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Texans hire Bill O'Brien as HC

thunderkyss said:
I'd like to see a true competition at the QB spot, but I bet we won't see one.
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What's that look like? - something like this on the practice field:

score_keeper.jpg
 
infantrycak said:
No, the above sounds good to fans. There isn't a single team in the league that has the competition you describe.
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Obviously 'Every snap, every practice' is figurative and not literal. If Watt has a bad game he's not losing his starting spot.

What I refer to is the old mentality of guys going out and stinking it up for entire years under the Kubiak regime and still getting PT. Not every team does that. Or guys getting PT because they were drafted high. Not every team does that. Seattle signed that backup QB whose name escapes me right now and instead started Wilson for example.

All I mean is that players should never feel like they have the starting spot locked down. Where they can go out and set a record for pick 6 or miss FG after FG and still get chance after chance to redeem themselves.

Of course there are players who are given the benefit of the doubt because they are so good you don't expect them to be bad consistently.
 
The Texans took the well-traveled Savage at No. 135 overall in the fourth round. O’Brien didn’t rule out anything for Savage and cited the resilience of his oldest son, Jack, who deals with daily seizures and has been diagnosed with lissencephaly, as the reason the Texans won’t place a “ceiling” on any of their players.

“You create your own ceiling by talking about ceilings,” O’Brien said. “So I don’t think that we ever talk about that here, ever.”
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http://blog.chron.com/ultimatetexan...-2014-draft-no-ceiling-for-savage/#23243101=0
 
(on as a rookie head coach, how long he expects it to take to get comfortable with all of his players and new surroundings) “I did it at the college level, no question; it takes a little bit of time. I don’t know that it takes one week, two weeks, a month or whatever it is, but it’s very important to get to know these guys. Not just as football players, but it’s very, very important to get to know these guys as people, as who they are, where they come from, what their backgrounds are. That takes a while. That takes individual conversations. That takes group conversations.

I’ve done that quite a bit with the veterans and now I’m starting to do that with the rookies. There are certain guys that we probably know a little bit better than maybe some of the other guys that weren’t drafted and things like that, so it takes a while.

As far as on the football field and how each player fits into our system, I think that takes a while because you have to watch them practice, watch them perform on film, how do they process things in the meetings. How do they process things in the walkthroughs? What types of questions do they ask? I think that takes a while. You don’t learn about someone overnight in that regard either, so it’s a process. It can’t take forever, that’s for sure. You have to figure it out fairly quickly, but you can’t figure it out in one day.”

(on if the learning about the individual and who he is and if that’s what allows him to know how best to coach him) “Sure, that’s part of it. That’s a big part of it, to me, as a head football coach at any level, whether it’s college or in the National Football league. These guys are at the top of their profession. They’re guys, whether they were really good college players that came in here as rookies and have a shot in the NFL, or they are proven veterans that have been here for a while in Houston and had productive careers. Whoever they are, it takes a while to get to know them but it’s very important, for me, as the head football coach to do the best that I can to know in all facets.

What type of people they are? Where they come from? Like I said, how they learn, how they process, and what’s important to them in their lives. We talk a lot about family. We talk a lot about where they are from, how they were raised, what types of systems they played in in College. We can really learn about the background of each guy, so we know not only how to coach them as players, but what is important to them in their lives and how to speak to them as individuals.
 
Playoffs said:
What type of people they are? Where they come from? Like I said, how they learn, how they process, and what’s important to them in their lives. We talk a lot about family. We talk a lot about where they are from, how they were raised, what types of systems they played in in College. We can really learn about the background of each guy, so we know not only how to coach them as players, but what is important to them in their lives and how to speak to them as individuals.[/COLOR]
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This part really struck me because I don't think most head coaches really take the time to learn that much about their players. Sure, they probably do learn that about a few of their top performers, the stars, the teacher's pets, but it doesn't seem that most coaches even bother to learn the names of the fringe guys.

If OB is doing that and learning that much about these players, that says one helluva lot about his leadership to me.
 
