Should Rick Smith keep his job?

[painekiller]

How are his picks panning out?

2007:He took Okoye above Willis and Revis?
Jacoby Jones? A special teams player that is really a true 4th WR on most teams.
Fred Bennett,Brandon Harrison, Brandon Frye, Kasey Studdard all bust, but to be fair not many real players left at this point from these rounds that year.

2008: They passed on Otah, Sam Baker, Chris Johnson and traded down, they selected Brown and Slaton, servicable players but not superstars, Slaton due to injury, Brown due to need drafting.

Molden, Adibi, Okam, Barber and Alex Brink all wasted picks due to injury or lack of drive.

2009 Cushing was taken despite rumors of steroids use, and he has already served a suspension. Passed on Mathews who has torn up opposing QBs.
Also passed on Oher, and Mack.

Barwin, Casey, Nolan and Caldwell are incomplete, Quin is a solid pick supposedly done by Rhodes. Another Rhodes picks is McCain who should not be on the field. Hill is a bust so far.

I know there are a lot of incomplete's and the coaching staff comes into question on many of the playing decisions, to early for early round guys and not enough reps for late round guys.

Lets look at the FA signings? Only one has worked out and that one is not a true solid pick up, and that is Smith. We have not been active in upgrading the team with know NFL commodities, instead relying to much on the unknown in the drafts.

This team lacks heart and they need a transplant, not sure Smith can perform that transplant.

[chuck]

In short, no.

[NBT]

Rick Smith did not make all of these draft decisions. Kubs had a lot of input and influence. So what is the use of this type of post, they are both going to keep their jobs, at least one more year.

[TexanJedi]

If Kubiak goes then Smith should too. If Kubiak, as unpopular as it may be, returns then so should Smith. They should be seen as a package deal. I would not want Smith to pick a new coach.

[WMH]

Hell no.

Blow the whole damn thing up.

IMO, wishful thinking....as I think it will be "minor" tweaks next year.
Hope I am wrong, as I have zero confidence left in this regime.

[painekiller]

Originally Posted by WMH

Hell no.

Blow the whole damn thing up.

IMO, wishful thinking....as I think it will be "minor" tweaks next year.
Hope I am wrong, as I have zero confidence left in this regime.

That is how I feel and exactly what I think will happen

[nunusguy]

As a package deal, I'm of the opinion that if Kubiak doesn't win another game and finishes 5-11, he and Smith still have a 50/50 shot at being here in 2011.
But to your analysis of the Smith-Kubiak Drafts: I can almost excuse their mistake for picking Okoye, because he was so hyped and his Senior Bowl week including both practices and game-day performances were so impressive, as was the SenBowl week of Willis and with DeMeco coming off of his ROY performance at Willis position. There's little doubt a lot of other teams would have made the choice the Texans did in their situation, but he was a mistake. Not necessarily a bust, but definitely not a top 10 pick in that Draft or any Draft.
In retrospect the Cushing pick is now such a total mystery to me giving what's happened to him with bing busted, suspended for a month and all. I mean the Texans are such goody-2-shoes organization, I just figured they checked him out so completely there just could be no way any of the allegations about him were true ? But clearly they were, and we now have a guy who's no where near his rookie form for pretty apparent reasons, and we're left wondering when we might lose him again, the next time for a whole season I believe ?
And what to think about Kareem ? Let me just say there's a couple posters on another Board who swear by him, say his problems are all because of the defense he's stuck with, and he's really gonna have as good of a NFL career as another rookie CB, Devin McCourty of the Patriots, who looks sensational to me ? Go figure ? Personally I gotta say Kareem is a huge question mark at best ?

[HPF Bob]

I wouldn't bury Cushing just yet. He had just returned from his suspension when Demeco got hurt and he was made to switch positions and then switch back with no Ryans in the middle. I don't think he's the reason the defense sucks.

[nunusguy]

Originally Posted by HPF Bob

I wouldn't bury Cushing just yet. He had just returned from his suspension when Demeco got hurt and he was made to switch positions and then switch back with no Ryans in the middle. I don't think he's the reason the defense sucks.

I'm not blaming him here for the problems of the defense, I'm talking about his individual performance and saying he's now "just a guy", like Okoye,
who wasn't worthy of being drafted in the top half of the first round.
SAMs usually aren't unless they're exceptional, and Cushing is anything but that based upon what I've seen this year and the season is almost over.

[NBT]

Originally Posted by painekiller

That is how I feel and exactly what I think will happen

You blow too hot and cold. With your way this franchise would always be in turmoil. You have to have some semblance of continuity or you start another 5 year rebulding job. This town deserves better. I don't know if the Smithiak duo is the problem, or the answer, I just know you've got to have the faith that things will get better or you don't. Frankly I don't know if I've got 5 more years of rebuilding left. So I just pray with a better DC, this team will get over the hump and get to the playoffs and beyond next year.

