There was some speculation at the end of the 2016 season that the Texans would part ways with head coach Bill O’Brien with his rocky relationship with General Manager Rick Smith cited as the reason why there would be a change after the team won a division title.
O’Brien stayed in Houston, but there’s again speculation about his departure with the Texans suffering through a 4-11 season amid injuries to Deshaun Watson, J.J. Watt and others. And there’s again talk about how little O’Brien and Smith, who has been in his current position since 2006, get along.
Aaron Wilson of the Houston Chronicle reports that one source called their relationship “toxic” and “dysfunctional” with another saying they would be “kind of surprised” if there wasn’t a change to release the tension.
O’Brien has one year left on his contract and said that he would go into next season without an extension granting him further security in Houston. If he were to become available through firing or in a trade, he could become a candidate for other jobs once teams make changes after the end of the regular season.