HOUSTON — The Houston Texans have hired Baltimore Ravens assistant David Culley to be their next head coach, sources told ESPN, confirming a report by the Houston Chronicle.
Culley, 65, who has spent the past two seasons in Baltimore, just completed his 27th season as an NFL coach. Along with serving as the team’s assistant head coach, Culley was Baltimore’s passing game coordinator and wide receivers coach. The Ravens finished the 2020 season ranked last in the NFL in passing.
“David is just a genuine guy,” Ravens head coach John Harbaugh said in a text to ESPN’s Ed Werder. “He will be who he is everyday. Has been that guy every day of his career. I’m thrilled for him. Great person. Genuine. Full of energy.”
Harbaugh had previously called the Texans’ opening a “great opportunity” and said he believed Culley “would be a tremendous hire for any team, maybe, especially, the Texans with Deshaun Watson.”
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The Ravens will receive two third-round compensatory picks (one in 2021 and another in 2022) for Culley getting hired from their staff. This comes from a resolution adopted in November that is meant to incentivize NFL teams to develop and hire minority candidates for head-coaching and general manager positions.
Culley will join Robert Saleh of the New York Jets, Brian Flores of the Miami Dolphins, Mike Tomlin of the Pittsburgh Steelers and Ron Rivera of the Washington Football Team as active minority head coaches in the league.
Culley has never been an offensive coordinator at the NFL level. He was also an assistant head coach for the Kansas City Chiefs from 2013 to ’16, and spent the 2017 and ’18 seasons as the Buffalo Bills’ quarterbacks coach. When the Ravens hired Culley in 2019, Harbaugh said the coach was highly respected “as a teacher, game-planner and motivator.”
Chiefs coach Andy Reid told Werder that Culley is a “great person” and “very loyal.” He added that Culley “will bring positive energy to the building.”
When the Texans fired head coach and general manager Bill O’Brien in October, Houston became the first team with an opening for either position. The Texans hired Nick Caserio as their new general manager earlier this month and gave him the reins to their head-coaching search.
David Culley’s Prior Coaching Stops
| Seasons | Team | Role |
|---|---|---|
| 2019-20 | Ravens | assistant head coach/passing game coordinator/WR coach |
| 2017-18 | Bills | QB coach |
| 2013-16 | Chiefs | assistant head coach/WR coach |
| 1999-2012 | Eagles | primarily WR coach, also senior offensive assistant from 2011-12 |
| 1996-98 | Steelers | WR coach |
| 1994-95 | Buccaneers | WR coach |
| — ESPN Stats & Information | ||
Along with Culley, Houston interviewed Bills defensive coordinator Leslie Frazier, Chiefs offensive coordinator Eric Bieniemy, former
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At the time of the trade, the Seahawks planned to wait until this offseason to attempt to sign Adams to an extension.
“That’s something that is out of my hands right now,” Adams said. “I sure pray that I am here. I love being a Seattle Seahawk. I love being a part of this organization. It’s a special one with special people with special guys around, and young ladies as well. So when that time comes, it comes. But I’m worried about getting healthy right now and getting back and getting into the flow of everything and figuring out everything. So I’m not really focused on that right now.”
Carroll said safety/nickelback Marquise Blair is on track to be ready by training camp following surgery on the ACL tear he suffered in Week 2. Defensive end/outside linebacker Bruce Irvin, who suffered the same injury in the same game, recently had a second surgery for that injury.
“He’s come out of that really well but he’s behind because of that,” Carroll said.
Irvin is scheduled to be an unrestricted free agent.
The Baltimore Ravens insist their celebration on the Tennessee Titans’ logo after Marcus Peters’ game-sealing interception wasn’t planned.
In the final two minutes of the Ravens’ 20-13 wild-card victory Sunday, 15 Ravens defenders followed Peters and stormed midfield where many stomped on the logo. This outburst came two months after the Titans players huddled on the Ravens’ logo before the teams’ last matchup, which led to a confrontation between Ravens coach John Harbaugh and their players.
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“This is an emotional football game. Sometimes you act out of emotion,” Ravens defensive end Derek Wolfe said. “I felt like it was a good time to go ahead and do that — so we did it. It wasn’t a disrespect thing. It was a team unity thing like we accomplished something as a team, so we’re going to go out there and take a little bit of revenge. I don’t think it’s a big deal.”
Baltimore defensive end Calais Campbell, who flexed on the Titans’ logo, told NFL Network when asked about the gathering at midfield: “Respect is earned.”
Peters ended the Titans’ hope for a comeback with two minutes remaining, when he picked off Ryan Tannehill at the Ravens’ 40-yard line, returned the interception 13 yards and then bolted to the middle of the field. He leapt on the logo, dropped the ball there and shouted at the Titans sideline with his arms extended. Pro Bowl cornerback Marlon Humphrey sat on the logo and middle linebacker Patrick Queen waved at the Tennessee sideline.
The Ravens were penalized 15 yards for taunting but it had no impact on the game. Six plays later, Ravens quarterback Lamar Jackson knelt one final time and ran off the field without shaking hands with the Titans, waving his teammates to do the same.
“I feel it was just disrespect to see what went on before the game the last time we played those guys, and they were standing on our logo and seeing them get into it with our coach,” Jackson said. “That was just disrespectful, because we treat all of our opponents with respect. It wasn’t no reason for us to shake hands and stuff like that. We’ll be the bigger guy, so we just walked off the field. I feel like we were being the bigger guys.”
Tennessee offensive tackle Dennis Kelly doesn’t understand why the Ravens responded that way because he said the Titans have huddled at midfield before games the whole season.
“I don’t know what that whole disrespectful thing came from,” Kelly said. “If that’s what Harbaugh wanted to use to motivate them, I guess it worked.”
Titans coach Mike Vrabel declined to get into specifics over the Ravens’ midfield celebration and not shaking hands after the game.
“I coach the Titans, not the Ravens,” Vrabel said.
Peters wasn’t made available to reporters after the game, and Harbaugh wasn’t asked about his players’ celebration.
“We just like to celebrate; you know what I mean? It was a good celebration, I think,” Humphrey said. “Usually whoever makes the play, you run to that person; that person just so happened to end up being on the logo.”
ESPN’s Turron Davenport contributed to this report.
Former Ohio State head coach Urban Meyer has been assembling a coaching staff, including some assistants from the college ranks, in case he decides to become the Jacksonville Jaguars’ head coach, per league sources.
Meyer and the Jaguars met Friday night on owner Shad Khan’s boat in Florida, but it was not the first time the two sides have been together, as there has been regular communication and interaction, according to sources.
A decision from Meyer and the Jaguars is expected this week, per sources.