Texans sign Bill O'Brien to 4-year extension

AFC South champs?

Super Bowl?

Below .500 again?

Predictions for the 2018 Texans have been all over the place.

There is the clear potential of Deshaun Watson constantly connecting with DeAndre Hopkins, and the return of Romeo Crennel's relentless defense. There is also the reality that the Texans still must add roster depth and the team needs almost everything to go right to have a real shot this season.

If the Texans pull it off – rising from 4-12 to one of the premier teams in the league – private offseason meetings between fifth-year coach Bill O'Brien and Bob and Cal McNair will have played a pivotal role in a revamped team.

"Bob, myself, Cal, we spent a lot of time together. I would say about two weeks, just talking," said O'Brien, during an extended interview last week with the Chronicle in his office. "We talked about a lot of things. Life, not just football. This is what I believe in. This is what I've known.

"The one thing that I've learned in that deal, which is kind of amazing – that maybe it took me four years to learn – was, how do I say this? And I knew this, don't get me wrong -- I knew this. Because I know you're recording this, so I want to say it correctly. What I saw in that whole thing was it was very easy to talk to Bob. And even though maybe you disagreed with Bob or he disagreed with you, he was all about trying to find common ground to try to find a winner. He was a great leader during that time."

The meetings led to Brian Gaine replacing Rick Smith as the Texans' new general manager and set the foundation for the franchise's new era, with O'Brien remaining as coach and receiving a four-year extension that runs through 2022.

"I was excited. I was very excited," said O'Brien, describing his feelings when he learned that he would remain as the Texans' coach.

O'Brien is well aware of his 31-33 career record and was adamant that, for all the positive talk and potential, the only thing that matters is winning between the lines.

"Oh, yeah. Below .500? I mean, yeah," said O'Brien, when his coaching mark was mentioned. "You definitely are out to try to improve that record, some way, shape or form."

If the Texans do fulfill the most-optimistic predictions, the beginning of the team's turnaround will be traced back to a franchise reset during the offseason.

"I appreciate the confidence that Bob McNair has shown in us and me," O'Brien said. "I think my relationship with Bob has come a long way. Bob tells me all the time, 'I just want the truth.' So I just try to give Bob the truth. So for him to make that type of commitment to our coaching staff, to me -- believe me, I'm very grateful for that."​

 

Bill O'Brien's best chance to win is now

Spoiler

Game film is paused on a jumbo-sized screen that stands opposite Bill O'Brien's large office desk.

His room is filled with memories and mementos: Family photos — including a fading one of his football-playing father — and a Texans game ball from his first NFL coaching win way back in 2014, when Ryan Fitzpatrick was his first quarterback and Jadeveon Clowney first got hurt.

A 48-year-old man — entering his fifth season as the Texans' coach and finally possessing a young QB to build a franchise around — calmly leans back in his chair and discusses it all as the hours count down toward another Week 1.

New era. Past mistakes. Everything he's learned.

The private, in-depth meetings with the McNairs last offseason, which convinced O'Brien that NRG Stadium would remain as his football home. The inner belief that these Texans — more than ever made in his vision — could be building something big in 2018, but the hard understanding that 4-12 seasons and a 31-33 career record simply don't cut it in pro football.

"I appreciate the confidence that (owner) Bob McNair has shown in us and me. I think my relationship with Bob has come a long way," said O'Brien, who will return to his home state Sunday when the Texans open their season against the 2017 AFC champion New England Patriots. "Bob tells me all the time, 'I just want the truth.' So I just try to give Bob the truth. So for him to make that type of commitment to our coaching staff, to me — believe me, I'm very grateful for that."

Is O'Brien the right coach to lead the Texans where they've never been before?

We're still asking that big question more than four and a half years after he was hired to change it all on Kirby Drive.

He'll never have another chance like this to prove himself in Houston.

"I would love to be the coach here as long as they'll have me here. It is an exciting time for us," he said. "You think about the youth of the team mixed with the veteran leadership that we have. ... I always struggle with this question because it's all about what we do. How we coach, how we perform and winning. You've got to do it."

Time flies

[...]

O'Brien hasn't hit the full five-year mark on Kirby. But when you think about everything the Texans have been through since he took over — a playoff victory and 30-0 home embarrassment; QBs, Brock Osweiler and more QBs; major staff and front-office changes — 2014 can feel like a long time ago in NFL years.

"It seems like that was just yesterday. But then there's other things that you would say, 'Wow, it's been a long four years in some ways,' " said O'Brien, who received a four-year contract extension in January and now has a deal that runs through 2022. "Overall, though, it's gone by fast. And I can tell you that when people talk about the grind and all that, that's what we love around here.

"We are fortunate to be able to coach at this level. The players we've worked with, for the most part, are fantastic to work with. Clearly we've had some ups and downs. But the ups have been decent and the downs we've got to improve on. But the challenge of coming in here every day and working and trying to figure out how to make everything better is, for all of us that have been here for that long, that's the fun part of the job. That's what I enjoy. ... I love getting up and coming in here every day."

