O'Brien - Staying or Going?

[Arky]

Bill O'Brien expected to sign extension with Texans

Texans coach Bill O'Brien took a break today from "positive, productive discussions" with owner Bob McNair and vice chairman Cal McNair to meet with the media.

O'Brien wouldn't talk specifically about his contract that has one year remaining, but he's expected to sign an extension once the new general manager is hired to replace Rick Smith..................

"The McNairs are fantastic bosses, and they don't rush into anything," O'Brien said. "The talks are about what's best for this organization. There's a bright future for the organization. We're having positive, production discussions. Mr. McNair wants to win a Super Bowl and to give back to the city.

"The big thing for me and the McNairs is alignment philosophically (with new GM)."

--------------------------------------------------------------------

Texans receive permission to interview Buffalo's Brian Gaine

[nunusguy]

The Rick Smith question is still outstanding, it's out there in terms of getting a definitive explanation as to when and if he returns to the Texans will he then once again have the GM job waiting for him and obviously only Bob McNair has the answer to that question.
And the answer from McNair, and only the right answer will attract qualified candidates to Houston to interview for the GM position.

[chuck]

I would like to see a strong-willed but not inflexible person as the GM. Many of the candidates mentioned so far seem to me to be good possibilities. Pioli is an exception. No one seems to like him anywhere he goes. It's not a popularity contest but you do have to be able to work on various fronts.

I would also like to see the owners recuse themselves from any future decision involving individual football players. No more Ed Reeds, no more BOs, find someone good, pay them properly, get the hell out of the way, do not become best friends, fire their ass if they do not produce.

I would extend BOB for two years and I would say You need to show development from Deshaun each year, no regressions, you need to win, now, I know your roster sucks but so does the division so win, at the end of your three years we need to have played in a conference championship game at a minimum.

[barrett]

Chuck I've got to admit I looked forward to you blasting Rick Smith despite the circumstances of his departure. I didn't think you'd go easy on a guy just because his wife is sick. I especially thought any pity you do possess would be removed by Smith mentioning God in his statement.

[chuck]

Originally Posted by barrett

Chuck I've got to admit I looked forward to you blasting Rick Smith despite the circumstances of his departure. I didn't think you'd go easy on a guy just because his wife is sick. I especially thought any pity you do possess would be removed by Smith mentioning God in his statement.

I don't know what sort of ogre you think I am. As a human being of course I'm sympathetic. As a follower of the Texans I would like to think that he is now completely irrelevant to me, but of course since this is the Texans and not a competently run organization, the owner refuses to provide any clarity and any prospective GM is of course going to have to deal with the specter of Slick Rick.

So who knows, it's not at all impossible that I'll get to continue to enjoy complaining about him for years to come.

And I'm still laughing my ass off that Buford thinks that Smith's getting fired means he loses his family's health coverage. And the 2018 sign-up window for the ACA has closed, more's the pity!

[Warren]

"The GM is going to have full authority over personnel, and he'll report to Cal and me," McNair said. "That's our main message to potential GMs, and there's no question about it."

"Rick needs to take care of his family. Hopefully they'll get good results. Some people have raised the question if Rick comes back at the end of the year, he's going to have undue influence on the GM. That's not the case. Rick might not want to come back."

"We don't know what Rick might do. That's something we'll discuss a year from now. The only concern is to take care of his family, and we're not going beyond that."

McClain

That authority would be set out in the GM's contract, so (assuming the contract doesn't allow for it) Smith couldn't just be reinserted in the personnel power structure if he comes back. It looks to me like Smith is being given the option of either being able to look for another job when he's ready to do so, without being fired, or to come back in some football operations role that doesn't involve personnel. Keep in mind that Jamey Rootes is responsible for all business functions, so I don't know what duties that would leave. Smith's entire career has been in coaching and personnel and he's only in his late 40s so it seems unlikely that he'd be ready to permanently move to a different role.

[Warren]

Packers Director of Player Personnel Brian Gutekunst is an interesting candidate. Green Bay GM Ted Thompson was pushed into an advisory position and capologist Russ Ball is the favorite to take over. That would involve denying Gutekunst and Director of Football Operations Eliot (son of Ron) Wolf, even though they both are considered ready to be GMs and may no longer be content to wait for that job to open back up. Gutekunst was reportedly very impressive in an interview with the 49ers last year before withdrawing from consideration.

