O'Brien - Staying or Going?
 

I think this deserves a separate thread.

Rumors are picking up steam that Bill O'Brien may be let go at the end of the year. OB has come out publicly and said (paraphrasing) "I will not quit as the head coach of the Houston Texans". But that doesn't mean he'll be sticking around. Some are projecting that a "mutual parting of ways" is in the offing.

This is not without precedent. A coach on the hot seat at the end of the year is either going to get fired/released or be retained (duh!). If he's released, major changes thoughout the organization follow. If he's retained, everyone goes back to studying their cell phones.

Does OB know the ending already? Recent comments from him don't seem particularly encouraging.....

And that's literally because I think we will find something out tomorrow night right after the Colt game or maybe just hours into 2018 early this upcoming week.
I'm not gonna be that surprised if McNair keeps O'Brien or if he fires O'Brien
but I will be totally stunned if he fires Rick Smith.

Smith's contract is through 2020 which is why I think he survives over Coach Foul Mouth who's contract runs through next season. Of course, if any chick comes out of the woodwork to say one of these two patted her on the ass, then that will make the difference.

I'm still amused by your Trump - McCain analogy. Inserting McCain implies that one of these guys has a brain.

OF COURSE Slick Rick survives, outstanding take. Smith is like family to these Bodine boneheads. Dude got extended for making the worst signing of the last ten years, maybe longer. You don't think some addled old fool is going to fire the guy who wipes his ass and takes him to church simply because he is literally the worst GM of equal tenure that does not own the muffukin team, do you?

By the way, Buford, your absence was noted round these here parts. I figgered the revenoors done throwd you in the hoosegow agin. I'm glad Pappy'n them done paid yer bail in time for the tradishnal New Year's buzzard hunt, I shorely am.

I didn't particularly like that in the Pittsburgh game, I don't believe there was ever a camera shot of the McNair suite. Not there? "Hiding"?

Front office has been awful quiet lately..... not a good sign for OB....

ESPN reporting now that O'Brien will be back for 2018 and an extension may also be in the works. Perhaps a big key is the endorsement O'Brien got from Deshaun Watson. Good thing there's ONE adult in the room, even if he is the rookie quarterback.

If the little taunt was about *my* absences here, honestly, up through November, it was because I have an Astros site (www.astrosdaily.com) to run and the team were dominating the city's attention. Since November, what's been there to get excited about? 2017 - other than drafting a QB - was simply a non-year for the Texans.

It could get worse as I'm likely to change jobs soon but I do check the site almost daily.

Watson already has voiced his support for O'Brien.

"That's out of my control, but I would love to have Coach O'Brien with me," Watson said earlier this month. "We have a great relationship. Ever since the draft process, we've been communicating. We talk football, we talk about life. And we have a lot things that kind of relate, the way we were both raised up. So we kind of connected [and have] been ever since."
http://www.espn.com/nfl/story/_/id/2...ch-next-season
Yup the rook has O'Brien's back big-time. They talk football and life - not just a mentor on the gridiron but also a father figure.
You know kinda like what the Chucksters next door neighbor in River Oaks Bob McNair has been to him. Well lets hope for O'Briens sake Watson doesn't turn on him like you know who turned on McNair.

Statement from Texans' GM Rick Smith:

"Effective immediately, I have chosen to take an extended leave of absence to focus my attention and intention on my wife's complete recovery from her recent diagnosis of breast cancer. We are faithful and trust in God's promise of healing and Wholeness. I am eternally grateful to the McNair family for their unwavering support during this trying time. This was an extremely difficult decision for me to make as I love this organization and every member of this team both on and off the field. I remain committed to our quest to bring a championship to the city of Houston, yet my family needs me now and they are my priority."

Next man up. Brian Gaine is in the rumor mill.....

Bill O'Brien expected to sign extension with Texans

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Texans receive permission to interview Buffalo's Brian Gaine

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.

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.

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.

[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.

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.

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.

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!

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.

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.

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.

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.

You're lost in a time warp.

Most GMs make between $1-3 Million (http://bleacherreport.com/articles/1...ice-execs-make)

There is no way Smith has over a decade of tenure and a recent 4 year extension and isn't at least middle of the pack (I'd guess he's higher). Most of the 4-5 year deals are in the $10 million range.

After my post, I went to look. Unfortunately, my credibility in the Bleacher Report is minimal. I had a friend who wrote for them and all they wanted was click-bait articles, not anything researched or thoughtout.

Still, I'll concede the point. Seems like a damn waste of money though. Cut the GM's salary in half and maybe then we can afford a decent left guard.

It's just a jump to the left.

And then a step to the right.

Say, Buford, when you's comin up did they play the Rocky Horror Pitcher Show at the Holler Drive-In at midnight every Saddy like they done at the in-door theeyatur down in the county seat? Or did they just rotate Rocky and Jaws?

That article was just one of many from a google search. They were all old and they all said basically the same thing, that GMs make $1-3 million but exact salaries are hard to come by. Plus the article I linked is almost 5 years old and a guy like AJ Smith got almost $3 million a year when he extended with a cheap organization like the Chargers in 2008. There is no way Rick Smith's 4 year extension wasn't worth at least $10 million and I wouldn't be shocked if it was double that.

