Tim Kelly Promoted to Titans OC, Replacing Todd Downing; Was Passing Game Coordinator

The Tennessee Titans promoted passing game coordinator Tim Kelly to offensive coordinator Tuesday as part of a reorganization of their coaching staff.

Tennessee also announced the hiring of Chris London as passing game coordinator/quarterbacks coach and Chris Harris as defensive pass game coordinator/cornerbacks coach.

Kelly, 36, came to Tennessee in 2022 after spending eight seasons with the Houston Texans organization, including three as their offensive coordinator.

Houston finished no better than 13th in offense during Kelly's three years running the show and was last in offensive production in 2021. He served as the passing game coordinator for an offense in Tennessee that ranked 30th in passing offense.

The offense faltering led to the Titans firing of offensive coordinator Todd Downing, so it's a bit of a surprise to see coach Mike Vrabel promote from within. Given the lack of production, it would have arguably made more sense to bring in an outside voice who can revamp a stale offense.

Proponents of Kelly could point to the fact he's only been on staff for one year, but that coincided with the Titans' worst year of offensive production under Vrabel. Kelly had been the favorite for the position since Downing's dismissal, so the hiring nevertheless comes with little surprise for an organization that tends to prefer keeping things in-house.