[painekiller]

Originally Posted by NBT

You blow too hot and cold. With your way this franchise would always be in turmoil. You have to have some semblance of continuity or you start another 5 year rebulding job. This town deserves better. I don't know if the Smithiak duo is the problem, or the answer, I just know you've got to have the faith that things will get better or you don't. Frankly I don't know if I've got 5 more years of rebuilding left. So I just pray with a better DC, this team will get over the hump and get to the playoffs and beyond next year.

I don't think we are 5 years of rebuilding bad like we were when Casserly and Capers left. Right now we have talent but that talent is under achieving, and that usually points to coaching, especially Head Coaching. It is the job of the HC to motivate the team, and this group of guys does not have the fire they need to win.

Bring in a guy to tweak this team now.

[Keith]

Wanna take a trip down memory lane? Funny to think ItB has been around long enough to help us with some perspective.

Thread from June 2008 when Bob McNair extended Rick Smith's contract early: http://www.inthebullseye.com/forums/showthread.php?t=68

Caused me to write an article to question it even though 2008 was still some pretty optimistic times for the Texans.

The most successful move during Smith's tenure (trading for Matt Schaub) is one that may be more largely credited to Kubiak than Smith.

From that article:

I'll give Smith some credit, as he has done three things rather well.
1. He was hired after Charley Casserly was shown the door. Not a tough act to follow, is it? I think the first two years of another Charley Casserly would look terrific after the first one.

2. Smith has worked the Bronco network, getting hired by the team employing Gary Kubiak, hiring a Denver scout to head up the Texans scouting department and perpetuating what has been a fairly successful system in the NFL the past decade. Kudos for Smith, but really, the praise here belongs more to Kubiak.

3. Smith has McNair for a boss, the same forgiving man who kept David Carr around one year (and $13 million) too long, and who has allowed his team to spend big, misguided money much earlier than needed, like with the contract extension given to Domanick Davis more than a year before his rookie deal expired.

Ecch. If Kubiak goes, Smith should go with him.

[painekiller]

Originally Posted by painekiller

I don't think we are 5 years of rebuilding bad like we were when Casserly and Capers left. Right now we have talent but that talent is under achieving, and that usually points to coaching, especially Head Coaching. It is the job of the HC to motivate the team, and this group of guys does not have the fire they need to win.

Bring in a guy to tweak this team now.

It's sad, McNair needs to blow up this front office and coaching staff. Give them the boot. All of them. Clean house.

Go hire Parchells to run this team.

[nunusguy]

Originally Posted by painekiller

It's sad, McNair needs to blow up this front office and coaching staff. Give them the boot. All of them. Clean house.

Go hire Parchells to run this team.

Chiefs were 4-12 last year, they picked #5 overall in Aprils Draft, but yesterday they had their 10th win of this season, won their AFC West division, and are in the playoffs next month.

[Joshua]

NTB, I'm curious why you think if will take five years to be successful if you fire everybody. I'm not trying to pick on you but it seems like this is something you just made up and isn't actually based on anything. Looking around the league I see nothing that supports this conclusion. Just off the top of my head, I can think of a number of pretty terrible teams that turned it around in a season or two by hiring the right guy (Bucs, Rams, Jets, Chiefs, Saints, Falcons, etc.). And I can't think of any team in the last decade that finally had success after "rebuilding" for 5-plus years.

[HPF Bob]

Originally Posted by nunusguy

Chiefs were 4-12 last year, they picked #5 overall in Aprils Draft, but yesterday they had their 10th win of this season, won their AFC West division, and are in the playoffs next month.

Yes, but this isn't your father's AFC West. It's a pretty dysfunctional division right now. Even though the Colts have taken a step back this year, the AFC South seems a much tougher division to win than the AFC West has been lately.

Of course, you could cite the Bengals who were crap in 2008, won their division in 2009 and are back to crap again in 2010.

[Joshua]

Originally Posted by HPF Bob

Of course, you could cite the Bengals who were crap in 2008, won their division in 2009 and are back to crap again in 2010.

I think LZ talked about this a while back, but the truly amazing thing is how the Texans have been able to be consistently terrible for so long. The Bengals are a good example of how even crappily-ran programs will put together one good year every now and again due to luck, injuries (theirs or their opponents), schedule, etc. Because the NFL has so much parity, virtually every team puts it together every once and a while, even if they promptly fall back to mediocrity the next year. It's actually very difficult to suck every year for basically a decade. It's a testament to Kubiak (and Capers before him) to trot out such a terrible product year after year.

[Big Texas]

I have said it once, and I will continue to say it "this teams biggest problem is coaching". And no I am not talking about gameplanning, playcalling, or anything of that nature.

We have been in a position year after year to get quality draft picks. It is not as though they did not go after need...KJackson, Glover Quinn, Brice McCain (CB), Earl Mitchell (DT)...two areas of major concern. Cushing (OLB)...another area of need...and lets not talk about all the draft picks spent of Dlineman.