On the same page

The new-era Texans -- retooling, not rebuilding -- are now being pieced together by new general manager Brian Gaine, who replaced longtime GM Rick Smith. Alignment is now the key behind-closed-doors word on Kirby. But during the three previous years under O'Brien, there were constant rumors highlighting lingering frustrations and unbridgeable divides.

"No chance in hell," said veteran cornerback Johnathan Joseph, when asked if he thought his coach was going to move on from the Texans. "There was a second there where I thought maybe. But then my football mind kicked in. No way in hell that you would leave a team like this behind, and ownership's seen what we've done the past couple years. Football, sometimes when things don't go the right way, you have a one-off season. That's what I look at it like. This team had an off year. ... Put a couple pieces in place and hopefully things go a lot better at the end of this year."

Did O'Brien ever reach a point where he believed he would part ways with the team?

"I think that's more about maybe when you get home and you're talking to your wife about things. But you do not, you do not — and that's one thing — you never dwell on it. You don't address it," he said. "When you get into the profession you know that if you don't win — especially when you're a head coach, especially in pro football — if you don't win, you're probably not going to be there that long. That's just the way that is and you accept that."

[...]

"When you get philosophical about it, it's about how do you deal with adversity. How do you improve? How are you always trying to help everything get better?" O'Brien said. "That's what — and, again, you've known me for a while; I don't really enjoy talking about myself — but we think about that.

"Football's a tough game. It's an interesting game, it's a challenging game and football has a lot of adversity in it, whether it's on the field or, obviously, off the field, and it's how you deal with that adversity. ... What are you learning from some of the errors that maybe you've made in the past and trying to get better?"

Always on

The OB hat sitting on a shelf above his desk is a small inside joke.

The famous photo of Kansas City quarterback Len Dawson taking a cigarette break during the Chiefs' defeat in Super Bowl I tells you a little more about the daily mindset of a sarcastic, self-deprecating, blue-collar coach.

The signed painting of Astros pitcher Lance McCullers Jr., won at a Special Olympics auction, also captures O'Brien's personal spirit.

"I love that guy," said the Texans' coach, his voice lifting as he studies McCullers' in-motion image. "He's like a bulldog."

[...]

But Houston is more of a home than ever for O'Brien. His wife, Colleen, loves the city and the family's neighborhood. His youngest son, Michael, just turned 13 and plays baseball year-round. His oldest, Jack, who was born with the infant neurological disorder lissencephaly, just had a "monumental birthday."

"That was a big deal," O'Brien said. "Because for him to go through what he goes through every day and to be 16 years old is a milestone."

Family has long been at the core of his life. But as his fifth season draws near — a critical swing year that could determine multiple football futures, including his own — O'Brien acknowledged it's difficult to let go of a dream job that demands so much.

"I definitely find it hard to shut it off sometimes," he said. "I've improved on that a little bit. But when your mindset is to always do what's best for your players and your coaching staff, when you go home it's not always easy to just go, 'OK.' I don't think that's easy.

"Obviously I have a great wife, Colleen, she's a sounding board and she listens — it's amazing she's still married to me. But I think it's hard. Anybody that says they just shut it down and they're great when they get home, well, great for them, because I think that's hard to do. Because there's a lot that comes across your desk every day that doesn't have anything to do with football."

One goal

Deshaun Watson was inside this room hours earlier, breaking down video with O'Brien and trying to find a new way to see the field.

[...]

"He's here all the time," O'Brien said. "He's here early, he stays late. He'll text me or we'll come up and watch tape together."

The past is part of his official coaching history. He knows what being 31-33 overall looks like and that he's still fighting for double-digit wins in a single season. Bring up all the old QBs and decisions, and the man who doesn't like to talk about himself doesn't flinch.

"Every guy that's suited up for us, I'm sure they would tell you maybe it's not always a bed of roses for them with me," O'Brien said. "I've tried to treat everybody fair to the best of my ability. But I know I've made mistakes and I've learned and hopefully been a better coach for that."

[...]

"One of the biggest things is just being able to understand how to take care of the player. That's where he's really, really evolved," said Mercilus, who's entering his seventh season with the Texans and was limited to just five games last year due to a season-ending pectoral injury.

O'Brien briefly pauses the never-ending work and leans back in his chair. He mentions the old days and names: Earl Campbell, Elvin Bethea, Luv ya Blue. He knows what a true winner would mean to this football city.

Then O'Brien walks out of his office and returns to the same job that started in January 2014 — the one he's still trying to complete.

"That's the main reason why we're all here. That's pro football," he said. "Everybody's vying for that one thing and it's so hard to get to that. If you're on the same page, you have half a chance. I know we're headed in the right direction."

​