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Replacement GM thread

infantrycak said:
Let's remember it's Pancakes.
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ahh, good point. In that case, Gaine doesn't have a chance. ;)

I guess I just want a splash. Not a splash for the sake of splash, but rather something bold to shake things up on Kirby and provide a clear, BUT "ALIGNED", counter-balance to O'Brien's growing power.

Brian Gaine just has a 'business as usual' vibe to it.
 
Double Barrel said:
I'm not sure how you can make that statement. Almost his entire career with the Packers was as a personnel guy:

Then you've got Packers GM Brian Gutekunst, with this quote:

"I surely want him to be part of this," Gutekunst said Monday during his press conference. "I think the world of Eliot Wolf, not only as a scout, but he's very close to me as a friend. He obviously has other opportunities if he wants them. That's kind of between me and Eliot, but I'm very hopeful that he'll be here."

And from the Packers website:

His primary duties include coordinating the pro and college football departments as well as handling both college and pro player evaluation through film study, college visits, pro days, college all-star games and the NFL Scouting Combine.

Everything about the guy screams GM, especially since he was by his father's side learning the business from a young age.
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didn't research the guy took the word of a friend whose from Wisconsin and a big packers fan. oh well
 
Shishkabob said:
didn't research the guy took the word of a friend whose from Wisconsin and a big packers fan. oh well
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It's all good, man.

I had read an article about Eliot Wolf a couple of years ago, and it talked about him turning in pro scouting reports as a teenager when his dad would take him on scouting trips. That detail always stuck with me and I have been sort of loosely following his name ever since just to see how his career panned out.

Here is a recent article about him: Packers' wunderkind Eliot Wolf could extend father's winning legacy
 
Double Barrel said:
It's all good, man.

I had read an article about Eliot Wolf a couple of years ago, and it talked about him turning in pro scouting reports as a teenager when his dad would take him on scouting trips. That detail always stuck with me and I have been sort of loosely following his name ever since just to see how his career panned out.

Here is a recent article about him: Packers' wunderkind Eliot Wolf could extend father's winning legacy
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Yea I found out about him initially through Texian I believe and he sold me on him, my packers friend when we were discussing told me he was more of a numbers guy. which I honestly didn't mind since he has been around scouting and this industry since he was a kid.

Caserio would be my first choice since they want "alignment" with OB and he is a pats guy so he might know what to look for more in those style players, plus taking a major FO piece from the hoodie the same off season he could lose both coordinators would be nice. But Eliot would be my number 2
 
Texansballer74 said:
Everybody so far has turn the GM opportunity down. Hmmm I wonder why
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As far as I know, nobody has turned anything down.
One candidate had lunch with O'Brien but was subsequently offered the GM spot for the Packers, his current team. So he was promoted to the position we were interviewing him for but never offered it to him.

The Texans requested permission to interview three other candidates but because their teams are still in the playoffs, their teams rejected our requests for interview. Those candidates never had any kind of offer to accept or reject and we could still interview them after their teams are no longer playing
 
Re. Gaine:

Considered a favorite to land the Texans general manager position, this interview was his 8th opportunity to interview for an opening. Gaine has also interviewed for the general manager position with the St. Louis Rams (2012), New York Jets (2013), Miami Dolphins (2014), Philadelphia Eagles (2015), Chicago Bears (2015), Buffalo Bills, (2017) and the San Francisco 49ers (2017).
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link
 
Shishkabob said:
so should we pull for the titans to hopefully get a crack at the new England guys next week?
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We should root for the tits and the cats both. Almost nothing ruins a team like success. Coaches and other staff leave - players start asking for more money etc. They aren't built like the pats to sustain with an HOF coach and qb.

And yeah I said ALMOST nothing ruins a team like success, then I remembered charley casserly.
 