The Pencil Neck said:
This part really struck me because I don't think most head coaches really take the time to learn that much about their players. Sure, they probably do learn that about a few of their top performers, the stars, the teacher's pets, but it doesn't seem that most coaches even bother to learn the names of the fringe guys.

If OB is doing that and learning that much about these players, that says one helluva lot about his leadership to me.
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I keep getting flak at other forums about the failures of the Belechik coaching tree not having success. I don't remember any of those coaches making comments like that. I Also like how they casually overlook O brien already having success at Penn ST before arriving here.
 
The Pencil Neck said:
This part really struck me because I don't think most head coaches really take the time to learn that much about their players...
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Yeah, it's interesting to see how they differ. Gus Bradley said they're not going to jump in and start fixing everything that Bortles is doing wrong -- more like they'll wade into in slowly over time.

OB seems like he'll be fixing the basics, the details from the get go. Learning what learning style a player prefers reminds me of this...

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=76nhIfp9gr0
 
DX-TEX said:
I keep getting flak at other forums about the failures of the Belechik coaching tree not having success. I don't remember any of those coaches making comments like that. I Also like how they casually overlook O brien already having success at Penn ST before arriving here.
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If you copy someone your not genuine and players will see through it . If he borrowed something and personalized it then he'll be fine .

Josh McDaniels and Mangini wanted to be all cocky and act like the smartest guys in the room and failed .
 
DX-TEX said:
I keep getting flak at other forums about the failures of the Belechik coaching tree not having success. I don't remember any of those coaches making comments like that. I Also like how they casually overlook O brien already having success at Penn ST before arriving here.
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Actually, the typical response to that is to point out that Weis was 19-6 after two years at Notre Dame.

I absolutely hope and believe that O'Brien can be the first to start to change it, but there's no denying that everything about Belichick's coaching tree sucks right now.
 
ChampionTexan said:
Actually, the typical response to that is to point out that Weis was 19-6 after two years at Notre Dame.

I absolutely hope and believe that O'Brien can be the first to start to change it, but there's no denying that everything about Belichick's coaching tree sucks right now.
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Notre Dame and Penn St after the scandal are two different ends of the spectrum
 
OB VIDEO Day 2

http://www.houstontexans.com/news/a...minicamp/4c1eb543-32e9-4ae3-aae9-c402470eabed
"Every day there's probably three meetings per day," head coach Bill O'Brien said. "And then, in between the meetings, there's either a walk-through or a practice. So they have to apply the new things that they've learned to the next stage."

"We test them on many things," O'Brien said. "We test them obviously on X's and O's according to their position and their unit. We test them on their knowledge of their teammates. We test them on knowledge of the organization. We test them all the time."

"I think it's important in a three-day camp like this to continually work their mind," O'Brien said. "Not just stand in front of them and talk to them and show them film. Let them talk a little bit. 'What do you know? What have you studied?'"
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(on if he sees a little bit of himself in quarterbacks coach George Godsey because he coached him at Georgia Tech) “No. Everybody’s different. I appreciate you saying that. I had a great experience coaching him. He’ll go down in Georgia Tech history as one of the best quarterbacks to ever play there. He’s in the hall of fame there and it was fun to coach him because he was a really smart guy and then when he got into coaching, we obviously kept in touch and formed even more of a friendship. Then we were able to get him up to New England.

I told Bill (Belichick) about him and Bill interviewed him and they had a good talk and we hired him there. He was there in 2011 and then I went to Penn State and he stayed there and coached the tight ends and learned a lot about what they did there in New England while I wasn’t there. He’s his own coach. He does things his own way. He’s got his own style. He believes in the philosophy of what we have here. We’re trying to have a smart team. We’re trying to have a fundamentally-sound team. He’s doing a good job out there.”

(on George Godsey knowing what he wants out of him) “I think it’s important as a leader, as a head football coach, that everybody knows what you want. But I’m a firm believer in you hire these guys to coach, to let them coach. Like I said before, we have a strong staff of coaches. He’s one of them. We let these guys go out there and coach. They each have their own style, their own way of communicating. So far, it looks like it’s going pretty well.”


