Lovie Smith reportedly is close to landing another NFL head coaching job, nearly 15 years to the date that he guided the Chicago Bears to the Super Bowl.
Smith, 63, is in talks with the Houston Texans to take over as head coach, ESPN reported Sunday night. Smith spent the 2021 season as the Texans’ associate head coach and defensive coordinator under first-year coach David Culley, who was fired after Houston went 4-13.
The Texans would be Smith’s third NFL head coaching job. He has an 89-87 regular-season record, including 81-63 with the Bears from 2004-12. He was also 8-24 with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers from 2014-15.
Smith returned to the college ranks after his departure from the Buccaneers. He was named head coach at the University of Illinois but failed to rejuvenate the long-struggling program and was 17-39 from 2016-20.
The Texans offered Smith an opportunity to return to the NFL as a coordinator in 2021. Houston finished No. 31 in total defense but showed signs of improvement late in the season, allowing an average of 24 points in the final four weeks after giving up an average of 27.4 points in its first 13 games.
Houston reportedly had been interested in hiring former quarterback Josh McCown as head coach, although the 17-year NFL veteran has never coached at the professional level. It’s possible that McCown could serve as an assistant in some role under Smith, who coached him in Chicago and Tampa Bay.
–Field Level Media