Double Barrel said:
I had read an article about Eliot Wolf a couple of years ago, and it talked about him turning in pro scouting reports as a teenager when his dad would take him on scouting trips. That detail always stuck with me and I have been sort of loosely following his name ever since just to see how his career panned out.
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Trouble-with-the-Curve-UK-Poster.jpg
 
Double Barrel said:
ahh, good point. In that case, Gaine doesn't have a chance. ;)

I guess I just want a splash. Not a splash for the sake of splash, but rather something bold to shake things up on Kirby and provide a clear, BUT "ALIGNED", counter-balance to O'Brien's growing power.

Brian Gaine just has a 'business as usual' vibe to it.
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I dunno. Gaine was part of the team that got the Bills to the playoffs this year.

And I don't care about "splash". I want effective. To me, effective implies ALIGNED. Can't be successful without it.

"Splash", for me, would be no more interference from Uncle Bob. Just sign the checks.
 
ObsiWan said:
I dunno. Gaine was part of the team that got the Bills to the playoffs this year.

And I don't care about "splash". I want effective. To me, effective implies ALIGNED. Can't be successful without it.

"Splash", for me, would be no more interference from Uncle Bob. Just sign the checks.
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The Bills lucked into the playoffs...the Bills also traded away Marcell Dareus and Sammy Watkins last season...
 
The issue for most of the posters here with Gaine is two-fold. he has already been a Texans employee and has interviewed a lot. With both of those things, he is listed a top candidate on at least two general GM lists. That may or may not mean anything but at least he is known in the business and seen in somewhat a positive light. Along the same lines, the fact that Gaine has interviewed a ton and not turned the league off during the process is more good than bad for me. Finally, the fact that knows the Texans and its corporate boardroom culture and is willing to return means he at least knows what he is up against.

My biggest concern with Gaine in a combination of the things listed above is that he might be an eight...solid but not spectacular...better for your neighbor's kid than for yours...the best man, not the groom, etc.
 
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Well, as if we did not suspect this...see my previous post (and yes consider the source for this article)

http://profootballtalk.nbcsports.co...-more-about-who-you-know-not-what-you-can-do/

The back-door politicking recently reached new heights in Green Bay, where Jed Hughes served as a consultant to the Packers’ search for a G.M. and is running the Texans’ search for a G.M. Coincidentally, Packers CEO Mark Murphy (whose daughter works for the Korn Ferry firm) somehow knew on Saturday night that he’d better move quickly to promote Brian Gutekunst to G.M. before the Texans officially interviewed him. Did Murphy know, via Hughes, how serious the Texans were about trying to hire Gutekunst?
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ObsiWan said:
I dunno. Gaine was part of the team that got the Bills to the playoffs this year.

And I don't care about "splash". I want effective. To me, effective implies ALIGNED. Can't be successful without it.

"Splash", for me, would be no more interference from Uncle Bob. Just sign the checks.
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Amen
 
ArlingtonTexan said:
The issue for most of the posters here with Gaine is two-fold. he has already been a Texans employee and has interviewed a lot. With both of those things, he is listed a top candidate on at least two general GM lists. That may or may not mean anything but at least he is known in the business and seen in somewhat a positive light. Along the same lines, the fact that Gaine has interviewed a ton and not turned the league off during the process is more good than bad for me. Finally, the fact that knows the Texans and its corporate boardroom culture and is willing to return means he at least knows what he is up against.

My biggest concern with Gaine in a combination of the things listed above is that he might be an eight...solid but not spectacular...better for your neighbor's kid than for yours...the best man, not the groom, etc.
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I like Gaine and have since he was hired by Ricky. He's got a solid background and would be a huge upgrade at the GM position. He's smart, he got out of town when he could see the Texans collapse coming. You could do alot worse at the GM position than Brian Gaine.

With that said I hope they interview Wolf/Caserio.

My hire would be Caserio, which means Gaine will be the Texans next GM.
 
