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Ravens Assistant David Culley Hired as Houston Texans Head Coach

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Baltimore Ravens assistant head coach and former Steelers assistant coach David Culley has been hired as the new coach of the Houston Texans, according to a report by John McClain of the Houston Chronicle.

Culley, 65, will be a head coach for the first time. He was most recently assistant head coach, passing game coordinator and wide receivers coach for the Baltimore Ravens in 2019-20.

He was the Steelers’ wide receivers coach from 1996-98, serving under head coach Bill Cowher and offensive coordinators Chan Gailey and Ray Sherman.

A 26-year NFL assistant, Culley has also worked as wide receivers coach of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers (1994-95), Philadelphia Eagles (1999-2012) and Kansas City Chiefs (2013-16) and was quarterbacks coach for the Buffalo Bills (2017-18), working under current NFL head coaches Andy Reid and Sean McDermott.

A native of Sparta, Tennessee, Culley is a Vanderbilt alum, and coached collegiately at his alma mater (1979-81), Austin Peay (1978), Middle Tennessee State (1982), Chattanooga (1983), Louisiana (1985-88), Texas A&M (1991-93).

Culley is the fourth Baltimore assistant to depart for a promotion this offseason. Defensive line coach Joe Cullen will be the defensive coordinator for the Jacksonville Jaguars, linebackers coach Mike MacDonald has been hired to be the defensive coordinator at Michigan and Vanderbilt tapped defensive backs coach Jesse Minter as the Commodores’ new defensive coordinator.

The Ravens will receive two third-round draft picks as compensation for the Ravens hiring away Culley as part of the NFL’s Rooney Rule enhancements, one in 2021 and another in 2022.

The Texans have come under fire from inside and outside of their organization for the way the team approached its offseason, in which it needed to hire a new general manager and head coach after firing Bill O’Brien early in the 2020 season.

Star quarterback Deshaun Watson has reportedly demanded a trade after feeling that his issues were not heard before the team hired Patriots executive Nick Caserio as general manager. It’s unclear if the hiring of Culley, who will become the third Black head coach in the NFL for 2021, will have any impact on Watson’s decision.