(on if you can tell how quickly a rookie will catch on to the system) “Definitely. I think you can watch how a guy listens in the meeting and then how he applies it on the field and how he gets better from drill to drill and from 7-on-7 to the next 7-on-7 or from a team period to another team period. I think you can really tell how guys are learning and maybe some of that we have to go back as coaches and figure out a different way to teach a guy. Maybe he is more of a visual learner. Maybe he’s more of learning off of film or maybe he’s a guy who needs to go out there and walk through it a little bit more. We are figuring these guys out as we go along with this group.”

(on the synergy of the coaching staff) “We have a strong staff, we have a staff that is experienced, we have a staff of good communicators, we have a staff of guys that work really well with each other. Again, I think we have a staff of really good teachers. Guys that have taught a lot of systems in their careers, we have a staff of experience – whether they have a ton of experience as a coach or maybe the combination of playing and coaching. We took our time putting this staff together and it looks to me like a strong coaching staff.”

(on Louis Nix III not being at practice/important to him that a player is able to attend his graduation) “I thought it was important that we let him go back to Notre Dame and walk with his graduating class, so that’s what we did. He was in the morning meetings, then he left. He had a 2 o’clock flight back to South Bend and then he’ll be back later on tomorrow night or Monday morning at some time.”

“Yeah. I think if a guy has a chance to walk with his graduating class, I believe it’s important to let the guy go do that. I think he’s paid his dues at Notre Dame. I just think it’s important to allow guys to do that. He’s not going to miss much time. Any time missed is not good for him here but that’s something he’ll have to figure out to make that time up and I’m sure with Bill Kollar, he’ll figure it out.”
 
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O’Brien takes a hands-on approach to practice
One of the most striking differences between a Gary Kubiak practice and a Bill O’Brien practice is the manner in which they run them.
...
O’Brien, at least in his first few weeks on the practice field, has been much more hands-on … as in he wants his hands on everything and every position.
...
O’Brien, who took over as the third head coach in Texans history this offseason, walks around practice and gets involved with each position drill. He even gets hands-on during the special teams portion of practice.

“He’s everywhere,” said second-year player DeAndre Hopkins. “He’s on the rookies, he’s on the veterans. You really don’t get away with too much with him on the field.”
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And it’s not just O’Brien who is more hands-on. His position coaches have taken that same approach too. One veteran player said his position coach this season has been doing much more teaching on the field than his position coach from the previous regime.

“I love the teaching part of it,” O’Brien said. “I view coaching as being a teacher. That’s a large aspect of what my job is.”
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WTF?

That's funny and sad...That's not something I'd expect on the NFL level..

I bet it was the O-line coach....
 
HOU-TEX said:
I'd bet on Vrabel or the DB coach
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Probably...

I wasn't a big fan of Benton though...

To me it seems like the o-line made more and more technique errors the longer he was here. Seems like the O-line just got worse every year since he was handed the job.
 
xtruroyaltyx said:
WTF?

That's funny and sad...That's not something I'd expect on the NFL level..

I bet it was the O-line coach....
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Now combine that comment with the first part of the posted article:

One of the most striking differences between a Gary Kubiak practice and a Bill O’Brien practice is the manner in which they run them.

Kubiak had a more laid-back approach. He watched his coaches coach. He watched his players play.
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So who exactly was coaching at all? Guess it really was Coach Reed
 
Interesting revelations coming out regarding the styles of this HC when compared to the last one.

No more individual glory. More accountability. No starting positions handed to players due to tenure. A hands on head coach involved with each position. No more slacking on Segways and golf carts. Work and dedication as foundation for the team concept.

I'm liking what I'm hearing about the initial style of O'Brien and company. There seems to be quite a bit of an old school streak in him.
 
Double Barrel said:
Interesting revelations coming out regarding the styles of this HC when compared to the last one.

No more individual glory. More accountability. No starting positions handed to players due to tenure. A hands on head coach involved with each position. No more slacking on Segways and golf carts. Work and dedication as foundation for the team concept.

I'm liking what I'm hearing about the initial style of O'Brien and company. There seems to be quite a bit of an old school streak in him.
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Wouldn't it be great if he turns out to be the Texan's Tom Landry. Don Shula or Chuck Knox?

