I think it was a very undesirable coaching spot the last couple of years, which could be a big reason why they ended up with who they did both years. Something that doesn’t get talked about is the possibility that good candidates simply were not interested in the job the last couple of years, due to the Watson uncertainty and Easterby. It would seem to be a more desirable spot now though, how could it not be? The Watson situation was not settled the last couple of years. This will be the first off-season that it is settled. Tons of draft picks and money. Easterby is no longer around either. Maybe it’s not as desirable as it could be due to ownership, but there’s no way it’s worse than the last couple of years.
Thomas Brown from the Rans is a guy that has piqued my interest. Would consider him at head coach or OC. Perfect scenario: Demeco or Jonathan Gannon with Brown at OC. Throw in McCown at QB coach?
So you're saying young aspiring coaches chose to remain coordinators and risked missing out on one of 32 HC jobs because they'd have to deal with a year of uncertainty? But now that that year is done, they'd be good with taking the job?
Not buying into this narrative at all. So Jack and Cal blow $600K to ignore the recommendations of the search committee and go get Caserio (whose experience was being in the room with Belichick) only to prevent him from doing his job? Does not track. He's the GM of the Houston Texans and final responsibilty for this sh*t show is on him. Can you imagine what the uproar around here would be if this were Rick Smith? Now, this doesn't absolve the McNairs from any responsibility because the ultimate blame for keeping Houston professional football irelevant in this state belongs to them. Bud Adams would be proud to see them continue his legacy.
Next year, the argument will be that no one wanted the job because the GM was on the hotseat and likely to be fired in a year, leaving the HC as a lame duck without support.
I agree it's the worst coaching job out there, and they will get the last pick of all the potential HC's. But they will choose someone dumb by choice, not because it's the only option left. Lots of popular choices like Philly's Gannon were left out of the musical chairs race last year. The Texans still chose Lovie.
I disagree completely. You have teams like the Broncos, Cardinals, and Rams who have gone all in and are now terrible/won't have picks. Houston has upside if they hit on their number one pick. Football town kind of(Baseball now), but there is a future here ultimately.
Rams don't have a HC opening. Broncos have a top-3 defense this year, and that's with the offense being wretched. Russell Wilson is a mess this year, but it's unclear whether that mess is fixable or not. They had playoff/Superbowl aspirations this year, and talentwise, they aren't far away if they can fix him. Cardinals have a lot of talent and are largely being held back by a coach who wasn't even successful in college and managed to repeatedly fail upwards. Unclear if Kyler Murray is coachable/fixable or not with a better scheme, though, and they certainly may be stuck with him. Regardless, it's very likely all of those teams are better than the Texans next year and the year after that, making those much more appealing HC positions. Plus, they don't have Cal McNair calling the shots, nor do they have a potentially incompetent GM who was hired because he was buddies with Easterby.
This. Sean Peyton is roundly considered a huge ******* around the league. However, he is also considered an exceptionally talented coach and roster builder, and one of the rare coaches that can change the fortune of an organization in just about any situation. Not sure McNair will want a guy that regularly cheated on his former wife, is a known partier, got his girlfriend pregnant and really cares about nothing but football. The first time Cal in his golfcart rolls up to Peyton during practice asking him what formation he is running, will be the first time Cal has a head coach tell him to go "**** his mother's face."
I mean … maybe? Hopefully? Doesn’t this happen all the time? Not only in the NFL, but any field? Better opportunity = more candidates to choose from seems like common sense. Even if that explanation for the previous coaching hires is wishful thinking, the main point was that the situation this year seems more favorable than in the previous couple of years. As you say, that doesn’t mean they will make the correct decision.
Given their available resources, I don't believe it's the worst HC opening in the NFL. I think Carolina would be worse. And if Denver fires Hackett, that is far & away the worst opportunity in the NFL. And Arizona would be worse, too. You guys are VASTLY underestimating how much a HC would covet a blank-space roster, bountiful picks and cap space.
The problems are: We don't know who made the Coach hiring decisions and never will until someone has left Fannin. You can blame an owner all you want, they do not get a yearly evaluation like many of us get. Weather you are a good owner or a bad owner, that TV revenue rolls in regardless. there is truly no incentive for an owner to get better unless it is ingrained in them. Sadly we got one that like flipping burgers at training camp, and spends the rest of his time playing video games.
I'm not sure I see why Denver is horrible. They have an elite defense and a supposedly elite QB who's a mess this year. Any coach who thinks they can fix him gets a ready-made playoff roster. A veteran coach might covet a blank-space roster and lots of picks, but a first year HC who's out to prove himself may not last the 4 or 5 years those resources will take to do anything, especially after seeing 2 previous HCs fired after one year. And they have to believe that Caserio and McNair will use those resources properly, allow the coach to hire his own staff, etc. You could sell all that in a Gruden-like situation (ignoring Gruden specifically) where you have a coach you commit to long-term and let them build from the ground up. But a rookie HC isn't likely going to get that kind of runway to prove themselves.
Also the same number as Andy Reid or Sean McVay or Mike Tomlin or John Harbaugh. I believe the only current HC in the NFL with more than 1 is Bill Belichick.
