Report: Titans Coach Brian Callahan Expected To Hire His Father Bill To Rebuild Offensive Line

Tennessee Titans coach Brian Callahan reportedly will hire his father Bill to coach the Titans' offensive line. During his four decades in the NFL, Bill Callahan has been regarded as one of the best teachers of offensive line play.

NASHVILLE — And the student may become the teacher. A report out of Cleveland says that Tennessee Titans coach Brian Callahan is hiring his father Bill, who is in his sixth decade as a football coach, to rebuild the Titans' offensive line.

According to Cleveland.com's Mark Kay Cabot, Bill Callahan is leaving his position with the Cleveland Browns to join his son in Nashville — the first time an NFL head coach has hired his father as an assistant.

It's a 100% done deal now: Bill Callahan to the #Titans: the first time an #NFL head coach hires his father: https://t.co/yUcCYBYRkt

— Mary Kay Cabot (@MaryKayCabot) February 2, 2024

If the father-son reunion comes to pass, Bill Callahan would be his son's third coaching hire this week. On Wednesday, the Titans named former Ravens defensive backs coach as their defensive coordinator. On Thursday, Tyke Tolbert was hired to coach wide receivers.

Bill Callahan, 67, has been a head coach twice, but he is best known over four decades as one of the NFL’s leading teachers of offensive line play.

Bill Callahan-coached teams led the NFL in rushing (2000 Raiders, 2009 Jets) and passing (2002 Raiders) and finished in the top five in one of those categories 13 times.

Fourteen offensive linemen who have played for Callahan have received 32 Pro Bowl selections. In 2020, Callahan’s first season with the Browns, right tackle Jack Conklin was named first-team All-Pro. Guards Joel Bitonio and Wyatt Teller were named to the second team. Bitonio and Teller were All-Pros again in 2021.

Last season, the Titans scored 17 points per game on offense. Many observers blamed an offensive line that allowed 64 sacks. Titans quarterbacks Ryan Tannehill and Will Levis often seemed uncomfortable in the pocket and running back Derrick Henry didn't have consistent running lanes. 

The left tackle tandem of Andre Dillard and Jaelyn Duncan specifically allowed 29 of those 64 sacks, and nearly every mock draft so far has the Titans taking a lineman with the No. 7 pick in the 2024 NFL Draft.  

Brian Callahan built his reputation with the Broncos and Bengals for developing offense, but his first teacher was his father, who is an offensive line guru and successful offensive coordinator. Brian's compassion for linemen showed during his introductory press conference when a reporter asked about the Titans' issues in pass protection. 

"There's a lot of things that go into (pass) protection. Some of it starts with as simple as you got to go win. You got to win versus tight coverage," Callahan said. "Protection is an everybody problem. The quarterback's got to get rid of the ball on time. They have to work through progressions quickly. So to say that it's specifically the offensive line needs to fix the protection problem, I don't agree with that."

Successful offenses have been Bill Callahan’s brand for most of his 24 years as an offensive coordinator and line coach in the NFL:
- in Oakland, the Raiders established a team record for total offense and the league leaders in passing in 2002, leading to a Super Bowl appearance in his first year as head coach.
- in Dallas, DeMarco Murray set a single-season franchise rushing record.
- in Washington, there were single-season team records in yards per game, yards per play, and net passing yards.

Bill also got his taste of head coaching experience. While his years as an assistant are covered in glory, Callahan’s six years as a head coach were ultimately disappointing.

The 2002 Raiders were an offensive juggernaut and rolled into the Super Bowl against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, coached by Jon Gruden who left the Raiders after the previous season.

The Bucs won 48-21 and one of the damning stories after the game was that the Raiders were still using verbiage on their play calls that Gruden had installed during his tenure. In quarterback Rich Gannon’s words, “guys like Warren Sapp and Derrick Brooks were calling out the runs.”

The next year, the Raiders went into free fall and finished 4-12. Callahan was fired after the season but was soon hired to lead the storied football program at Nebraska.

His four years were hit and miss — a 27-22 record with two bowl games and two losing seasons. But Callahan’s teams also set school records on offense as Callahan dropped the Cornhuskers’ historic option rushing attack for the pass-influenced West Coast offense.

In the 16 years since leaving Nebraska, four NFL teams have hired Callahan to direct offenses and coach offensive linemen. 

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