James Casey enters his third season in Cincinnati, and third as an NFL coach. He joined the Bengals as tight ends coach prior to the 2019 season.
In 2020, the Bengals lost No. 1 TE C.J. Uzomah to a season-ending Achilles injury in Game 2. Casey helped Cincinnati adjust, and transitioned second-year pro Drew Sample to a more prominent role that resulted in career-highs in both catches (40) and receiving yards (349).
In 2019, his first season in Cincinnati, Casey helped Bengals tight ends account for a third of the team's receiving TDs (six of 18), despite losing Sample, a rookie second-round pick, to a season-ending injury mid-way through the year. The tight ends also helped boost the Bengals' blocking efforts over the team's final eight games. Cincinnati allowed 10 fewer sacks in the second half of 2019 compared to the first, and the team's per-game rushing average increased by 70.6 yards.
Prior to joining the Bengals, Casey spent three years (2016-18) on the coaching staff at the University of Houston. In 2018, he served as special teams coordinator/tight ends coach, and helped the Cougars' offense rank fourth nationally in scoring (46.4 points per game) and sixth in total offense (528.6 yards per game). Houston scored at least 30 points in all 12 regular-season games, and hit the 40-point mark in 10 of 12 games.
Under Casey's direction, Houston's tight ends helped the team rank 14th in the country in passing offense (300.9 yards per game) and 20th in rushing (227.7). Houston was one of only two schools (the other was Oklahoma) in 2018 to rank in the top 20 nationally in both passing and rushing offense.
In 2017, Casey played a key role in the emergence of Houston TE Romello Brooker, who finished the season with 29 receptions for 364 yards and six TDs (led the American Athletic Conference). Brooker had entered 2017 with just nine career catches.
In 2016, Casey's first as a coach after his playing career, he served as offensive football analyst for Houston and helped the Cougars to a No. 15 national ranking in passing offense (310.9 yards per game). Houston also ranked 21st in scoring offense (38.0 points per game), and topped the 30-point park in 11 of 12 regular-season games.
Prior to his coaching career, Casey had a seven-year (2009-15) playing career in the NFL as a tight end/fullback. He originally was a fifth-round draft pick of the Texans in 2009, and played four seasons (2009-12) with Houston before later stints with the Philadelphia Eagles ('13-14) and Denver Broncos ('15).
Casey played collegiately at Rice University in Houston, where he had a record-setting career as a tight end in just two seasons (2007-08). Casey left the program with school records for receptions in a season, receiving yards in a season and receiving yards in a game. He earned Freshman All-America honors in 2007, and first-team All-Conference USA and CoSIDA Academic All-American honors in 2008. He was also named the 2008 recipient of Rice's James W. Glanville Award, presented annually to the player who has achieved excellence in athletics, academics and integrity.
Prior to his time at Rice, Casey was drafted by the Chicago White Sox in the seventh round of the 2003 Major League Baseball Draft. He spent three seasons with the White Sox organization as a pitcher, before enrolling at Rice and pursuing football.
Casey was born on Sept. 22, 1984, in Fort Worth, Texas, but was raised in nearby Azle, Texas. He attended Azle High School, where he was a standout quarterback on the football team and pitcher on the baseball team.
Casey and his wife, Kylie, have two sons, Cannon and Knox.
Playing and coaching history: 2007-08—Played tight end at Rice. 2009-12—Played tight end, Houston Texans. 2013-14—Played tight end with Philadelphia Eagles. 2015—Played tight end with Denver Broncos. 2016-18—Assistant coach (AC), University of Houston. 2019-present—AC, Cincinnati Bengals.
