[1] At Purdue, Olson played a key role in helping OC Jim Chaney in the development of future Pro Bowler and Super Bowl-winning quarterback Drew Brees.
Under Chaney and Olson, Brees was a Heisman Trophy finalist in 1999 and 2000 while winning the Maxwell Award as the nation's most outstanding player in 2000, as the Boilermakers won the Big Ten title and met Washington in the Rose Bowl.
He served as Lions offensive coordinator following the firing of Steve Mariucci and the demotion of Ted Tollner during the 2005 season.
On September 3, 2009, the day before the team's final preseason game, the Buccaneers announced that Olson would replace Jeff Jagodzinski as offensive coordinator.
In Olson's second season as offensive coordinator with the Bucs in 2010, Freeman ranked sixth in the NFL with a 95.9 passer rating while throwing for 3,451 yards, 25 touchdowns and only six interceptions.
The Buccaneers also finished with the fourth-most points scored (341), third-most yards in total offense (5,362) and second-best third down percentage (42.2%) in a single season in team history.
In January 2013, Olson was hired to be the offensive coordinator of the Oakland Raiders, taking over for the recently fired Greg Knapp.