Texans Look to Steal a Titans Coach … Sort Of

The Tennessee Titans reportedly have hired Chris Harris as a defensive coach, but now the Houston Texans are requesting to hire him as defensive coordinator before his job with the Titans ever becomes official.

One of the most curious developments of the Tennessee Titans’ offseason has been the employment status of Chris Harris. Is he on the Titans coaching staff or not? The reporting on this matter has been a bit puzzling, and reports that came out on Monday only complicate things further.

The #Titans plan to hire Chris Harris as their defensive pass game coordinator/cornerbacks coach, per sources.

Harris, who spent the past three seasons with the #Commanders, remains in play for defensive coordinator jobs elsewhere, too. A highly respected assistant.

— Tom Pelissero (@TomPelissero) January 21, 2023

Back in January, it was reported that the Titans would be hiring Harris as their defensive backs coach and passing game coordinator. The reporting also indicated that Harris was still in consideration for defensive coordinator positions around the league however, and the Titans never made an official announcement about Harris’ hire. 

Now, it seems a division rival of the Titans, the Houston Texans, are trying to hire Harris before he ever coaches a game or practice for the Titans. Even these reports are conflicting, though. Some say the Texans requested permission to interview Harris from the Washington Commanders while other say they asked the Titans.

It is just another example of how cloudy this situation is. 

The Texans have requested to interview Titans passing-game coordinator Chris Harris for their defensive coordinator position, per source. Harris also interviewed last week for the 49ers DC spot, after accepting the Tennessee job in January

— Albert Breer (@AlbertBreer) February 7, 2023

#Texans requested permission-notified #Commanders they want to interview secondary coach Chris Harris for defensive coordinator job, per league source. He has also interviewed with the #49ers, who interviewed Steve Wilks today for their defensive coordinator job

— Aaron Wilson (@AaronWilson_NFL) February 7, 2023

Harris spent three seasons in Washington, and during that time the Commanders had some great success in pass defense. Washington was a top five unit in pass yards allowed in 2020 and 2022, and Harris is credited with accelerating the abilities of some of the Commanders’ young pieces in the secondary.

Obviously, the Titans have struggled in pass defense in recent years so a coach like Harris would stand to help in that regard. Also, the Titans have a ton of young pieces in their own secondary like Kristian Fulton, Caleb Farley, Roger McCreary, Elijah Molden and Tre Avery who stand to benefit from Harris’ guidance.

Based on initial reporting, one thing seems clear, Harris does want to be a defensive coordinator and, if offered, that would be his preference. However, joining DeMeco Ryans, a rookie head coach, in Houston and being in the shadow of Ryan’s defensive prowess may not be as helpful to Harris’ career as fixing the Titans downtrodden pass defense would be. 

It could be a major risk to tie yourself to the situation in Houston where the Texans may once again be one of the worst teams in the league as they begin a rebuild under a new coach.

After missing out on other coordinator opportunities, Harris might benefit from sticking with the Titans and use the opportunity, like many other assistants under Mike Vrabel, to get himself the job he really wants in 2024. The Titans — and all their fans — should be hoping Harris does just that.

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