On Thursday, the sports media went apoplectic after the Houston Texans fired head coach David Culley, leaving only one black head coach in the league.
Along with offensive coordinator Tim Kelly, Culley was fired after a year with a 4-13 record. But there was a lot of drama — not of his doing — behind the scenes during his lone season, including the temper tantrums thrown by Deshaun Watson and his constant requests to be traded.
Still, Houston had the same number of wins this season that they did in 2020 under head coach Romeo Crennel and Bill O’Brien.
“Earlier today, I met with David Culley and Tim Kelly to inform them we will be moving in a different direction at the head coach and offensive coordinator positions. I came to this difficult but necessary decision after reviewing our football operation,” said Texans general manager Nick Caserio, according to Fox News. “While a change after one season is unusual, we had philosophical differences over the long-term direction and vision for our program moving forward. We appreciate Coach Culley for helping us navigate through a difficult season, but it is my responsibility to make decisions that I feel are best for our organization. The search for the next coach of the Houston Texans will begin immediately.”
With Culley gone, that leaves the NFL with only one black head coach, and the sports media was quick to point that out on Thursday.
With the firing of David Culley, there’s currently 1 black head coach in the @NFL.
There are 32 teams and 78% of the players are black. David Culley was set up to fail. #Texans pic.twitter.com/AlcMj6JuQs
— Emmanuel Acho (@EmmanuelAcho) January 13, 2022
After the firings of David Culley & Brian Flores there is now just one Black head coach in the NFL: Mike Tomlin. And he had to never have a losing season in 15 years to do it. pic.twitter.com/yQz1mhbYJ5
— Reese Waters (@reesewaters) January 13, 2022
Wait, David Culley, my Vanderbilt man, got fired after ONE YEAR? He actually did a pretty good job under the circumstances. Wait, now Mike Tomlin is THE LAST REMAINING BLACK HEAD COACH IN THE NFL??? Impossibly wrong in 2022.
— Skip Bayless (@RealSkipBayless) January 14, 2022
I can’t believe the Houston Texans fired David Culley after one year.He had a weak roster, no starting caliber quarterback yet his players gave total effort until the very end.
Bill Belichick couldn’t have done better with that team.
Culley’s firing is an absolute disgrace.— Merrill Reese (@mreeseeagles) January 13, 2022
David Culley had to take a bad job to get his shot. That's what happens to Black coaches. Top QB legal issues. Key players had been traded. Mess of a front office. What the hell was he supposed to do in a year? They want Black coaches to turn water into wine and win a Super Bowl.
— Myron Medcalf (@MedcalfByESPN) January 13, 2022
Cal McNair is atrocious. Jack Easterby is atrocious. Nick Caserio's roster was deficient… but hey, FIRE DAVID CULLEY
— Michael Silver (@MikeSilver) January 13, 2022
There were only three black head coaches when the NFL season started. The Texans fired Culley this week. On Monday, the Dolphins dumped Brian Flores, leaving only Mike Tomlin with the Pittsburgh Steelers.
Aside from Tomlin, there are only two other minority coaches left in the league, and neither is black. Robert Saleh, of Lebanese descent, is the head coach for the New York Jets, and Ron Rivera, who is of Puerto Rican descent, is the head coach for the Washington Football Team.
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