Watching an interview of JJ last night, he didn't seem overly happy and used "hard work, good teammate, learning the playbook" eleventythreehundred times and sounded aggravated a few times he said them ( like he'd been instructed to say them) and almost sarcastic a couple of times.
 
DocBar said:
Wouldn't it be great if he turns out to be the Texan's Tom Landry. Don Shula or Chuck Knox?
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Man, in my wildest dreams!!! :texflag:

DocBar said:
Watching an interview of JJ last night, he didn't seem overly happy and used "hard work, good teammate, learning the playbook" eleventythreehundred times and sounded aggravated a few times he said them ( like he'd been instructed to say them) and almost sarcastic a couple of times.
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Hopefully it's just a result of being worn out and not some deeper concerns on his part. I'm sure learning a whole new playbook and having to deal with new coaches wears a dude out, so maybe JJ just didn't feel like dealing with media at that point in time.
 
DocBar said:
Wouldn't it be great if he turns out to be the Texan's Tom Landry. Don Shula or Chuck Knox?

Watching an interview of JJ last night, he didn't seem overly happy and used "hard work, good teammate, learning the playbook" eleventythreehundred times and sounded aggravated a few times he said them ( like he'd been instructed to say them) and almost sarcastic a couple of times.
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I noticed it too but its more than likely nothing. Got a lot on his plate.

Winning and the inevitable multi-million dollar contract he will be getting will cure all that
 
Double Barrel said:
Interesting revelations coming out regarding the styles of this HC when compared to the last one.

No more individual glory. More accountability. No starting positions handed to players due to tenure. A hands on head coach involved with each position. No more slacking on Segways and golf carts. Work and dedication as foundation for the team concept.

I'm liking what I'm hearing about the initial style of O'Brien and company. There seems to be quite a bit of an old school streak in him.
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This kind of thinking can be contagious. I am very hopeful for his future here.
 
Double Barrel said:
Man, in my wildest dreams!!! :texflag:



Hopefully it's just a result of being worn out and not some deeper concerns on his part. I'm sure learning a whole new playbook and having to deal with new coaches wears a dude out, so maybe JJ just didn't feel like dealing with media at that point in time.
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Eh, I was there. He was super polite. Didn't seem down or unhappy about things.
Pretty much a normal JJ interview except this year he won't be saying any of his personal goal stuff.

And none of the players want to "give away trade secrets."

None of the players want to put the spotlight on individual stuff. It was obvious that these are marching orders. You know, the work hard, be a good teammate stuff. That's how all the players pretty much are...like pulling teeth to get any info.

So don't read too much into stuff.
 
Texans_Chick said:
Eh, I was there. He was super polite. Didn't seem down or unhappy about things.
Pretty much a normal JJ interview except this year he won't be saying any of his personal goal stuff.

And none of the players want to "give away trade secrets."

None of the players want to put the spotlight on individual stuff. It was obvious that these are marching orders. You know, the work hard, be a good teammate stuff. That's how all the players pretty much are...like pulling teeth to get any info.

So don't read too much into stuff.
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Awesome. I never read much into these types of generic quotes from players, but your clarification based on personal experience is certainly appreciated. Very cool to have one of our own on the inside. :)
 
drs23 said:
Haven't seen this posted, if so, sorry.

It's an interview with Bill O'Brien on Mike & Mike. I enjoyed it, hope you do as well.

Here it is.
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Thank you for posting that. My favorite part is where OB is asked if Clowney / Crennel is a dream matchup. O'Brien responds that any young player would benefit from a good coaching staff. Completely dismisses any idea that any unproven player has any special value. His responses are always based on zero-hype principals. Logic.

Neat guy.
 
barrett said:
Thank you for posting that. My favorite part is where OB is asked if Clowney / Crennel is a dream matchup. O'Brien responds that any young player would benefit from a good coaching staff. Completely dismisses any idea that any unproven player has any special value. His responses are always based on zero-hype principals. Logic.

