The New York Giants continue to poach former Tennessee Titans personnel to shore up their coaching staff. On Monday, New York hired former Tennessee defensive coordinator Shane Bowen as their defensive play-caller. The Giants hired another coaching staff member on Tuesday, again pulling from the Tennesee Titans. Per NFL Network’s Mike Garafolo, New York will employ former Tennessee offensive coordinator Tim Kelly as their next tight ends coach.
The #Giants are hiring former #Titans offensive coordinator Tim Kelly as their TEs coach, sources say. Kelly coached #Texans TEs in 2017-18 and has been an offensive coordinator or passing game coordinator every year since.
— Mike Garafolo (@MikeGarafolo) February 6, 2024
Alongside former head coach Mike Vrabel, the Titans have lost nearly all their coaching personnel from last year. Vrabel, coordinators Tim Kelly and Shane Bowen, wide receivers coach Rob Moore, tight ends coach Tony Dews, and defensive line coach Terrell Williams, among others, have parted with the AFC South club.
Tim Kelly: Makes Move to Third NFL Club
After playing football at Eastern Illinois, Kelly transitioned to coaching in 2008, becoming a graduate assistant at Illinois Wesleyan for two years. He landed his first defensive coordinator gig at Minnesota State-Moorhead in 2010. After a one-year stint with the Division II school, Kelly left for Ball State as a graduate assistant. The Illinois native relocated to Penn State in 2012 under the same job title.
Kelly earned his first NFL job in 2014, becoming an offensive quality control coach for the Houston Texans. Houston promoted assistant offensive line coach after two seasons. The Texans again gave him a promotion in 2017, giving him the title of tight ends coach, where he spent two seasons before becoming the offensive coordinator. Kelly called plays for the Texans from 2019 to 2021.
The Texans scored 23.6 points per game during his first season as the offensive play-caller, the 14th-best mark in the NFL. Quarterback Deshaun Watson threw for 26 touchdowns against 12 picks. Watson improved in his second season with Kelly, throwing for 33 touchdowns and seven picks. However, Houston scored 16.5 points per game in 2021, Kelly’s first and only season without Watson under center. The team dismissed Kelly in the offseason.
Kelly landed with the Tennessee Titans in 2022 as the passing game coordinator, working with quarterback Ryan Tannehill. The Titans moved him to OC last season, but the team struggled, scoring just 17.9 points per game, leading to his firing in late January.
Tim Kelly: Coaching Tight Ends with New York Giants
Kelly will replace former tight ends coach Andy Bischoff on Brian Daboll’s staff after the latter left for the same position under Jim Harbaugh and the Los Angeles Chargers. Tight ends struggled to produce for the New York Giants last season. Star offseason acquisition Darren Waller averaged just 46 receiving yards per game, his second-lowest mark since breaking out in 2019. Meanwhile, fellow tight end Daniel Bellinger failed to score in 17 games despite a promising rookie season.
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