I've never liked Nick Caserio. I'm not going to rehash the dozens of mistakes and misses over his tenure - but I think his fingerprints are all over this mess. == I assumed McNair initially promised DeMeco the keys to the franchise to incentivize him coming here. I didn't expect him to immediately clean house - the draft was only a few months away - but I did expect big changes in year 2 as Ryans filled the organization with his people, including the front office. But not only did that inexplicably not happen... Caserio started to fill the organization with *his* people. Let's take a quick look at the biggest problems that are currently plaguing the Texans. In some order, they are: offensive scheme/playcalling; offensive line; wasted draft resources; bad free agent acquisitions. Well.... - offensive scheme/playcalling: Nick Caley and Jerry Schuplinski, both John Carroll alums; - offensive line: Cole Popovich, with ties to Caserio in New England - wasted draft resources: Caserio, himself - bad free agent acquisitions: DJ Debick, head of pro scouting; Nate Lepold, pro scout - both John Carroll alums. The problem is Nick Caserio. What scares me is thinking about how Caserio came to the Texans: an Easterby endaround to subvert Cal McNair & ensure the youth chaplain was surrounded by cronies and BFFs. Easterby obtained that standing by winning a power struggle with BOB and ingratiating himself to McNair, who is a dolt. Has Caserio done the same thing, seizing the autonomous power Easterby once had and making himself essentially untouchable by surrounding himself with his allies and best buds? I see only three viable explanations for what's currently happening (well, four - I could be wrong): - Demeco flat-out does not care about the offense and is content to leave it in Caserio's unqualified hands - which is going to land Ryans on the street. - DeMeco is a full-blown moron. - Demeco is really just Caserio's lieutenant with limited power and authority. All of these are bad. Nick Casserio needs to go.
You dont like Caserio so this post doesn't surprise me, but it's lazy to blame all of the issues on Caserio aand I'm meh when it comes to the job Caserio has done so far. Ryans has final say on coaching hires and players on the roster. Ryans tells Caserio the players he wants and Caserio goes out and gets those players. Notice how most of the FA money has been spent on the defensive side of the ball? Also the Texans wanted to hire Caserio before Bob McNair died.
Caserio is responsible for PICKING the Oline, draft and FA. Demeco has final say on 53 man, but Caserio provides the pool of players. That is the GM's job.
I have to admit, I was high on Nick Caley during the offseason but I thought he’d bring the Rams play style.
Caserios work in the '23 draft has bought him some time with me. If we're still discussing these issues at this time next year or the ship hasn't been righted with wins I'm ready to grab tbe pitchfork and take to the streets.
There's not a single player on the team that Ryan's doesn't want on the team. Caserio's job is to get Ryan's the players Ryan's wants.
I think Caserio's cap management, off-season strategy, misallocation of resources and drafting make me question whether he is suited to the job. I think that Caserio's utter failure with the offense and offensive line is the biggest and clearest problem. Why has the offense got worse, not better the last two years? I think this goes deeper. The New England/ John Carroll University to the Houston Texans pipeline is real and it concerns me. First, here are the coaches and scouting people: Houston Texans Front Office / Personnel Staff Name Role / Title with Texans Connection to Patriots and/or JCU Nick Caserio Executive VP & General Manager (Texans) JCU alumnus (‘98 QB). He spent ~20 years with the Patriots in personnel/coaching roles. Frank Ross Special Teams Coordinator (with Texans since 2021) JCU alumnus; earlier work with Patriots as scouting assistant / pro scout. Jerry Schuplinski Senior Offensive Assistant / Pass Game Specialist (Texans) JCU alumnus (graduate assistant at JCU) and former Patriots coach (offensive assistant / assistant QBs coach). Nick Caley Offensive Coordinator (hired Feb 2025) JCU alumnus (student assistant) and former Patriots coach (offensive assistant/tight ends) before joining Texans. D.J. Debick Director of Pro Scouting (Texans) JCU alumnus; joined Texans from Patriots where he served as area scout. James Liipfert Assistant General Manager (Texans) Spent ~9 years with Patriots as national scout before joining Texans. Steve Cargile Senior Personnel Executive / Assistant Director of Pro Scouting (Texans) Former Patriots director of pro scouting, hired by Texans in July 2024. Nate Leopold Pro Scout (Texans) JCU alumnus; listed among JCU-in-NFL front-office & scouting personnel. Cole Popovich Offensive line coach/ run game coordinator, only previous coaching NFL experience was in New England from 2016 to 2020. I think the so-called Patriots way has been a net negative for the Houston Texans going back to Bill O'Brien. Tom Brady was not solely responsible for the Patriots success, of course, but his excellence propped up a lot of people who haven't done so great otherwise. Check out the Bill Belichick coaching record without Tom Brady sometime. The Belichick coaching tree looks pretty grim, too. My problem with Caserio is that by hiring so many people he is familiar with and who have largely worked within this same coaching and management culture is that they probably all think and speak the same way. Group think is death. There aren't enough fresh perspectives and experiences to draw on in the building. The Texans seem to be making a lot of the same mistakes because of their process and because of their emphasis on finding players who fit in with the Patriot Way. Look at how many Patriots retreads we have got and overpaid for just on offensive? Shaq Mason. Trent Brown. Braxton Berrios. Rex Burkhead. Danny Amondola. Brandin Cooks. How many of these retreads have worked out? This extends to the coaching schemes, as well. Now, the Texans jettisoned a West Coast offense from Bobby Slowick that is pretty QB friendly for the complex scheme used by Tom Brady. Again, the Patriots Way is rearing it's ugly head. Stroud is not suited to this offense. Neither are the young wide receivers. Finally, what I am most worried is how the Patriot Way creates such a miserable and toxic atmosphere around teams. Demeco is not going full Bill O'Brien, but I am not liking how he is handling things here as of late. He is starting to throw the players under the bus. Demeco should not be let off the hook as a head coach, either. He probably has the most power after the McNairs in the franchise. I don't see a lot of growth in him as a head coach. There is a lot of head-in-the-sand toxic positivity for the public (which I get from a PR point of view), but I worry that he is like that behind closed doors, too. The team repeats *a lot* of the same mistakes over and over again and at some point the bill comes due. The deviation (and success) is on defense. Demeco has put his mark on that side of the ball and he Caserio have collaborated successfully in this aspect. This might save them both. I'll close with this- Demeco may not be tied with Nick, but Caserio will have to make it work under Ryans. Nick won't get to hire a fourth head coach.
Has the philosophy changed from putting utmost emphasis on a competent OLine? No? Then our GM/coaching/FO/whoever we think is REALLY in charge is just a complete and utter imbecile
I feel he’s fired in the next few weeks, if not…. 100% gone this offseason and the entire staff besides Demeco.
Again, Ryans is responsible for the 53. Ryans cannot always get his player for money, or not available in the draft. Caserio is responsible for getting the POOL of players and alternatives. It is still up to Caserio to say: "Here are the players that meet what we do...". Since Ryans is a defensive-minded coach, the GM has more responsibility on the offensive side of the ball to help get the right players.