Neat guy.
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I am excited to know that the head coach will be collaborating with the defensive coaching staff as well as the offensive staff. I also anticipate swift accountability for assistant coaches and players... Things have changed!
 
DocBar said:
Watching an interview of JJ last night, he didn't seem overly happy and used "hard work, good teammate, learning the playbook" eleventythreehundred times and sounded aggravated a few times he said them ( like he'd been instructed to say them) and almost sarcastic a couple of times.
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Naw, he was grinning and following script. Things will loosen up as the players learn the latitude they can traverse that works for the coaching staff.

It's all part of OB changing the culture of the locker room -- more pressure to be smart/prepared for your teammates. And you don't put bulletin board material out there. I promise you OB has shown them clips of players around the league revealing game planning in the media prior to matchups that Pats used. BB has watched for that stuff for years. One term can tip it.

When someone like Steph asked JJ about the possibility of his sacks/TFL/hurries/BP stats going down in RAC's offense, he just smiles this sinister smile and says, "We'll see." JJ is good with this coaching staff.


Double Barrel said:
No more slacking on Segways...
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Evidently the facilities management nixed the Segways, according to McClain. Probably insurance related... less likely to run over a reporter while walking. :truck:
 
dalemurphy said:
I am excited to know that the head coach will be collaborating with the defensive coaching staff as well as the offensive staff. I also anticipate swift accountability for assistant coaches and players... Things have changed!
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Things should've changed after 2010 and the Texans org would've been 3 yrs ahead of where they are now. But according to you Kubiak is the greatest.

Spilled milk
 
steelbtexan said:
Things should've changed after 2010 and the Texans org would've been 3 yrs ahead of where they are now. But according to you Kubiak is the greatest.

Spilled milk
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I was not opposed to Kubiak's removal in 2010. I thought it made sense. I was opposed to the idea that "anybody is better than him". I do not believe that change, in itself, is good. I thought it was bold for McNair to retain Kubiak after that season instead of feeding him to the wolves, which would have been the easiest thing to do. I still think it was a good decision, and it almost paid off with a championship in 2011, IMO. The writing was on the wall by the end of 2012, though, and I was slow to see it.

Once again, being a fan of someone does not mean you believe they are perfect, or even the best. I have a great deal of respect and fondness for Gary Kubiak and regret that things did not work out better, particularly last year. I am thrilled with the O'brien hire, and I recognize that many of O'brien's strengths are the areas where Kubiak was frustratingly deficient. I am excited to see what this team can accomplish under O'brien's leadership.
 
thunderkyss said:
Is that why he's wearing his hat backward?

Does anybody still do that.
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His boss, for one...

[IMGwidthsize=450]http://blog.chron.com/ultimatetexans/wp-content/blogs.dir/2348/files/texans-2014-otas/20140528_texans_otas_btc_10.jpg[/IMG]

and JFF...

[IMGwidthsize=450]http://blacksportsonline.com/home/wp-content/uploads/2014/05/Johnny-Manziel-Vegas.jpg[/IMG]

That pretty much covers the spectrum. :truck:
 
thunderkyss said:
Is that why he's wearing his hat backward?


Does anybody still do that.
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Do what?

[IMGwidthsize=200]http://cache.boston.com/resize/bonzai-fba/Globe_Photo/2007/09/19/1190213875_3930/333w.jpg[/IMG]

[IMGwidthsize=200]http://blogimages.thescore.com/nfl/files/2014/01/aaron-rodgers-hat-backward.jpg[/IMG]

[IMGwidthsize=200]http://usatthebiglead.files.wordpress.com/2014/01/big-ben-hat-backward.jpg[/IMG]

[IMGwidthsize=200]http://usatthebiglead.files.wordpress.com/2014/01/romo-hat-backward.jpg?w=640&h=531[/IMG]

[IMGwidthsize=200]http://cdn.ksk.uproxx.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/02/Vertical_1392651059.jpg[/IMG]

[IMGwidthsize=200]http://www.gannett-cdn.com/media/USATODAY/GenericImages/2012/09/19/tumblr_mad2gpEM1B1rge9rdo1_1280-x-wide-community.jpg[/IMG]
 
thunderkyss said:
Is that why he's wearing his hat backward?

