Lovie Smith Has LB Christian Kirksey Excited For Second Season With Texans

After re-signing with the Houston Texans, Christian Kirksey is excited to have Lovie Smith as his new head coach.

HOUSTON — Christian Kirksey relished in his first season with the Houston Texans — despite finishing the 2021 campaign with a 4-13 record.

Kirksey felt the Texans were trending in the right direction. But during his exit interview in January, Kirksey said finding the right group of people invested in their craft was his most significant desire when making his free agency decision.

Kirksey re-signed with the Texans on a two-year deal in March. A month later, it appears that Kirksey succeeded in his pursuit. The first two days of voluntary off-season workouts have had a tremendous turnout.

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Players in attendance are working on their skill sets with the ambition of avoiding another four-win season.

But the high participation from players is a testament to the cultural impact of coach Lovie Smith.

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Linebacker Kamu Grugier-Hill did not want to disrespect former head coach David Culley Tuesday afternoon. But he mentioned there is a new atmosphere within the Texans' locker room in 2022. 

It's a calm presence Smith brought inside the walls of NRG Stadium since taking the helm as head coach in early February.

Christian Kirksey

"In my opinion, he is a legend at coaching," Kirksey said when speaking to the media. "We all know his track record and resume. He is a great person and a great coach, and you want to be a part of that. Putting Lovie as our leader definitely made guys want to come back."

Kirksey is one of 16 players from 2021 who re-signed to stay in Houston. He played 13 games last season and had a vital role in the Texans' improvement on the defensive side of the ball. 

Kirksey registered 93 combined tackles, six tackles for loss and two quarterback hits. He helped the Texans create takeaways by recording two force fumbles. 

Houston finished the season seventh in the league in takeaways with 25.

But had the franchise gone in a different direction with their head coaching search, there is a significant chance Kirksey would have moved on during free agency. 

Before Smith's hiring, Brian Flores, Jonathan Gannon and Josh McCown were the Texans' three coaching finalists. 

Lovie Smith

"The relationship that was built with Lovie, even offensive guys, that's where it started," Kirksey said. "Part of [my decision] was that Lovie came back. I have a relationship with him. I can only speak for myself. But I assume other guys may have thought that as well."

Kirksey is excited to play for Smith as the team's head coach. The two developed a player-coach relationship when Smith served as the Texans' defensive coordinator last season.