For the third time in his career, Lovie Smith will be named Head Coach of an NFL franchise. The Houston Texans are finalizing a deal to promote Smith, who spent last season as an Associate Head Coach with the team. Smith replaces David Culley, who was let go last month after just one season in Houston.
Texans finalizing deal with Lovie Smith to be next head coachhttps://t.co/N9cbUc9dUW pic.twitter.com/tkwSKYuMak
— Around The NFL (@AroundTheNFL) February 7, 2022
Smith earned his stripes as the Linebackers Coach with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in the late '90s, being promoted to Defensive Coordinator of the St. Louis Rams in 2001. From there, he signed on as Head Coach of the Chicago Bears, coaching the team for nine seasons from 2004 to 2012. He led the Bears to an 81-63 record, earning NFL Coach of the Year honors in 2005.
After a year off, Smith rejoined the Buccaneers as Head Coach in 2014. His tenure with the Bucs was much less successful, going 8-24 across two seasons finishing last in the division both years.
Including his time in the NCAA ranks, the last time Smith had a winning record as a Head Coach was in 2012, when the Bears finished with a 10-6 record. He'll have his work cut out for him with a Texans squad that finished the year 4-13.
All eyes are on Super Bowl LVI this week, but the Texans have the longest odds on the board for Super Bowl LVII, coming in at +18000 at FanDuel Sportsbook.
