Houston Texans: Three things to know about new QBs coach Carl Smith

The Houston Texans have hired Carl Smith as their new quarterbacks coach. What’s to be said about the hire? Here are three things to know. Let’s look.

The Houston Texans’ off season is underway with a plethora of early changes to their coaching staff.  Although the team posted an impressive 11-5 record — despite criticisms — their underwhelming performance against Indianapolis Colts in this past season’s AFC Wild Card game, getting crushed 21-7, it was clearly obvious that changes had to be made.

The fact that the team was only able to conjure up seven points in a playoff game is beyond unacceptable and it likely warranted their decision to switch gears in terms of the composite braintrust behind the offense.

Yes, there were many who called for Bill O’Brien‘s head this season; but ultimately, that’s not going to happen.  O’Brien is going into the first year of his four-year extension and with the surprising finish the Houston Texans had to the season as well as he having the respect/command of the locker room, there’s no way in hell he’d be fired now.

Let’s delve through the changes.  After 2 1/2 seasons of handling the offense in its entirety, O’Brien has hired an offensive coordinator.  I had proposed that Brian Gaine force one upon him but it looks like a compromise has been made in having someone else look under the hood of the Houston Texans offense.

Tim Kelly, 32, formerly the Houston Texans‘ tight ends coach, has now been tapped as the new OC.  By promoting from within, this move certainly signals O’Brien is willing to delegate but still wants to have ultimate veto power in the direction of the offense.  Aaron Wilson of the Chronicle writes that he’ll have heavy input into the offense, including packaging together the game plan and a sounding board for strategy during games.

Kelly has been on O’Brien’s staff since Day 1 so it’s a rather easy move for O’Brien to make.  Although I’m skeptical of what I’m about to see, I’m at least pleased that someone on the coaching staff will have ability to provide a second voice to OB’s decision-making and he can focus more on managing the game itself.  Kelly has never been an OC at any level but O’Brien is confident that with the preparations that were made ahead of his promotion, that he’s ready for the job.

This certainly indicates that this promotion had long been considered for Kelly.

Will Lawing, also an original member of O’Brien’s coaching staff, will take over as the tight ends coach.  Lawing has been with O’Brien since his days at Penn State (2013), when Lawing was a graduate assistant.  He worked as the defensive quality control coach from 2014-16 and had been working as an offensive assistant/quality control up until now.  One would certainly categorize this move as an advacement for Lawing.

Former Houston Texans quarterback and playoff hero T.J. Yates has been hired onto the staff as an offensive assistant.  His history with the Houston Texans with his breadth of experience of being a QB at every level will serve him well.  Yates has spent a lot of time on the bench through a multitude of coaching staff through his career, so this would be a natural fit for him.  It’s good to see Yates back with the Houston Texans as I think his insight will be valuable, especially as he gets his feet wet into coaching.

The biggest and the most exciting change was that the Houston Texans hired a new quarterbacks coach to replace the outgoing Sean Ryan, who made a lateral move to the Detroit Lions as their QBs coach.

The Houston Texans have hired 70-year-old Carl Smith as their QBs coach, a man who has had a heck of a story to tell through the successes of his career.

So what are three things to know about Smith?  Let’s dive in and take a look.