Does anybody still do that.
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Why? Did you think that was some kind of fashion trend that's one out of style?

The day they stop letting baseball catchers wear their hat backwards will be the day that I'll stop doing it. ;)
 
Deepi Sidhu ‏@DeepSlant
Powe played 2 years under Romeo Crennel in KC. Often sits with younger guys to explain & let them know how Crennel likes things done.#Texans

NT Jerrell Powe says O'Brien sits downs with veterans on the team to talk/get feedback. Powe says OB is definitely a player's coach. #Texans
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Marcus said:
Why? Did you think that was some kind of fashion trend that's one out of style?

The day they stop letting baseball catchers wear their hat backwards will be the day that I'll stop doing it. ;)
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i was pissed when they banned chewing from baseball, watching 1st base turn into a spit puddle was the most entertaining things about the games.
 
---(on if the installation schedule is on track) “Well we have two weeks left. We have this week and next week. We are on schedule. We’re probably a little bit ahead of schedule on certain things like two-minute, and maybe behind schedule on a couple things like the red area, so we’ve got to get caught up there. We are definitely on schedule with special teams.

Now when I say ‘on schedule’ I’m not saying it’s anywhere close to where it needs to be, but install wise, the guys when they come to training camp they won’t be hearing things for the first time.

I think the coaching staff has done a good job of that and the guys have done a really good job of coming back to work every week and obviously studying from the previous week.”
...
---(on the role of the Director of Football Research) “Jimmy Bernhardt is our Director of Football Research. He’s a very knowledgeable guy. He coached me in college. He’s a guy that helps us with situational football, which includes two-minute, red area, four-minute, third down, on both sides of the ball and on specials teams.

He’s very involved in the rules. The rules in the NFL are updated or changed every year and so he’s involved with that. He’s our liaison with the officials. We’ll have officials here tomorrow and Friday, so he’ll be a guy that speaks with them along with myself obviously.

On gameday, he’ll be upstairs. He’ll be watching tendencies and being aware of what situation we’re in, time management, all these different things. So he does a little bit of everything and he’s been a big help to me. He came with me to Penn State and he’s here with me and done a great job.”
...
---(on if the NFL has been in to visit with the team and discuss the new schedule and what he wants his locker room environment to be like) “I think the (NFL) is coming in during the mandatory minicamp next week, I believe, one of those days there. So they haven’t been in yet.

We’re looking forward to them coming in because we had a lot of discussions about that, not myself, I sat and observed and listened at the owner’s meeting and listened to what veteran coaches had to say. It was really, in my opinion, the best part of the owner’s meeting was listening all the different issues and things all the great head coaches in this league think about when they think about respect in the locker room.

I believe that we have a very respectful locker room. We have a bunch of good guys here, high-character guys. Guys that care about each other. You can see that in the way they practice, the way they take care of each other in practice. You can see that when you walk through the locker room.

I meet with a group of guys every couple of weeks and talk to them about those things. I think we have a very respectful culture here and we just need to keep that going and keep the communication between the coaching staff and the players very much alive, which we will. I think that’s what it’s all about. It’s about communication, respect for each other, respect coach to player, player to player, player to coach and I believe that’s what we have here right now.”
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http://www.houstontexans.com/news/a...s-June-9/9bf3daf9-74fd-4b2b-a46f-58c60ab767ea
 
Probably better in here...
Playoffs said:
O'Brien: Manziel didn't fit Texans' vision
The last question of the night came from a Texas A&M alumnus. The man asked O’Brien if there was any internal debate with the Texans about moving up in the first round in a move to select Manziel toward the back side of the opening round.

“No,” O’Brien said to a loud cheer. “Sorry.”

“We spent a lot of time with Johnny (Manziel) and I had great meetings with him,” O’Brien said. “He is a bright guy and I really enjoyed watching him play in college on film and enjoyed talking with him.”

O’Brien was speaking at St. Thomas to deliver a speech about "How To Build A Winning Team." It appears although O’Brien respects Manziel, Manziel didn’t fit the model of the team he’s trying to build in Houston.

