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David Culley had no expectations when he met with the McNair family to be the fourth full-time coach in Houston Texans history.
The way the 65-year-old Baltimore Ravens receivers coach and assistant head coach saw it: if he were fortunate enough to get the job, it would be the epitome of everything he had worked for in his 43-year coaching career.
On Jan. 27, Culley had a followup meeting with Texans general manager Nick Caserio after their second interview earlier that day.
When Culley was offered the job, it was like he was hit with a right hook.
“I was sitting there, and this is why I almost went down, and I use the reference of boxing, is because I felt like somebody hit me with a right hook and the way it happened was, Nick was on the phone, he made a FaceTime call,” Culley said. “I didn’t know who he was calling. He called Cal [McNair], and all of a sudden he says, ‘Here.’ He gave me the phone. He gave me the phone and Mr. McNair said to me, he says, ‘David, how would you like to be the head football coach of the Houston Texans?’
“Well, I almost at that point, I was standing, and I was by a rail, I almost went down, but I caught the rail before I went down.”
The career position coach, who has never been a coordinator at the NFL level since his entry on Andy Reid’s Philadelphia Eagles staff in 1999, says he is invigorated to take the job.
Said Culley: “Never in this profession and in my career have I been more excited and felt so good about my journey to this point when he told me he wanted me to do that. After sitting in and visiting with that family, I said, ‘I am at the right place at this point in my life where I need to be and where I want to be with my family.’”
Culley takes over a 4-12 team with many questions that need to be answered throughout the offseason. The former Ravens coach can get his first big win in the eyes of Houston sports fans if he can convince quarterback Deshaun Watson to rescind his trade request.
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