Cory Harkey begins his second season with the Packers and his first as assistant special teams coach, having been promoted to the position in 2026 after serving as a special teams quality control coach last season. Harkey is entering his fifth season as an NFL coach, having spent three seasons (2022-24) as the assistant special teams coach for the Buffalo Bills.
In Harkey's first season with Green Bay, P Daniel Whelan set franchise single-season records for gross punting average (51.7) and net punting average (43.9), becoming the first Packer to lead the league in gross punting average since the 1970 AFL-NFL merger. Whelan's 51.7-yard average ranks No. 3 in NFL single-season history (min. 40 punts). The Packers ranked No. 9 in the NFL last season in opponent average starting field position after kickoffs (29.8).
During his three seasons in Buffalo, Harkey was part of a staff that helped the Bills rank No. 1 in the NFL over that span in average starting field position (30.8), including a No. 1 league ranking in 2024 (33.4) and a No. 5 ranking in 2022 (30.0), per TruMedia. Buffalo also led the NFL in field-position margin (plus-2.9) from 2022-24, including a league-best 4.7-yard margin in 2024. The Bills ranked No. 6 in the NFL from 2022-24 with an average of 10.9 yards per punt return, Buffalo's best three-year mark since 2011-13 (11.2 avg.).
In 2023, Harkey assisted with a special-teams unit that saw two of its players take home AFC Special Teams Player of the Month honors with K Tyler Bass earning the award for September and P Sam Martin taking home honors for December/January. Martin was the first Bills punter to earn the award since Brian Moorman in November 2006. In his first season with the Bills in 2022, Harkey helped the Bills rank No. 5 in the league in Rick Gosselin's special teams rankings with Martin posting the second-best net punting average (41.3) and the third-best gross average (47.7) in a season in franchise history.
Harkey spent the 2021 season at Tennessee State as the tight ends coach. Under his tutelage, TE Rodell Rahmaan led the team with 484 receiving yards and six TDs on 29 receptions (16.7 avg.). In 2019-20, Harkey served as the tight ends coach and special teams coordinator at Azusa Pacific, where he helped guide TE Lucas Widmer to first-team All-Great Northwest Athletic Conference honors and third-team Don Hansen All-Region recognition in 2019.
Harkey played tight end for five seasons in the NFL (2012-16) after entering the league as an undrafted free agent, appearing in 64 games with 28 starts for the St. Louis/Los Angeles Rams. He finished his pro career with 27 receptions for 215 yards (8.0 avg.) and three TDs, highlighted by a 2013 campaign that saw him post a career-high 13 catches for a career-best 113 yards (8.7 avg.) and a career-high two TDs. Harkey played at UCLA from 2008-11, where he appeared in 51 games with 37 starts and posted 28 receptions for 231 yards (8.3 avg.) and two TDs. As a senior in 2011, he received the Jerry Long "Heart" Award and the Kenneth S. Washington Award for Outstanding Senior of the Year by the coaching staff.
Harkey was born June 17, 1990, in Chicago. His father, Mike, pitched in the major leagues for eight seasons and most recently served as the bullpen coach (2016-25) for the New York Yankees. Harkey and his wife, Bianca, have two sons, DJ and Cobi, and a daughter, Jru.
