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<\/p>\nIn the professional football coaching ranks, perhaps the most consistent element is the fact that it\u2019s anything but consistent for many individuals in the profession. Ironically, that instability has led four individuals whose paths have crossed multiple times with the BC Lions to all work together once again in 2026. And what a four-piece band it is.<\/p>\n
The original Lion of the quartet, Mike Benevides, first arrived as the club\u2019s special teams co-ordinator in 2003, the same year the squad lured a key free agent to the secondary from Montreal in Mark Washington. Two years later, an unheralded defensive back out of Eastern Washington made the team in training camp and went on to be one of the league\u2019s best at his craft over a decade in orange and black. That man was Ryan Phillips.<\/p>\n
Like the players on the field, the Lions\u2019 2011 Grey Cup coaching staff was a star-studded group that featured football lifer Randy Melvin as the defensive line coach. By then, Washington had retired and immediately made the seamless transition to defensive backs coach and Phillips was still climbing the Lion record books. Benevides, by then, was the defensive coordinator and one year away from being promoted to head coach in the wake of Wally Buono\u2019s decision to focus on front office duties.<\/p>\n
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While each individual had stints away from the club- it\u2019s still hard to believe Phillips donned a Montreal Alouettes jersey and scouted for the Calgary Stampeders in between Lions stints-the re-addition of Washington as linebackers coach just before training camp reunited the quartet of defensive masterminds. Melvin returned in 2025 to run the defensive line, while Phillips has remained on staff since 2019 and has now served under three head coaches.<\/p>\n
While the Lion unit features some intriguing men on the field: reigning Most Outstanding Defensive Player Mathieu Betts, free agent addition Darnell Sankey and second-year man Jackson Findlay are just a few examples, the history of this four-man band leading the group is one heck of a story.<\/p>\n
Speaking to bclions.com in the lobby of the team\u2019s hotel in Winnipeg on the eve of last week\u2019s pre-season game, Benevides couldn\u2019t keep the smile off his face while reminiscing about the 20-plus-year story.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhen I sat there earlier this year and thought about it, I felt it just didn\u2019t even seem real,\u201d said Benevides.<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019ll never forget standing in the hallway when we signed Washington from Montreal in 2003. I remember him in the hallway. We\u2019ve now had a long-standing relationship, obviously, he turned into a coach in 2008; I gave him a defensive coordinator title in 2014 when I was here, and I was always maintaining a close relationship with families.\u201d<\/p>\n
The family element is truly special. Each coach now has adult children, and in Melvin\u2019s case, grandchildren. When Benevides and the two former Lion players were first carving out their careers, they were all young fathers.<\/p>\n
\u201cYou look at Ryan Phillips, right? He came in as a rookie in 2005, played for us for a long time, played with Mark, and all that kind of stuff, \u201cadded Benevides.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe won multiple Grey Cup championships together, and I remember him as a young, young man, and now he\u2019s a grown, grown adult with family and all the rest, so it just feels really special.\u201d<\/p>\n
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Washington played five seasons with the team and was later promoted to defensive coordinator before serving in the same role with Ottawa and Hamilton. For him, this feels like a homecoming. The familiarity with Benevides and the other three football lifers certainly made it an easy decision to return to the West Coast.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s incredibly special for us to have this opportunity to stand on the sideline again with each other. I know the men, I know their character,\u201d Washington says.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe\u2019ve all grown, matured and gotten better as coaches. I\u2019m really excited to work with these guys. Coming here in 2003, I\u2019m from out east, and now I\u2019m here, it was like \u2018don\u2019t get stuck on Highway One going into downtown.\u2019 All of a sudden, 20-23 years later, whatever it is, that\u2019s an amazing thing.\u201d<\/p>\n
2026 marks Phillips\u2019 20th season with the organization. After retiring with the second-most interceptions in club history behind only Larry Crawford, the Seattle native began coaching the defensive backs upon his 2019 return and was promoted to defensive co-ordinator in 2022. When Buck Pierce returned Benevides to that role last season, Phillips stayed on to work with the secondary. It\u2019s safe to say it\u2019s been a good transition for everybody involved. We also asked Benevides if he ever envisioned Phillips and Washington staying in the CFL in their post-playing lives as coaches.<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019ve told them both that they\u2019ve worked their asses off. They\u2019ve become outstanding coaches. I may have seen it in Mark while he was playing, but not as much for RP,\u201d said Benevides.<\/p>\n
