Marc Berman reports Wade Phillips is taking leave

[Malloy]

Originally Posted by SheTexan

I spit all over my computer with that comment he made about "not a vascectomy! " Wade keeping his sense of humor!!

He could use one though

[Goldensilence]

Originally Posted by Double Barrel

Here ya' go:




It sounds like more than just an answer to a question. It sounds like a lobby effort for a new gig.

Looks more like a hard lobby.

There's going to be another opening likely in SD after the season to add to KC, Jax, and Miami. There's going to be opportunity. I just think its going to be hard one year removed for him to make a case for a HC gig again so soon.

[SAMURAITEXAN]

Best wishes.

Get well soon. We need you Wade!!!

In Wade We Trust!!!

[srrono]

This season is driving me crazy we cant have something good happen without something that takes the enjoyment of that good thing away.

[Señor Stan]

Originally Posted by NitroGSXR

No, I meant what I typed. Thanks.

I know you meant it...just thought it was funny that red herring sounds like Reg Herring.

[drs23]

Originally Posted by NitroGSXR

Kubiak and his apnea disagrees with you. Me thinks there's a red herring in there sonewhere.

I'm pretty sure it's a Regg Herring.

[HOU-TEX]

The Gobbler just Tweeted Phillips will have his gall bladder removed too

[burro]

Thoughts and prayers are with Wade Phillips and his family.

I'll just say this; if there were no other way to keep Wade in Houston than promoting him to HC and saying happy trails to Kubiak, I would probably take it.

[NitroGSXR]

Originally Posted by Señor Stan

I know you meant it...just thought it was funny that red herring sounds like Reg Herring.

That was also intentional.

The point was that I believe this "leave" is ultimately a diversion. For what? I don't know but I'm hoping this is an internal, private reprimanding for his comments the other day. Enter Red Herring aka Reggie.

Not to discount Wade's medical issues either... I believe they are very real. He is definitely in our thoughts. It's no fun being sick or injured. I am just a bit skeptical when it comes to medical (mis)information from the Texans.

[rush2112mn]

I think any sence of a "emotional" letdown game just went out the window......this should keep the players on their toes......sad that Wade will be out at def coordinator.....get well soon Wade.....

[CloakNNNdagger]

Houston Texans coordinator Wade Phillips leaving to have kidney surgery

HOUSTON—Wade Phillips, the veteran coach who has turned the Houston Texans defense into the NFL's best, will have surgery this week to resolve a kidney condition and will be away from the team for a week to 10 days.

Phillips disclosed the medical issue Wednesday. He would not specify the condition, but said it is not life threatening, is not cancer, and that doctors recommended that he have the procedure.

He is the Texans' defensive coordinator.

Linebackers coach Reggie Herring will run the defense on Sunday when the 10-3 Texans face the 4-9 Carolina Panthers. Herring was linebackers coach when Phillips was Dallas Cowboys from 2008-10, and joined Houston's staff after Phillips was hired on Jan. 5.

Phillips, 64, is expected to return this season, which will include the expansion team's first playoff game, the Texans announced. But his leave is just the latest roadblock for the Texans, who've continued to win despite losing a key player to an injury every week.

Outside linebacker Mario Williams (torn chest muscle) and quarterbacks Matt Schaub (right foot injury) and Matt Leinart (broken left collarbone) are all out for the season, and star receiver Andre Johnson has a strained left hamstring after missing six games with an injury to his right hamstring. On Monday, coach Gary Kubiak said starting right guard Mike Brisiel had surgery on his broken right leg.

Phillips has probably contributed more to the Texans' success this season than anyone.

Fired as Cowboys coach in the middle of last season, Phillips has talked about feeling rejuvenated with the Texans. He took over the league's worst 2010 defense and implemented a 3-4 alignment before the season.
Wade Phillips will miss the Texans' Week 15 game to have surgery. (AP Photo)

Houston leads the league in total defense at 275 yards per game. The Texans rank fourth in rushing defense at 91.5 yards per game and third in pass defense at 183.5 yards per game, and have held each of their last seven opponents below 20 points.

The players credit Phillips with not only restoring confidence to the defense, but also creating a scheme that is fun to play.

"We're playing good defense all over," two-time Pro Bowl linebacker DeMeco Ryans said recently. "Of course it feels good, to be able to get out there and stop some people. You're definitely not worried about people scoring on you because you know everybody is being accountable. Everybody's holding up their end and knowing what they're supposed to do, so you're comfortable when you're out there."

Under Phillips' guidance, several Texans are having career years.

Linebacker Brian Cushing has regained his form from 2009, when he was the Associated Press Defensive Rookie of the Year. He leads the Texans with 86 tackles, and also has two interceptions and three sacks.

Outside linebacker Connor Barwin leads the team with 9 1/2 sacks after moving into Williams' role, and the same position where DeMarcus Ware excelled under Phillips in Dallas. Barwin, a converted defensive end, has 25 quarterback hits and seven pass break-ups. He had a franchise-record four sacks in Houston's 20-13 win at Jacksonville on Nov. 27.

Rookie defensive end J.J. Watt has 4 1/2 sacks and two fumble recoveries and leads the defensive line with 43 tackles, and rookie linebacker Brooks Reed, pressed into action after Williams was hurt, has already set a franchise record for a first-year player with six sacks.

Phillips has clearly found a new home in Houston under coach Gary Kubiak. He ran the defense in Denver from 1989-92, overlapping Kubiak's playing career as John Elway's backup for the Broncos, but their history goes back even further.

