Is David Culley Right on His '100%' View on Coordinator Tim Kelly's Houston Texans Future?

Texans' David Culley on if he expects Tim Kelly to return: '100 percent'

By Aaron Wilson

HOUSTON -- Houston Texans coach David Culley remains adamant in his confidence in offensive coordinator Tim Kelly.

When asked Friday morning if he anticipates Kelly returning for the 2022 season as the Texans' play-caller, Culley firmly replied: "100 percent."

The Texans rank 30th in scoring offense, averaging 15.9 points per game after averaging 24 points per contest last season.

A year ago, the Texans led the NFL in passing yardage behind Pro Bowl quarterback Deshaun Watson with Kelly calling the plays and operating a free-wheeling offense. This season, the 4-12 Texans have struggled mightily to run the football and have had two different starting quarterbacks after Watson requested a trade and is still dealing with legal problems, beginning the season with veteran Tyrod Taylor before replacing him with rookie Davis Mills.

Kelly returned after Watson strongly endorsed him and was a holdover for a new coaching staff led by Culley, who is obviously expected to stay in Houston as well..

Heading into the final game of the season Sunday against the AFC South champion Tennessee Titans, the Texans are ranked last in rushing offense (84.9 yards per game) and yards per run (3.4 average). The Texans are averaging 273.4 yards per offense per game, ranking 30th in that category and 30th in passing yards (188.5 yards per game).

"Been fine," Culley said Wednesday morning when asked to evaluate Kelly's performance and the offense. "We’ve been a little inconsistent, but we’ve gotten better. We’ve just been trying to find out who we are. We’ve gone through some changes with some different guys and whatnot, and we’ve gone through the quarterback thing.

"We’ve settled in right now. Obviously, with Davis being our quarterback, we kind of know which direction we want to go and which direction we need to go. I think Tim and our offensive staff have done a good job of putting us in the right direction in doing that, and I think it has shown since our bye week. I think it’s just taken us a little bit longer to find out about these guys and find out who we are, but that’s normal and that’s common.”