Then you want to talk about FA signings...Antonio Smith (DE)...area of need They picked up Bernard Pollard (S)...another area of need at the time...And granted it was late in the season they signed Jason Allen (CB) area of need.

The problem is that once they gather these peices they have no idea what to do with them. They have no scheme or identity...whatever you wanna call it. They just pick up random players.

The difference between us and other major contenders, they pick up players perfect for their scheme.

I have one question....What does K.Jax, G.Quin, J. Allen, Brice McCain,have in common? Are they physical players who are willing to press the receivers to make time for the sack? Are they cover corners? Or are they excellent zone defenders? Or (my favorite) are they just a bunch of random players selected with no direction?

My point is without direction, these players are relying on raw talent alone, and as we have found they do not possess enough to get the job done. Put our secondary on the Patriots, I bet they still win games and come up with way more turnovers than we have so far....

With the right DB, Dline, and LB Coaches these same players could be, at the very least, average. THEY NEED TO BE COACHED UP!!!

And by the way "bend but don't break" is the philosophy of the nerd who gets beat up every day after school.

[Joshua]

Originally Posted by Big Texas

I have said it once, and I will continue to say it "this teams biggest problem is coaching". And no I am not talking about gameplanning, playcalling, or anything of that nature.

We have been in a position year after year to get quality draft picks. It is not as though they did not go after need...KJackson, Glover Quinn, Brice McCain (CB), Earl Mitchell (DT)...two areas of major concern. Cushing (OLB)...another area of need...and lets not talk about all the draft picks spent of Dlineman.

Then you want to talk about FA signings...Antonio Smith (DE)...area of need They picked up Bernard Pollard (S)...another area of need at the time...And granted it was late in the season they signed Jason Allen (CB) area of need.

The problem is that once they gather these peices they have no idea what to do with them. They have no scheme or identity...whatever you wanna call it. They just pick up random players.

The difference between us and other major contenders, they pick up players perfect for their scheme.

I have one question....What does K.Jax, G.Quin, J. Allen, Brice McCain,have in common? Are they physical players who are willing to press the receivers to make time for the sack? Are they cover corners? Or are they excellent zone defenders? Or (my favorite) are they just a bunch of random players selected with no direction?

My point is without direction, these players are relying on raw talent alone, and as we have found they do not possess enough to get the job done. Put our secondary on the Patriots, I bet they still win games and come up with way more turnovers than we have so far....

With the right DB, Dline, and LB Coaches these same players could be, at the very least, average. THEY NEED TO BE COACHED UP!!!

And by the way "bend but don't break" is the philosophy of the nerd who gets beat up every day after school.

This kind of relates to something I've been thinking about a lot lately. As much as it pains me to say it, if you asked me to put pen to paper and list out all of the qualities I hate in a football team, this current Texan team would hit just about every bullet point. The traits I absolutely hate in a football team, that this team unfortunately has in spades, are:

1. Like you said, no identity or idea what they are trying to achieve. They appear to be grasping at straws and just throwing stuff up against the wall in the hopes it works.

2. Soft. I've seen very few teams who are as soft from top to bottom as this one. While clearly this is in the eye of the beholder, IMO, this team can clearly be intimidated. Most notably, Schaub clearly doesn't handle hits well and always lets it show. I absolutely hate how he always lets the other team know they are getting to him. I can't count the number of times I've seen him roll around on the turf, grimacing. Defenses feed off of this sort of thing. Even if it hurt, put a mask on and at least act like it didn't bother you. This also starts at the top. Kubiak's refusal to watch kicks has always bothered me as well. While I know it is a minor thing, it sets a tone and that tone is "soft" and "scared."

3. Unprepared. Never seem to be ready to start the game. Never play 4 quarters. Are almst always pantsed by trick plays. When Del Rio is regularly fooling you, you are not well prepared.

4. Unintelligent play from the coaches down to the players. Bonehead calls, bonehead execution. Terrible clock management, replay challenges. Just insert every time you were screaming at the TV with "WTF were you thinking!?" Seems to happen at least a couple of times per game. All in all, just a confederacy of dunces.

5. Garbage time stats being thrown around as proof that we're getting better. This has been a Texan staple for forever (I write this while hearing the "First Down!" chant they play at the stadium running through my head. It's unbelievable to me that we actually have a cheer for making a first down.).

In all, if you asked me to put together all the traits I would least like to see in my team, my list would look something like that and the Texans are crushing every single one of them. It was only recently that I realized this team has come to embody everything I hate-a soft, unprepared, stupid team that's best quality is its ability to pad stats. I would be hard pressed to create a team I would less like to root for, but apparently this is my fate. Thought I would share. Misery/company and all that.

[chuck]

I'll go find a nondescript Methodist church somewhere on the west side of town and we can use one of its classrooms for the weekly 12-step meetings we plainly need to start having.