NEWSLETTER
As a Bears fan, I recognize the shortcomings and failures of Bears ownership and management for what they are. But as a fan of the NFL as a whole, I realize Chicago’s football team isn’t alone in having issues at the top that ultimately fail their fans and organizations.
This whole Houston Texans thing is a mess. And one that just added another chapter:
The #Texans are firing coach David Culley, per me and @MikeGarafolo.
— Ian Rapoport (@RapSheet) January 13, 2022
It’s one-and-done for David Culley and the Texans, who fired him from head coach duties on Thursday.
Culley, 66, led the Texans to a 4-13 season — which is far better than what many were expecting coming into the season. Even beating expectations couldn’t save Culley’s job. Although, maybe that is a good thing for his sake.
Houston’s football franchise is a dumpster fire on wheels rolling through the streets unimpeded. And it has been for some time. Today’s news is just the latest chapter in this on-going story. Firing Culley after one year is just the latest “wtf?” moment for this team. As if trading away DeAndre Hopkins, awkward handling of Deshaun Watson’s situation, and bungling front office and coach situations wasn’t enough. And that’s without diving into the team’s chairman using an anti-Asian slur at the team’s charity golf outing in May. Or that it let top football guy Rick Smith go while an organizational power struggle took place during a time when he was tending to his wife who was battling cancer.
As ESPN’s Adam Schefter notes, Houston gave Culley just two years of guarantees on his contact. That isn’t the norm when it comes to head-coaching deals. It is as if the franchise was positioning itself for this from Day 1. And if that’s the case, that is a pretty whack look. Schefter adds a league source told him about Culley’s one-year term: “I knew it when he was hired.” I can’t imagine that’s good business when folks around the league you’re doing business in bad faith. And I truly struggle to wrap my mind around someone wanting to work in that environment.
Nevertheless, the Texans have a head-coach opening. Just in case anyone wants it. But just be aware that it might be a short-term arrangement. And not the type you’d probably want to put yourself in.
