Texans Hire Bill O'Brien as Head Coach

[Nconroe]

So far I like the hire of O'Neil as HC and Hixon as WR coach.

Wish O.Neil and Texans the best going forward.

[painekiller]

Originally Posted by popanot

Supposedly Ray Horton (Browns DC) will be let out of his contract. I hope O'Brien considers him if that's the case. I want nothing to do with Wade at this point.

This would be a great hire.

[HPF Bob]

Originally Posted by Nconroe

So far I like the hire of O'Neil as HC and Hixon as WR coach.

Wish O.Neil and Texans the best going forward.

He'll be a big upgrade from Kodiak.

[WMH]

Potential DC
@RapSheet: Still a bit early on Romeo Crennel and the Texans. There is some interest there, we'll see if Romeo wants to get back in. Still getting paid

[Warren]

FWIW, Wade is no longer listed as part of the coaching staff on the official site.

[Warren]

More staff reports/speculation:

Godsey (mentioned above) would be OC
Penn St. special assistant to the head coach and director of player development Jim Bernhardt
Penn St. RB coach/recruiting coordinator Charles London
Penn St. DC/CB coach John Butler
Former Bucs offensive assistant Ben McDaniels, if his brother Josh doesn't get a head coach job and he doesn't join him
Iowa OL coach Brian Ferentz for OL coach

[Keith]

Ahem...

@JasonLaCanfora
Many people in the league believe if Texans GM Rick Smith had his way, Ken Whisenhunt would have been his top choice. More change could come

https://twitter.com/JasonLaCanfora/s...79035968614400

So, left to question here how much power Rick Smith still has. The team let go of director of pro personnel Brian Gardner and pro scout Kevin Murphy on Friday.

[chuck]

Originally Posted by Keith

So, left to question here how much power Rick Smith still has.

But this has always been the question, hasn't it, how much power does Rick Smith have? My feeling gathered from various information sources over the years was always that Smith had, shall we say, limited influence on draft day. Maybe that was good, maybe not. Could you have done worse in the later rounds yourself? I doubt it. Would a monkey throwing a dart yield worse results? I doubt it.

Smith had no experience that would lead anyone to believe that he was suited for or prepared for the role of general manager of an NFL franchise. It always seemed to mew like Kubiak had brought along Denver's jailhouse snitch to be his yes man / bag man.

McNair fired Marciano, something I thought he would literally never do. Maybe as he ages fielding a winning team is beginning to trump some other considerations. If so that would be about the best offseason news I could have asked for.

[Warren]

I have no idea what these two particular guys did or didn't do to get fired but it's good to see that the personnel side of the organization is getting some scrutiny. From the press conference for Kubiak's firing on all of the talk had been about what great talent the team had and the pro and college scouting departments seemed to be getting a complete pass.

[Arky]

I think, maybe for the first time, Rick Smith has felt the heat. At first, I think he was a newbie (to GM) who just wanted to make sure he crossed his t's and dotted his i's. Hearing him speak on the radio, sounds like he's got a direction he wants to pursue...... but so far (after 8 yrs on the job), it's not always working as planned....

On draft day, I always pictured a "council" in the war room. Wade Phillips (or whomever) walks into the room, picks up a couple of chocolate iced doughnuts out of the Shipley's box, gets a cup of coffee, plops down in a chair and declares, "I sure could use a linebacker in the 2nd or 3rd round". Kubiak, Dennison, etc., even R Smith, all nod "OK". The scouts standing by for consultation....

Just speculating but, I think most of the Texan business is handled this way, i.e. a council. While Kubes and Smith and maybe one or two others had veto power, I'm guessing it was seldom used....

The past scouting department had a few lucky hits but lately just too many JAG's - not even solid players, just barely serviceable.....

[nunusguy]

I saw Bob "the invisible man" O'Brien last night on local sports news, and it might be the first sighting since his presser where McNair introduced him as the Texans new HC. He was at some kind of event with another new HC, UTs Charles Strong. Interestingly Strong was dressed-out in UT garb, but I O'Brien wasn't wearing Texans gear, looked like he was decked out in Under Armour, or something like that ? But the Texans' new HC has sure been low-profile since his hiring, but with the Combine this week I'd expect that to change.

[HPF Bob]

It's not like Coach Dimple has to change wardrobes. Patriots - navy and white (with some red). Penn State - navy and white. Texans - navy and white (with some red). It ain't like coaching the Seahawks, Bill. Just wear something navy and white and you fit right in.

[Arky]

O'Brien speaks - Vandermeer interview:

http://www.houstontexans.com/tv-medi...2-e6ae88e65caf

A lot of coach speak and evasion but kind of a good look at the new head coach......

[Arky]

New O'Brien video out - about 3 mins.

