The son of coach Paul Hackett, Nathaniel Hackett followed in his dad’s footsteps starting off as a coach for UC Davis. There, Hackett worked as an assistant linebackers coach for the Aggies. Hackett pivoted that job into a job as an assistant coach at Stanford under Buddy Teevens for 2003 and 2004. He was promoted to working as the specialists coach and recruiting coordinator in 2005 for the Cardinal. Jon Gruden, who worked with Paul Hackett at Pitt, hired both Paul and Nathaniel Hackett to be his quarterbacks coach and Offensive Quality Control coach respectively.
Hackett then took a similar job with the Buffalo Bills under Head Coach Dick Jauron from 2008 to 2009.