The Packers have historically used a draft-and-develop strategy and have not been big players in the free agent market. They have tended to sign free agents who had been cut by other teams because those signings don't count against them in the rules for awarding compensatory picks, and as a result have received more of those extra picks than any team but the Ravens. This philosophy has been criticized recently, which is why Thompson is out. The Texans would need to do a better job drafting, especially after the first round, to make this approach work.

[barrett]

Originally Posted by chuck

I don't know what sort of ogre you think I am. As a human being of course I'm sympathetic. As a follower of the Texans I would like to think that he is now completely irrelevant to me, but of course since this is the Texans and not a competently run organization, the owner refuses to provide any clarity and any prospective GM is of course going to have to deal with the specter of Slick Rick.

So who knows, it's not at all impossible that I'll get to continue to enjoy complaining about him for years to come.

And I'm still laughing my ass off that Buford thinks that Smith's getting fired means he loses his family's health coverage. And the 2018 sign-up window for the ACA has closed, more's the pity!

I don't think you're an ogre, I just think you play one on TV (or on the internet in this case).

And yes, it is hilarious that Bob suggested a Billionaire was figuring out a way to finagle health care coverage for a millionaire.

Either way any competent franchise would spell out the plan for Smith instead of leaving it and him and any hire hanging in the wind. Just say Smith is permanently done as GM so he can focus on family, but he will remain a special advisor to McNair. Make him like a HS or College coach that gets moved on to administration. Instead we have him gone but not permanently gone, not coming back but maybe kind of coming back.

[HPF Bob]

Unless I'm mistaken (or lost in a time warp), NFL General Managers aren't millionaires unless they hold some other title at the same time. GM's might pull 100K-300K but, honestly, outside of a few, there's not many worth $1 mil.

[Roy P]

[QUOTE=Arky;47188]
Bill O'Brien expected to sign extension with Texans

I think that the team is looking for alignment. I am perplexed by the idea that Rick Smith is going to come back. It would make sense organizationally to close that door in terms of player personnel. You give Rick the responsibility of booking the Greenbriar and plane tickets. Setting prices for suites at NRG. But you make sure that the person who you are wanting to hire as a GM that he has the keys to the car in terms of draft picks, free agent signings, and contract extensions. I interview College Scouting Directors and Phil Savage and Mike Lombardi, any Front Office man from the Patriots. Then give them a 4-year contract with 100% roster control. I am going to also interview Packers and Ravens guys because I admire Ted Thompson and Ozzie Newsome.

[HPF Bob]

I think McNair is being merciful. By keeping Smith, he allows the family to stay on the team's insurance during a very difficult and expensive time. Fighting cancer is not cheap. Once Smith is ready to deal with football again, then McNair can decide Rick's future.

I think Rick did the right thing in making this year totally about getting his wife better and McNair did the right thing making sure Rick would not have to go through the anxiety of paying bills and hunting for a new job during all of that. There's a time and a place for everything and both men are doing the right thing.

[barrett]

Originally Posted by HPF Bob

I think McNair is being merciful. By keeping Smith, he allows the family to stay on the team's insurance during a very difficult and expensive time. Fighting cancer is not cheap. Once Smith is ready to deal with football again, then McNair can decide Rick's future.

I think Rick did the right thing in making this year totally about getting his wife better and McNair did the right thing making sure Rick would not have to go through the anxiety of paying bills and hunting for a new job during all of that. There's a time and a place for everything and both men are doing the right thing.

I completely disagree. There are plenty of ways for a billionaire to cover a guys medical expenses that don't include holding Smith's return over any GM you hire. And Smith spoke up today that he's not done and he will come back. If McNair just wanted to cover his expenses there are 100 easier ways to do it.

[HPF Bob]

McNair is leaving his options open, I suppose or letting Smith's fate twist in the wind for a year without knowing what his fate will be. Cancer battles changes people's focus and perhaps Smith won't have the will to go back to the job 12 months from now. You can't say.

As a cancer patient himself, maybe McNair just didn't have the nerve to kick Smith out the door at such a vulnerable time in his life.