Texans Fire Coach and General Manager Bill O'Brien After 0–4 Start
The Texans have fired coach and general manager Bill O'Brien, the team announced on Monday.
The Houston Chronicle's John McClain was first to report the firing. O'Brien had been on the hot seat following the Texans' 0–4 start to the 2020 season.
"I want to sincerely thank Bill O'Brien and his family for their impact on our franchise," team owner Cal McNair said in a statement. "Bill proved himself as a coach and leader in this league. I spoke with him earlier today and told him we are moving in a different direction."
McClain said assistant Romeo Crennel will become Houston's interim head coach.
As head coach and general manager, O'Brien controlled the roster. In January, the team officially appointed O'Brien as general manager after he served as de facto GM following Brian Gaine's firing in June 2019. O'Brien's decisions as general manager have been widely criticized, especially after he traded away star receiver DeAndre Hopkins and sent two first-round picks and a second-rounder to the Dolphins in exchange for Laremy Tunsil and Kenny Stills.
Over the offseason, the Texans changed their offensive operations when they gave offensive coordinator Tim Kelly play-calling duties. O'Brien had handled it for the past four seasons, but after Houston's first three losses in 2020, the team reconsidered the move. O'Brien reportedly became more involved in play-calling and offensive planning for Week 4, although that still resulted in a 31–23 loss to the Vikings on Sunday.
According to NFL Network's Ian Rapoport, Jack Easterby, the Texans' executive vice president of football operations, was not "seeing eye-to-eye recently" with O'Brien, leading to the coach's firing. Easterby also fired Gaine when he arrived in Houston.
O'Brien was in his seventh season with the Texans, joining the team in 2014 after coaching at Penn State. He amassed a 52–48 record with four AFC titles, and the team has posted five winning campaigns in six seasons.
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