2003, McGinnis was the head coach of the Arizona Cardinals, compiling a 17–40 record. He was fired after the Cardinals posted a 4–12 record in the 2003 season. During his time in Arizona, he coached eight Hall of Fame players, including Aeneas Williams, Emmitt Smith, Simeon Rice, and former safety Pat Tillman, who enlisted in the United States Army Special Operations in 2002 and died in Afghanistan in 2004.

Arizona Cardinals owner Michael Bidwell said in a statement: "As Dave often said, he was a 'ball coach' through and through, and no one ever filled that role with more passion, enthusiasm and charisma. Coach Mac truly loved the game and everything -- and everyone -- associated with it, especially his players. He was one of a kind and will be greatly missed."

In 2004, McGinnis joined the Titans as the linebackers coach under head coach Jeff Fisher. He remained in that role until 2011 and was eventually promoted to assistant head coach. He then served as assistant head coach for the St. Louis/Los Angeles Rams from 2012 through 2016. In 2017, he returned to Nashville to join Titans Radio as a color analyst, a role he held through the 2025 season.

Titans controlling owner Amy Adams Strunk released a statement following his death. "My heart aches with the loss of Coach Mac, who was so much more than a coach and broadcaster -- he was family," she said. "Coach Mac gave so much of himself to this organization over the years, and his passion, loyalty and love for the Titans never wavered. He cared deeply about the people around him, and that kindness and authenticity left a lasting impact on everyone who knew him. He held a very special place in our family, and his presence in our lives and within this franchise will never be forgotten."

Titans President and CEO Burke Nihill also remembered McGinnis. "I love Dave McGinnis, and I don't know that I've met anybody who was created for football, and a football life, more than Coach Mac," Nihill said. "Obviously, he played it for a long time and coached it for longer, and with everything he has done for us over the years as color commentator and a Titans personality. He just loved the game."