Talks about the QB selections in the draft. Says they don't know yet, what they will do.

So, I guess that is the one big remaining question - Do they go Bortles (or Teddy or Johnny) @ 1.1 or do they do Clowney @ 1.1 then Garoppolo (or another QB) @ 2.1?

[nunusguy]

Originally Posted by Arky

New O'Brien video out - about 3 mins.

Talks about the QB selections in the draft. Says they don't know yet, what they will do.

So, I guess that is the one big remaining question - Do they go Bortles (or Teddy or Johnny) @ 1.1 or do they do Clowney @ 1.1 then Garoppolo (or another QB) @ 2.1?

So if the Texans use their 1.1 on a non-QB, are you confidant that it's going to be Clowney ?

[HPF Bob]

Clowney is the only non-QB in this draft that is worth a 1-1. If what you want is Barr, Mack, Matthews, Watkins, etc, you should trade down and take them. I'd be thrilled to do a trade down into the 4-6 range with receiving extra draft picks. STL and Oakland probably don't want another QB so if you trade down, likely one of the Big 3 QBs is still there along with some of the draft's top talent guys like Matthews or Watkins.

[chuck]

But in trying to trade down we're faced with the same old question, though. If we don't see any value at 1-1 then who the hell else will?

[Arky]

Originally Posted by chuck

But in trying to trade down we're faced with the same old question, though. If we don't see any value at 1-1 then who the hell else will?

People keep saying it's a "deep" draft so you would think (I do) there's at least one player that is worth the 1.1 pick. All it takes is one team to have the itch, to see future greatness in a player and go for it (trade up)...

Trading down but staying in the top 10 would probably make taking a QB more.... palatable.... Seems to me, QB's taken in round 1 seem to have the highest bust rate. I don't have any stats or anything but it just seems that way. By trading down, at least one could avoid having a 1.1 (QB) bust. Bortles, Manziel, Bridgewater..... there are no guarantees. One or more could be the next Jamarcus Russel/Gabbert/Leaf, etc. Other positions aren't guaranteed either but I think you have a better chance at a solid player at minimum... I think Mack, Clowney, Mathews - all meet this minimum requirement.

I only mentioned Clowney because his name is usually the one that comes up, i.e. soup-of-the-day. Should have included "or other non-QB".....

So, to rephrase, I guess there are 3 choices:

1. Draft a QB at 1.1

2. Draft a non-QB at 1.1

3. Trade down and pick whoever you want.

[nunusguy]

Originally Posted by HPF Bob

Clowney is the only non-QB in this draft that is worth a 1-1. If what you want is Barr, Mack, Matthews, Watkins, etc, you should trade down and take them. I'd be thrilled to do a trade down into the 4-6 range with receiving extra draft picks. STL and Oakland probably don't want another QB so if you trade down, likely one of the Big 3 QBs is still there along with some of the draft's top talent guys like Matthews or Watkins.

That's your opinion, quite a few "analytics" are now saying that OT Greg Robinson is right there with Clowney but who's to know ? But with the new CBA, trading out of the 1.1 is not as far fetched as it might seem, even in a Draft that is without one of those "franchise QBs" like Andrew Luck or RG3. The team with the 1.1 just can't expect that much for their top pick.

[HPF Bob]

This probably deserves a different thread (hint) But let's look at potential trading partners for 1-1.

2. Rams. QB need? 45% (Are they sick of Bradford yet?) Coach: Jeff Fisher. Not really a trade down candidate because we are just talking one spot.

3. Jaguars. QB need? 85%. Most likely they will take the QB we don't and will try to bedevil us with him for the next decade. Not really a trade down option here since they are within our division and would not want to do us favors.

4. Browns. QB need? 90% Most likely, they will take a QB but they have plenty of needs and may draft BPA. They have a low first as well as this pick so they are the most ideal partner. We would get a top-4 player and I think we'd have somebody we'd really like if we drafted 4th.

5. Raiders. QB need? Well, they just traded for Schaub so your guess is as good as mine. Might lust for Clowney or Watkins. Would still be a good draft slot for Houston but would need probably their 1st, 2nd and 3rd to do this deal.

6. Falcons. QB need? 10% Definitely lusting for Clowney. Could feel he is worth 1st, 2nd and 3rd to move up for him. Sixth spot isn't great for Texans but could still work out, particularly if Matthews or Manzeil was their guy all along. The haul would really set up a spectacular draft for us though.

I doubt the Texans would agree to trade further down than this unless the Bucs, Bills or Vikings made them an unbelievable offer. So that's your trade down options. The Browns and Raiders are batshit crazy so they could want a trade-up badly. The Falcons see themselves as still a playoff team and could view Clowney as the pass-rush piece they need to bounce back.