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As rumor circulated that Houston had hired David Culley from the Baltimore Ravens as their new head coach, according to a source confirmed to Yahoo Sports on Wednesday night, there was no shortage of Texan fans turning the internet on about the move.
Culley, at 65, will become the fourth-oldest coach in the NFL and the longest-serving head coach for the first time in NFL history, according to Elias Sports. He is the only black man to be hired in this year’s head coach cycle. He was never a coordinator during his 27 years in the league and was not a regular on the interview circuit.
While many Texas fans scrambled to figure out who their new coach is, there were plenty of people in the league happy to see Culley have an opportunity that often eludes older and longtime NFL assistants, even though he does. faces a difficult task in returning a Texans Franchise. Houston is currently in a tense standoff with quarterback Deshaun Watson, who has reportedly requested a trade, a request confirmed by Yahoo Sports, and is not relinquishing the request after Culley’s hiring announcement.
“One of my favorite people in the business,” an NFL source told me.
“You won’t be able to find a person in the league who really doesn’t like him,” a second NFL source told me.
Indeed, during his decades as an NFL assistant and 16 years as a college assistant, Culley worked for three Super Bowl-winning coaches – Andy Reid, John Harbaugh and Bill Cowher – and s ‘made a lot of friends along the way. He has earned a lot of respect and it’s not hard to find people, be it from the coaches, scouts or players side, who praise him for the way he selflessly coached and helped them. to develop.
“Great communicator, can talk to anyone,” a third NFL source told me.
For nearly two decades, Culley has been a valued member of Reid’s coaching staff. After spending 1999-2012 as Reid’s receivers coach in Philadelphia, Culley joined Reid at Kansas City in 2013 to take on the same position and the title of assistant head coach.
When he finally left in January 2017 to become the Buffalo Bills quarterback coach, he did so because he knew that in an increasingly quarterback-oriented league, if he wanted to become a head coach. , he would have a better chance of doing that by – you guessed it – working with shifts.
And with that role essentially filled in Kansas City by Matt Nagy and assistant quarterback coach Corey Matthaei, Culley knew he had to leave to give himself a chance to fulfill his dream of being a head coach, which turned out to be. finally made on Wednesday evening. but it certainly won’t be the easiest to navigate.
‘Houston needs someone like him’
Culley gets into a messy situation in Houston, a situation that a league source described as the “least desirable” of seven head coaching jobs.
The Texans are coming off a brutal 4-12 season. They have an aging roster grappling with one of the worst defenses in the league (30th in DVOA in 2020), a lack of premium draft capital (no first or second round pick in 2021) and a sticky situation of salary cap as they are According to Over The Cap, it is expected to exceed the cap by $ 18 million in 2021.
As if that wasn’t enough, Culley is also tasked with healing a shattered culture, as Texan players criticized longtime (and now fired) coach Bill O’Brien and his abrasiveness. About the way the players have spoken throughout the season, being Texan hasn’t been much fun in a while.
Watson himself expressed that sentiment when he said at the end of the season that the team needed a “culture change”.
While Culley coached Watson into the 2019 Pro Bowl – which reportedly performed well – there is reason to believe that, without Culley’s fault, Watson intends to stick to his request for a ticket out of town. His no-trade clause complicates things for Houston.
Houston has Watson under contract for the next five seasons after signing a $ 156 million extension in September, so will they capitulate to his demand? The Texans can hand him a hefty fine for sitting out of the minicamp and beyond, and if he retires, they can attempt to claw back millions of bonuses.
Given the squad’s average roster and the monster comeback Watson could bring back via trade, perhaps the Texans will give in to that demand and give in to a rebuild, despite initial signals that they won’t. .
Regardless of how Watson’s situation emerges, it doesn’t significantly change Culley’s need to get the two things those who know him say he’ll need to win in Houston: time to rebuild the list and front office trust to suitably. do much his way, especially with superiors, namely ownership, which has already marred the Watson situation to a legendary degree.
“Without [trust], you don’t stand a chance, ”a source told me. “Trust him to make decisions and play an important role in the process.”
Will Houston give Culley what he needs to be successful?
Provided Culley understands those two things, there is reason to believe that his consistently optimistic demeanor will at the very least help change the veil in the changing rooms that exist in Houston.
“Great human, he has energy and brilliance around him,” a fourth source told me. “It will make it light and fun, it will put the players first.”
“Houston needs someone like him,” another source told me.
We will know the answer to this “confidence” factor soon enough. According to the Houston Chronicle’s John McClain, Culley will control the coaching staff and roster, while new general manager Nick Caserio – who has reportedly been hired – will have final say on all personnel matters.
But soon, presumably at his introductory press conference, Culley will be asked if the Texans’ recent staffing decisions were really his. According to reports, offensive delays coordinator Tim Kelly – who told me Watson loves – will be returning for his eighth season. That tells me it may be part of the team’s efforts to assuage Watson’s angst as a sign of his intentions to keep him. Meanwhile, longtime Bears coach Lovie Smith is expected to be Culley’s new defensive coordinator. NFL Network reported that former NFL quarterback Josh McCown is also expected to join his team.
Even though Texans operate as a top-down organization, an organization where the front office has more decision-making power than others, it’s hard to see this as a losing proposition for Culley. He is a man who has been described to me on several occasions as having a “zero” ego, the one who will be focused on empowering staff around them in the hopes of shaping the team-wide membership needed to create the positive culture needed to win games.
Don’t underestimate how great an opportunity this is for Culley. After all these years – at 65, three years older than the Chiefs’ Reid – he finally gets the chance to be the Head Honcho in a league where opportunities like this don’t come often, even if you are. a good man who has worked as hard as him and is as loved as he.
For as many people inside and outside the league wondering if it will work, there are just as many who are backing him like crazy.
“He paid his league dues,” a fifth source told me. “I’m happy for him.”
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