Phillips and Kubiak first met in the late 1970s, when Kubiak was a ball boy and Wade was an assistant for the Houston Oilers, who were coached by Wade's father, Bum.

[TexansBull]

Originally Posted by rush2112mn

I think any sence of a "emotional" letdown game just went out the window......this should keep the players on their toes......sad that Wade will be out at def coordinator.....get well soon Wade.....

I think it just got harder for him to get out. Who wants a 64 year old with kidney problems to be the headcoach of their team for the next three years? That puts him at 67-68 with potentially more health issues on the way. AND this would be worse if he was the head coach missing time instead of the defensive coordinator.

Remember too Wade came into Denver after Reeves and couldn't win a Superbowl with John Elway but then Mike Shannahan came in and did it. Then in Buffalo he lost to Tennessee after Flutie led the team all season only to be pulled for Rob Johnson in the playoffs and dividing the locker room. Then in Dallas, remember he inherited Bill Parcells team. Parcells built a solid foundation. And then it all ended with a thud.

So as great as this guy has been as a DC, he has a truly spotty record as a HC. And everywhere he has been, he has been the DC first, then replaces the HC of that team.

So GMs now that. And now with health concerns, and that spotty record, I think teams might overlook him because he is proving to be a Dick LaBeau - DC Masterming. The NFL missed out hiring him as a DC. We lucked out.

[Maddict5]

Originally Posted by burro

Thoughts and prayers are with Wade Phillips and his family.

I'll just say this; if there were no other way to keep Wade in Houston than promoting him to HC and saying happy trails to Kubiak, I would probably take it.

[GP]

Rumor is that Brian Cushing showed up with a rusty machete and wearing some yellow dishwashing gloves...said he could do the surgery himself and have Wade back on the field by Sunday.

Wade chose the conventional route instead.

Probably a good idea, actually.

[badboy]

Why didn't Phillips just come out & tell what he was doing and why? Would have cut down the rampant rumors and hand wringing.

[Playoffs]

Originally Posted by CloakNNNdagger

Houston Texans coordinator Wade Phillips leaving to have kidney surgery

So what would his diagnosis be, Dr. CND, if he's having his gall bladder removed & kidney surgery???

[CloakNNNdagger]

Originally Posted by asleep

So what would his diagnosis be, Dr. CND, if he's having his gall bladder removed & kidney surgery???

There are too many possibilities to accurately speculate, especially on the kidney side. Very likely, though, the gall bladder and kidney surgeries are unrelated. In most cases, risk factors of developing gallstones are not the same as those leading to the development of kidney stones. A bad gallbladder would readily go along with his rotund-producing "healthful" diet.

He admittedly ruled out cancer in his statement. It could be laparoscopic surgery for a large kidney stone or to relieve hypertension. Either could ultimate lead to laparoscopic removal of his kidney. But one thing I took notice of was one of his early curious statements, that it did not require chemotherapy. This could mean that he is thought to have something like a benign kidney tumor called an oncocytoma. This tumor cannot emphatically be distinguished from a clear cell kidney cancer preoperatively (not even by biopsy) until the kidney is removed. Furthermore, this tumor is believed to have the ability to metastasize (spread) just like a cancer in rare cases........for which one treatment is chemotherapy. Challenging to speculate. But like I said, there so many possibilities, it will remain speculation unless Wade chooses otherwise. At this point in time, I will try to accept Wade's statements that indicate that cancer is not even a consideration. Barring any serious underlying diseases, most all other things (other than cancer) leading to kidney surgery will most likely allow him an uneventful recovery and an opportunity to return to a normal long-term career.................hopefully here in Houston.

[Playoffs]

^Thanks, MSR.

[Lurvinator11]

Even if teams wated to talk to wade.....we have him for three years right? We can shut the door on them yeah? Don't get me wrong I believe in wades staff and think they can do just as great as a job.....but I mean c'mon....we got him for 3 now lets keep him for three! And then excercise the option so he can call some nice blitzes against his former team in dallas :]

[97roc]

Originally Posted by CloakNNNdagger

There are too many possibilities to accurately speculate, especially on the kidney side. Very likely, though, the gall bladder and kidney surgeries are unrelated. In most cases, risk factors of developing gallstones are not the same as those leading to the development of kidney stones. A bad gallbladder would readily go along with his rotund-producing "healthful" diet.

He admittedly ruled out cancer in his statement. It could be laparoscopic surgery for a large kidney stone or to relieve hypertension. Either could ultimate lead to laparoscopic removal of his kidney. But one thing I took notice of was one of his early curious statements, that it did not require chemotherapy. This could mean that he is thought to have something like a benign kidney tumor called an oncocytoma. This tumor cannot emphatically be distinguished from a clear cell kidney cancer preoperatively (not even by biopsy) until the kidney is removed. Furthermore, this tumor is believed to have the ability to metastasize (spread) just like a cancer in rare cases........for which one treatment is chemotherapy. Challenging to speculate. But like I said, there so many possibilities, it will remain speculation unless Wade chooses otherwise. At this point in time, I will try to accept Wade's statements that indicate that cancer is not even a consideration. Barring any serious underlying diseases, most all other things (other than cancer) leading to kidney surgery will most likely allow him an uneventful recovery and an opportunity to return to a normal long-term career.................hopefully here in Houston.

So when he got sick a few weeks ago is when they discovered both ailments, I am assuming. And apparently the docs felt both issues could wait a couple weeks.