Tim

Kelly

Kelly’s tenure in Houston was notably shaky, though he did arguably do a better job with the 2021 Texans than Pep Hamilton did with the 2022 Texans. He also appeared to be quite trusted by Deshaun Watson. The Titans have kept things fairly insular under Mike Vrabel so ultimately this hiring isn’t much of a surprise. The Titans also hired Charles London, formerly with ex-protege Arthur Smith in Atlanta, to replace Kelly as their passing game coordinator.

Kelly joined the Titans a year ago. He had just been fired by Houston after being with the organization for eight years, the final three of which he spent as the team’s offensive coordinator. Kelly crossed paths with Titans coach Mike Vrabel while in Tennessee, giving him an in with the organization. The Titans ranked 14th in yards per pass attempt in 2022, though their low-volume approach meant they finished 30th in total yards per game. Ryan Tannehill’s season-ending injury also hurt the team’s bottom line through the air.

Kelly previously worked with coach Mike Vrabel in Houston, where the former held onto his job through a mass turnover since he was close to Deshaun Watson. Kelly’s role would reportedly be similar to that of Jim Schwartz’s on defense rather than replacing the team’s current OC Todd Downing. The latter has been criticized for the offense’s shortcomings and unimaginative play-calling following Tennessee’s one-and-done stint in the postseason.

The Panthers are clearly casting a wide net to expand their play-calling in 2022, reaching out to former head coaches Jay Gruden, Bill O’Brien, Ben McAdoo, current Rams OC Kevin O’Connell, and Kelly, the latter who most recently engineereed the fifth-worst rush offense DVOA in the history of Football Outsiders’ statistics, which date back to the mid-1980s. In addition to finding an offensive coordinator, coach Matt Rhule will need to find the team a viable quarterback.

Kelly was reportedly close to Deshaun Watson, which was why the Texans kept him on staff despite major turnover in 2021, but the Texans simply failed to be able to run the ball with him as coordinator. They finished with the fifth-worst rush offense DVOA in the history of Football Outsiders statistics, which go back to the mid-1980s. They weren’t much better in 2020. Kelly would seem to be a natural fit to tag along with former boss Bill O’Brien if O’Brien gets a new gig.

With Culley reportedly returning for a second season as Houston’s head coach, it looks like the Texans are keeping the sad band together for 2022. Though Kelly hasn’t had much to work with this year, the Texans are dead last in yards per game and 30th in points per game. Davis Mills has made an impressive late-season showing that offers some hope for a functional Houston offense in 2022, but the team will need a massive influx in skill position talent if they’re going to be competitive. Mills, who has six touchdowns to two interceptions over his past four starts, talked this week about the importance of offensive continuity going into next season.

It is mostly just a title change for Kelly, as coach Bill O’Brien will likely continue to call his own plays. O’Brien had previously declined to name an offensive coordinator. Kelly has been with O’Brien since his Penn State days.

Kelly has been coaching under Bill O’Brien going back to their Penn State days. This is more of an elevated title and game-planning promotion, with O’Brien likely to continue calling his own plays. Offensive assistant Will Lawing is expected to replace Kelly as TEs coach.