Titans Promote Tim Kelly to Offensive Coordinator
NASHVILLE — The Tennessee Titans finally took the next big step in their offseason on Tuesday by promoting passing game coordinator Tim Kelly to offensive coordinator. Kelly had previously been the offensive coordinator for the Houston Texans from 2019-2021 and came to the Titans as an offensive assistant directly after being let go by Houston following the 2021 season.
Tim Kelly’s tenure as offensive coordinator in Houston went as the Texans’ success as a team went. In 2019, the Texans’ offense was in the top half of the NFL in most statistical categories including total yards and total points scored including being top ten in rushing yards, rushing scores and yard per rush.
As Houston’s roster declined, so did the Texans’ offensive output. In 2020, the Texans’ offense fell off the map from a rushing standpoint. The Texans finished that year as a bottom three offense in yards and scores, but the passing offense took a huge leap. With Deshaun Watson at quarterback, Kelly led the Texans’ passing game to a top five finish in yards while being first in the NFL in Net Yards per Attempt. The Texans were 8th in the NFL in 2020 in passing scores.
The 2021 season, Kelly’s final in Houston, was the worst of them all, but for good reason. Houston had become the worst roster in the NFL and were without there Pro Bowl quarterback due to off-the-field reasons. Kelly had to make things work with Tyrod Taylor and, for most of the season, rookie Davis Mills.
Mills actually showed a lot of promise under Kelly and took a sizeable step backwards after Kelly left. Mills completion percentage dropped from 66.8 to 61.0, his passer rating drop ten points from 88.8 to 78.8 and Mills threw five more interceptions in 2022 than 2021.
Even though the Texans’ offense was a disappointment in 2021, Kelly was commended for his development of Mills. That praise ultimately lead him to join with the Titans as their passing game coordinator in 2022. The Titans offense, led by now fired Todd Downing, did do two things well: red zone offense and early game scoring.
While there is no way to prove the whispers true, some noise indicated that Kelly was intimately involved in the red zone plan and developing the opening game script of plays that seemed to be the only time the Titans’ offense looked NFL caliber.
Either way, Kelly will get to prove whether he was behind the successful parts of the Titans’ offense or not in 2023. Most thought when he was brought on prior to the 2022 season that he would eventually get the chance to call the plays in Nashville. Kelly has been known as a guy who calls plays to suit his quarterback and knows how to use route concepts to attack opposing defense, especially in zone coverage.
The Titans have finally answered the next big question of the offseason with Tim Kelly’s hire, but whether he is the answer to fixing the Titans’ offensive issues remains to be seen.
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