Tennessee Titans head coach Brian Callahan and general manager Ran Carthon made a massively important hire to the offensive staff with the addition of well-respected offensive line coach Bill Callahan.
The father of Brian, Bill will be tasked with helping in the rebuild of the Titans’ offensive line, which has been one of the worst in the league for the past three seasons.
It isn’t often you see fans and media get hyped for the hiring of an offensive line coach, but there is good reason why that’s the case with Callahan, who is the PERFECT man for the job.
Bill Callahan on how he teaches linemen to anchor pic.twitter.com/PtbdZA7xwJ
— James Foster (@NoFlagsFilm) February 2, 2024
We talk about that and more in our three things to know about Tennessee’s new offensive line coach.
A historic hire
The Titans are making NFL history with this hire. Brian Callahan is the first head coach to hire his dad to his staff.
Bill and Brian also joined an exclusive club upon the Titans hiring the latter, as they are the seventh father-son head-coaching duo in league history.
Of those seven duos, only two of the dads have won a Super Bowl, but none of the sons have won the Big Game. Kyle Shanahan will have another crack at it when the San Francisco 49ers play the Kansas City Chiefs in Super Bowl LVIII next week.
One of the best in the business
There are few, if any assistant coaches in the NFL who are as well-respected and highly-regarded as Callahan.
I mean, just take a look at some of the praise for Callahan in the wake of news breaking that he was joining the Titans:
Can’t tell folks how big of a move for the Titans to get Bill Callahan. One of the best OL coaches I’ve ever come across. He’ll pay immediate dividends for a position group that really needs all the help it can get #Titans
— Damien Woody (@damienwoody) February 2, 2024
The Titans are hiring Browns OL coach Bill Callahan on to his son Brian Callahan's staff, sources confirmed (@MaryKayCabot first). That's a big win for Tennessee—landing one of the sport's most-respected line gurus.
Good on the Browns, too, for letting it happen.
— Albert Breer (@AlbertBreer) February 2, 2024
Grand slam for the #Titans at the position that they needed it most. Massive deal. Callahan is one of the two most valuable non-coordinator assistants in the league. The other is Eagles OL coach Jeff Stoutland. https://t.co/yqiKqkivyy
— Mike Herndon (@MikeHerndonNFL) February 2, 2024
Alex Gibbs is known the Godfather of the wide zone blocking scheme (RIP). Extremely high praise here for new #Titans OL coach Bill Callahan. https://t.co/5qnCYHv3nr
— Mike Herndon (@MikeHerndonNFL) February 2, 2024
Brian Callahan getting dad Bill Callahan to join the Titans is huge for his outlook. OL needs an overhaul. There’s Skoronski, a couple talented tackles that need development. Interested if they’ll pursue a Left Tackle in FA. Maybe replicate the Bengals approach taking a WR @ 7.
— Chad Forbes (@NFLDraftBites) February 2, 2024
.@TonyGrossi says the Browns losing Bill Callahan is like the Browns lost a playoff game 😯 pic.twitter.com/6naVV8XZzZ
— ESPN Cleveland (@ESPNCleveland) February 2, 2024
Callahan might be the best positional coach in the game. This is a huge boost for the Titans and a major, major loss for the Browns. https://t.co/c3mJ1BmWdf
— Bill Barnwell (@billbarnwell) February 2, 2024
Got Bill Callahan and Dennard Wilson. Hard to ask for a better start. https://t.co/LbNRVYjG3g
— Ted Nguyen (@FB_FilmAnalysis) February 2, 2024
On top of a potential new left tackle the Titans may take in the 2024 NFL draft, Tennessee has a slew of young offensive lineman who will benefit from Callahan, including Peter Skoronski, Dillon Radunz, Nicholas Petit-Frere, Jaelyn Duncan, Andrew Rupcich and John Ojukwu.
Skoronski is already locked in for 2024, but it isn’t out of the question that Callahan turns one or more of those guys into long-term starters once he gets his hands on them. That’s simply how good he is.
A huge asset for the coaching staff
It goes without saying how big of an addition this is to help the offense, but Bill will be a major asset for more than just that reason.
Papa Callahan has nearly three decades of NFL coaching experience and is a former head coach himself after spending two years in the role with the Raiders, and four at Nebraska.
On a coaching staff with a first-time head coach and offensive and defensive coordinator, Bill has the kind of experience to help all three of them navigate the first season in their respective roles.