ArlingtonTexan said:
Well, as if we did not suspect this...see my previous post (and yes consider the source for this article)

http://profootballtalk.nbcsports.co...-more-about-who-you-know-not-what-you-can-do/
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A smart owner (and his excecutive advisors0 would have researched out and asked appropriate questions before getting into potential conflicts of interest in such an important matter. But then again, money doesn't necessarily make you smart, especially football smart. And if it's only a big facade..........well, it doesn't matter anyway............
 
Can someone explain to me the Eliot Wolfe lovefest around here? As proof this season, subtract Rodgers, they’re a below average team. Even his own team passed him up for GM this season.


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dream_team said:
Can someone explain to me the Eliot Wolfe lovefest around here? As proof this season, subtract Rodgers, they’re a below average team. Even his own team passed him up for GM this season.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
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He has name recognition (longtime Pack GM Ron Wolf's son) and Texian has been touting him here for years. Another bitter disappointment for Texian, I'm sure.
 
texan279 said:
The Bills lucked into the playoffs...the Bills also traded away Marcell Dareus and Sammy Watkins last season...
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Dareus was dumped because he wasn't playing up to a 96 Mil contract and Watkins was a disappointment in '16; stayed hurt most of the time (I know because I drafted him for my FFL)

But I probably am giving Gaine too much credit. From what I read, GM Brandon Beane engineered those moves.
 
dream_team said:
Can someone explain to me the Eliot Wolfe lovefest around here? As proof this season, subtract Rodgers, they’re a below average team. Even his own team passed him up for GM this season.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
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I’ve wondered about the same thing. The Packers have Rodgers and they seem to do a good job drafting WRs to fit their scheme. However, they’ve had OL issues and for some reason, cannot seem to draft or sign a good RB to take some pressure off of Rodgers.
 
ObsiWan said:
Dareus was dumped because he wasn't playing up to a 96 Mil contract and Watkins was a disappointment in '16; stayed hurt most of the time (I know because I drafted him for my FFL)

But I probably am giving Gaine too much credit. From what I read, GM Brandon Beane engineered those moves.
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I get what you're saying, but you don't trade a young 1,000 yard receiver that was drafted #4 overall because he struggled/was injured for one season.
 
texan279 said:
I get what you're saying, but you don't trade a young 1,000 yard receiver that was drafted #4 overall because he struggled/was injured for one season.
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He was injured (calf) 2015 and then lashed out at both the team and fans while having a poor half season prior to regaining form. Then 2016 he missed after foot surgery. The trade was in place of exercising the 5th year option.
 
steelbtexan said:
I like Gaine and have since he was hired by Ricky. He's got a solid background and would be a huge upgrade at the GM position. He's smart, he got out of town when he could see the Texans collapse coming. You could do alot worse at the GM position than Brian Gaine.

With that said I hope they interview Wolf/Caserio.

My hire would be Caserio, which means Gaine will be the Texans next GM.
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I'm with you on this one "steelb." I'm hoping they wait to interview Caserio but my guess is they won't since the Pats probably won't be done playing until after the Super Bowl. I may not be 100% sold on Gaine since he was here the first 3 years of BOB's tenure and wonder about how much he may have had an influence (or not) with some of the bad decisions during that time.

I also realize one of the top criteria for hiring the new GM is that they must work well with BOB and I've heard/read that Gaine and BOB do have a good relationship, though that doesn't make me feel any better about hiring him. Bottom line, I guess I'm just not as sold on Gaine as some may be and hope the Texans wait to interview Caserio. If they pick Gaine after interviewing all the candidates then I might be more on board with it. JMO.
 
ObsiWan said:
Dareus was dumped because he wasn't playing up to a 96 Mil contract and Watkins was a disappointment in '16; stayed hurt most of the time (I know because I drafted him for my FFL)

But I probably am giving Gaine too much credit. From what I read, GM Brandon Beane engineered those moves.
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that's the thing with personnel guys at least from the information we normally get as fans. we don't really know what moves they are responsible for, what players they urged their gm to pick, etc. the gm gets the bulk of the credit and the blame.