\u201cThese men are extremely talented. They can make much more money doing something else. Especially RP, being as talented and as charismatic as he is. You\u2019re seeing that come to fruition now.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI don\u2019t even know how you could\u2019ve imagined it,\u201d added Phillips on the reunion with the other three.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s funny because I\u2019m out here every day running around and still thinking I can still play a little bit (laughs). Now, we get all the way to this full circle moment, where I, along with everyone else, am coaching now. It\u2019s a different dynamic. What\u2019s also great about us is that we\u2019re all competitors. Everyone wants credit for our success, but the great thing is, one week it can be Bene, the next week it can be me, other weeks it can be Mark or Randy who devises something big that pays off in the game. After breaking in as a player when Mark was still here, I never would\u2019ve imagined we\u2019d have these full-circle moments.\u201d<\/p>\n
As for Melvin, he\u2019s the definition of a \u2018football lifer.\u2019 Before and after his Lion stints in the championship season of 2011, 2017 as a guest coach in Kamloops, and then back full-time for 2018, his resume includes a Super Bowl ring on Bill Belichick\u2019s New England Patriots squad of 2001, stints with the Cleveland Browns, Tampa Bay Buccaneers, and multiple stops on the U.S. College circuit. Before returning to the Lions in 2025, Melvin enjoyed success with the Hamilton Tiger-Cats, reaching the Grey Cup in 2019 and 2021.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s awesome to join such a talented group of men. Being familiar with these men speeds up the process of getting on the same page. Everyone of them has a great depth of knowledge and understands what it takes to win,\u201d said Melvin on being back with the group.<\/p>\n
In Melvin, the Lions have a cagey veteran with an intense demeanour on the field and that of a calm influence off of it. The word \u2018teacher\u2019 is best used to describe his methods from veteran and rookie defensive linemen alike.<\/p>\n
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\u201cI\u2019ll never forget hiring him quite late in the 2011 offseason,\u201d recalled Benevides.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe were looking for someone, and I went to Wally with the idea of bringing Randy in. Adding him to the puzzle was one of the highlights of my early coaching career. He did great things with the likes of Brent Johnson, Khalif Mitchell, Khreem Smith, Eric Taylor, and many others. Our Grey Cup defensive line was one of our best. He was able to elevate those guys, and we led the league in sacks\u2014plenty of All-Stars. As you said, he has a Super Bowl ring. He\u2019s the best in the league at what he does.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThe best thing is that all egos are in check, which allows very fruitful discussions, and at the end of that discussion, we come to a consensus,\u201d added Melvin on the group\u2019s coaching philosophy.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe all row the boat in the same direction toward winning. The joy for me comes with the trust and the willingness that allows me to be me. There is directness and toughness in my coaching style. Bene involves us in all aspects of football. I feel very comfortable in presenting my ideas. He has created an environment in which everyone has a voice in the room.\u201d<\/p>\n
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The domino effect of Buono\u2019s big move to the West Coast over two decades ago has certainly paid dividends for Benevides and a 2026 Lions defensive staff that has one heck of a history tale to tell.<\/p>\n
\u201cThey\u2019re outstanding coaches, outstanding teachers, outstanding men, and they do bleed orange,\u201d added Benevides.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe have three extra defensive coordinators is how I see it. I love them all. And we are all in on chasing this Grey Cup. Hard to believe that 2011 was the last ring we won together with this franchise.\u201d<\/p>\n
No matter how this band reunion\u2019s 2026 story ends, one thing is clear: their presence on the sidelines and up in the coaching booth makes the club enter this season in a very good position on defence.<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019ve told our players that if something unfortunate happened to me, I would trust them with my children and my family. I really mean that. I\u2019m excited about what we can do,\u201d said Benevides.<\/p>\n
Adds Phillips: \u201cWe\u2019ve all been to multiple Grey Cups, multiple Western Finals. This year, we understand it\u2019s all about achieving that final goal.\u201d<\/p>\n
The defensive band is back together. And they\u2019re in the studio looking to record a championship album in 2026.<\/p>\n
A Look At Each Band Member\u2019s Lion Resume:<\/p>\n
Mike Benevides:\u00a0<\/p>\n
2003-07- Special Teams Coordinator
2008-11- Defensive Coordinator
2012-14: Head Coach
2023-24: Special Teams Coordinator
2025 present: Defensive Coordinator<\/p>\n
Mark Washington:<\/p>\n
2003-07: Player
2008-13: Defensive Backs Coach
2014-18: Defensive Coordinator
2026- present: Linebackers Coach<\/p>\n
Ryan Phillips:<\/p>\n
2005-16: Player
2017: Scouting Assistant
2019-21: Defensive Backs Coach
2022-24: Defensive Coordinator*
2025- present: Secondary Coach\/Pass Game Coordinator<\/p>\n
*Phillips added the title of Assistant Head Coach for the 2024 season.<\/p>\n
Randy Melvin:<\/p>\n
2011: Defensive Line Coach
2017: Guest Defensive Line Coach at Training Camp
2018: Defensive Line Coach
2025- Present: Defensive Line Coach<\/p>\n