“We have a vision for our football team and we stuck to that vision," O'Brien. "Every decision we made in the draft we felt led to that vision and we’ll see if that vision turns out the way we believe it will in whatever, a year, two years, three years. It was what we believed in and we stuck with it and we stayed disciplined in the draft and Johnny’s in a great situation in Cleveland.”
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(on if there was a plan in place for Xavier Su’a-Filo knowing that he was going to miss time due to graduation requirements) “There is a plan for everything that we do. There is a plan for every single thing that we do; with every player, with every practice and with every part of installation. We knew that when we drafted him that he was going to have to go back and finish up his time at UCLA this year. That is where he is at and I believe that he will be back sometime next week. They have the iPads, and I believe that he took the iPad with him. He’s been studying and he seems to be a very conscience kid. So when he gets back, we’ll throw him right into the mix.”

(on if the team is on schedule heading into minicamps) “I think so. I think the true test for any football player, especially on the offensive and defensive line, linebacker, fullback and tight end, is when the pads go on. As far as OTAs and heading into minicamp, we’ve thrown a lot at these guys. These guys have competed very hard. We’ve been pleased with the way that they practice.

It is really a fun bunch of guys to coach. Every day I come here along with our staff and we feel good about who we are coaching and we feel like we are on target as far as what can we do in OTAs with no pads on.

These guys have done, we’ve done two minute, we’ve done red area, we’ve done third down, we’ve done four minute, we’ve done backed up and we’ve done all of the special teams over and over again. As far as that goes, I think we’re on track. When training camp comes we’ll put the pads on, and at that time that is when you can really see who can play football.”

(on his coaching style and how he is putting his stamp on the team) “I think we’re all in it together. We’re coaches and it is our job to teach these guys how we want them to play football in our systems and our vision. At the same time we want input, especially from the guys that have played a lot of football.

We have a lot of respect for guys like Duane Brown, guys that have played a lot of football in this league, and there are many of those guys on this team. I think it has been a team effort so far. We’re off to a decent start. You know, again, the true test will be training camp. For any football team, I think that is the big test.

Like I’ve said before, I enjoy being around these guys. It is a very respectful locker room. It is a bunch of guys that want to work hard. They show up to work every day ready to learn and ready to practice hard. That is what makes coaching these guys fun. Again, like I said, when training camp starts, we really have got to find out who the guys are.”
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http://www.houstontexans.com/news/a...l-OBrien/ebe16fb7-d345-4e82-9717-294b17383539
 
Snipped, worth reading...

O'Brien... utilizes gruff gift of gab to mold players as well as team
O'Brien has been a Texan for five months. He has overhauled the coaching staff, turned an unyielding belief of team-first into a rebuilding squad's 2014 mantra, endured Johnny Manziel-mania to emerge from the draft with Clowney and Tom Savage, and based the Texans' intriguing upcoming season around an old-school defense and an unpredictable veteran quarterback.

O'Brien accomplished this while significantly changing the culture of a franchise long accustomed to the temptation of promise and denial of fulfillment.

The biggest takeaways from O'Brien Stage One as the Texans enter their third era since their 2002 inception: He is not Bill Belichick. He's a world removed from Gary Kubiak. He is most definitely his own man.
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"He has a way - and I know very few people that can do this - but he has a way of tearing you down, poking fun at you and building you back up, all in the same sentence," John Harris said. "It's remarkable."
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"He gets the message across that everything he does, everything he tells us, is with the intent to win. We've all bought in to that," said Brown, a locker-room and on-field leader. "But he also has a great relationship with the players. He talks to us all as young men and he's very one-on-one, and I like that about him."
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O'Brien is no flash, all work, pure football. Since January, a team that was too content to be less than great during recent years has gradually taken on the form of its new teacher.

"I just really like his straightforwardness. I appreciate his honesty," said quarterbacks coach George Godsey. "Sometimes it's not what you want to hear. But I think that is the leader that we want. I think for all of us as a coach under him, we've learned a lot."
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