I like Gaine I wouldn't necessarily mind him being out GM if you know they actually go through a true hiring process and interview multiple quality candidates. Which hopefully since Gaine interviewed yesterday and there has been no news of us naming him out GM we are holding out for other interviews. But watch now in a few hours I'll have egg on my face as the Texans will announce Gaine as their GM after only interviewing him and jimmy
 
texan279 said:
I get what you're saying, but you don't trade a young 1,000 yard receiver that was drafted #4 overall because he struggled/was injured for one season.
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infantrycak said:
He was injured (calf) 2015 and then lashed out at both the team and fans while having a poor half season prior to regaining form. Then 2016 he missed after foot surgery. The trade was in place of exercising the 5th year option.
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Heard on the radio last week that Dareus and Watkins moves were for off-field/locker-room issues.
 
It's all starting to come together for me now. Gaine has been the play all along b/c i believe his lack of input & subsequent departure in 2016 has been the source of all the friction BoB had with Smith in the 1st place.

Gaine got here the same time BoB did in 2014. Those guys probably liked working together & shared similar philosophies about how to build teams &/or acquire personnel to fit BoB's scheme. But Smith may have been stepping all over Gaine/BoB's suggestions about how to do things & he was using his influence with Cal/Bob McNair to do it. Having had enough, Gaine bolted the 1st opportunity he got.......which was basically a lateral move to Buffalo. Which pissed BoB off b/c he knew why the dude left...which is why all this chatter about Smith & BoB having issues has intensified over these last couple of years.

If Gaine is hired as the GM, it'll be interesting to see what happens with Jimmy Raye III. Here is a guy who was clearly being groomed by Smith to become a GM someday. & this is his 1st real opportunity. He's also the guy who replaced Gaine this year so he has a ton of influence on scouting & acquiring personnel.
 
Mr teX said:
It's all starting to come together for me now. Gaine has been the play all along b/c i believe his lack of input & subsequent departure in 2016 has been the source of all the friction BoB had with Smith in the 1st place.

Gaine got here the same time BoB did in 2014. Those guys probably liked working together & shared similar philosophies about how to build teams &/or acquire personnel to fit BoB's scheme. But Smith may have been stepping all over Gaine/BoB's suggestions about how to do things & he was using his influence with Cal/Bob McNair to do it. Having had enough, Gaine bolted the 1st opportunity he got.......which was basically a lateral move to Buffalo. Which pissed BoB off b/c he knew why the dude left...which is why all this chatter about Smith & BoB having issues has intensified over these last couple of years.

If Gaine is hired as the GM, it'll be interesting to see what happens with Jimmy Raye III. Here is a guy who was clearly being groomed by Smith to become a GM someday. & this is his 1st real opportunity. He's also the guy who replaced Gaine this year so he has a ton of influence on scouting & acquiring personnel.
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You worked everything out perfectly and you almost solved the mystery except for one small detail.

Jimmy Raye III isn't being groomed by Rick Smith to become a GM someday.

He's Rick Smith's "Life Model Decoy".
 
They should have asked for permissions to interview a bunch of people who would all say no like that or would be impossible to hire. Ask for permission to interview Bill Belichick (denied), Bear Bryant (deceased), and Bruce Wayne (imaginary). Then in round two see if they could get interviews setup with a guy who sells peanuts at NRG Stadium, a City of Houston garbage truck driver, and maybe somebody working at that carnival that's always parked up at Greenspoint Mall.

Final outcome. Gaine was the most qualified candidate we could find.
 
steelbtexan said:
I like Gaine and have since he was hired by Ricky. He's got a solid background and would be a huge upgrade at the GM position. He's smart, he got out of town when he could see the Texans collapse coming. You could do alot worse at the GM position than Brian Gaine.
.
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So there it is: SteelB has given his blessing to a Brian Gaine hire as our new GM and with even in a positive manner (solid background, smart, etc)
I'm puzzled why so many are down on Gaine ? Yea of course there was some bad decisions made while he was here but why should he be held responsible for those decisions ?
According to the owner it's gonna be a different arrangement with the new GM reporting directly to O'Brien so a GM Brian Gaine would have a degree of autonomy and power he never possessd previously as a Rick Smith subordinate.
 