I don't get why you don't think the GM (who is ahead of the coach in most organization's power structures) should get so much less than the coaches do. Whoever your top football guy is (GM/VP/Jerry Jones/etc...) should get paid like the top man at a $Billion company. Compensation should be at least in the millions or you are begging for shenanigans. These guys deal regularly in 8 and 9 figures and if they made less than $1 million it would be an invitation for an agent to get cute. Why wouldn't an agent offer an under the table 5% on a $50 million deal ($2.5 million) to a guy who is making $500K but has the authority to increase the value of the deal $5-10 million without anyone really noticing?

Rick Smith is getting paid and I don't begrudge him for it. Even with his worst mistakes he is at least league average at his job and has longer than league average tenure and league average results. It's not his fault there aren't 32 better GMs then him. He's like the Andy Dalton of GMs.

I got the movie reference. My kinfolk in Alabama knew of a theatre that played "Smokey and The Bandit" for an entire year. That was the record breaker.

I guess RHPS was a big hit where you was living, eh?

I was going to use Smokey and the Bandit as a reference but, you know, with my affectionate nickname for you things would get sort of murkily incestuous, not that that would raise any eyebrows down in Buford Holler.

You know, I did see RHPS once. Go ahead, laugh, it was in Cambridge, Massachusetts, at whatever the movie theater is there in Harvard Square. Hell, barrett might have been there, too.

Needless to say, I abhor musical theater and I never would have gone if I'd known what the hell I was getting myself into. I just thought it was a movie. How the hell is a goddamn redneck like me supposed to know you go in costume, know all the lines and stand up and literally interact with the freaking thing? It was appalling. The only reason I went is because I was asked by this girl in my class who I was hugely into. She was from Connecticut or some shit so of course she knew what the hell was going on. Turns out she didn't really like me all that much, and tragically she ended up sort of glomming onto this dude Jay whom I didn't care for personally. I found out recently he is one of the most sought after theater attorneys on Broadway. I'm sure that prick knew all about RHPS, too. He was from Purchase, NY. My friend Bob who's exactly like me, only he's gay, took an immediate dislike to this Jay (like I said, he's just like me, just gay) and one afternoon for no apparent reason stormed into Jay's room with a fire extinguisher and unloaded on everyone in there. This was a bit of a surprise to me, honestly, and it was all I could do to get my keys out of my pocket as I sprinted at Carl Lewis speed down the hallway pursued by five or six irate and foamy fellows.

Until recently that was my only encounter with a fire extinguisher. Like I said, it used to be some sort of foam that shot out the thing. Now it's this weird, toxic, dusty shit that's impossible to clean up satisfactorily.

Gutekunst has been retained by Green Bay before he even made it the interview with Houston.

The Eagles and Patriots have declined to let their guys interview (before their playoff runs end, respectively). Cowboys Will McClay is staying in Dallas.

So I think that leaves Brian Gaine unless the Texans are willing to wait.

It's ridiculous that teams can turn down interviews for front office guys because of playoff games. The front office guys are done with their 2017 jobs and they will be busier in a month then they are now, so why wait for an interview.

General managers (in that title) don't call plays. They don't stand on the sidelines in the summer heat or the harsh winter cold and try to motivate their troops. They aren't judged on wins and losses, except indirectly. They are like glorified accountants.

Sure, they are involved in the draft and they try to fit players under an arbitrary salary cap with a bunch of loopholes but, like I said, glorified accountants. I could hire Roy Pickett as my GM and do as well as Rick Smith.

If being a GM was so difficult, Matt Millen couldn't have done it.

I agree for the most part. FWIW, from March 1 through the end of the draft, teams also need permission before they can talk to a GM candidate who is under contract with another organization.

I wonder if the Texans have any interest in Eliot Wolf since he didn’t get the Packers GM job.

I don’t see any reason for them not to wait until they’ve had a chance to talk to the guys with Patriots and Eagles. I like what I’ve read about Joe Douglas, and there’s a good chance he’ll be available to interview next week.

Texans plan to hire Brian Gaine as new GM, extend contract of coach Bill O'Brien

Really starting to sound like Rick Smith will never have the GM duties any more....

It could also just be sloppy reporting. The news is who's being added not who's being subtracted.

The Texans have hired Brian Gaine as their new general manager to replace Rick Smith, and they have extended the contract of coach Bill O'Brien.

Gaine, who was Buffalo's vice president of player personnel, is getting a five-year contract. O'Brien is getting a four-year extension.

Owner Bob McNair also promoted vice president of administration Chris Olsen to senior vice president of administration and gave him a four-year extension that will place his contract in line with Gaine and O'Brien.

"It's a great time for our organization," coach Bill O'Brien said. "I'm really happy. I can't Bob and (vice chairman) Cal McNair enough.

"This is really important. It's all about continuity and stability. We have a great core group of staff members we really believe in."

Gaine will have control of personnel and football operations. O'Brien will continue to control his coaching staff as well as who plays and doesn't play on game days.

O'Brien had one year left on his contract.
http://www.chron.com/sports/texans/a...ipid=happening

Neither can we.