How was Gaine doing such a good, well-respected job when the talent on the team and drafting have sucked?

IDEXAN said:
According to the owner it's gonna be a different arrangement with the new GM reporting directly to O'Brien so a GM Brian Gaine would have a degree of autonomy and power he never possessd previously as a Rick Smith subordinate.
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Huh? McNair said the GM will report, as he has been, directly to McNair.
 
GM candidates tell Texans "Thanks, but no thanks" and don't interview or they go elsewhere (with the exception of those with teams still in the playoffs). Now Wolf choses the Browns over the Texans? This tells me that there is something rotten in Denmark, or at least on Kirby.

I have to admit, I never thought any position with the Texans would be toxic.
 
Flyingfish said:
GM candidates tell Texans "Thanks, but no thanks" and don't interview or they go elsewhere (with the exception of those with teams still in the playoffs). Now Wolf choses the Browns over the Texans? This tells me that there is something rotten in Denmark, or at least on Kirby.

I have to admit, I never thought any position with the Texans would be toxic.
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Wolf didn't choose the Browns over the Texans if we didn't even ask for an interview.

Dorsey & Wolf worked together for almost a decade.

One candidate, McClay may have turned them down. He said they had contacted him and then a "source" said he told them no.
 
We didn't even get to interview Wolf as he went to the Browns (to not even make yourself obviously available to the Texans?). Instead we're deciding between two guys who've helped orchestrate the fall of talent over the past 4 years ... err 3 and 1/2 since Gaines bailed because there were greener pastures, until it got greener here again I guess ... is Cal expecting another child?
 
When teams "block" a candidate, is it a nice way for the candidate to decline the interview?

I don't see why they need a GM in the playoffs.
 
Flyingfish said:
GM candidates tell Texans "Thanks, but no thanks" and don't interview or they go elsewhere (with the exception of those with teams still in the playoffs). Now Wolf choses the Browns over the Texans? This tells me that there is something rotten in Denmark, or at least on Kirby.

I have to admit, I never thought any position with the Texans would be toxic.
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It's funny that OBrien would be the #1 coach on the market (according to anonymous rumors the media reports as fact) yet no one wants to come work with him.
 
infantrycak said:
Wolf didn't choose the Browns over the Texans if we didn't even ask for an interview.

Dorsey & Wolf worked together for almost a decade.

One candidate, McClay may have turned them down. He said they had contacted him and then a "source" said he told them no.
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It's amazing how serious the Browns have gotten in regards to having a competent FO in place for their upcoming draft and FA opportunities. Haslam has certainly realized his teams position and potential by making a clean cut from the prior FO group...at least he didn't fear making the move. It may pay off for him big time.
 
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I will say regarding Gaine:

We seemed to have a lot more success finding impactful “street free agents” as injuries mounted up in pre/regular season than we did last year.
 
TheKDog said:
When teams "block" a candidate, is it a nice way for the candidate to decline the interview?

I don't see why they need a GM in the playoffs.
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Usually I would say yes. I am however reminded of the Patriots dropping a player before the Superbowl. Belichick gets weird, and can be quite vindictive. Things are done his way and on his time.
 
TejasTom said:
Heard on the radio last week that Dareus and Watkins moves were for off-field/locker-room issues.
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At least with Watkins, on the field play justified his being traded. He played like 4th round pick, not a high 1st rounder that the team traded up to get. With Rams, Watkins was the number 3WR who flashed big plays, but could not be counted to play consistently. At this point, he was not worth the money it was going to cost to keep him. The bills acted correctly with Watkins
 
ObsiWan said:
I dunno. Gaine was part of the team that got the Bills to the playoffs this year.

And I don't care about "splash". I want effective. To me, effective implies ALIGNED. Can't be successful without it.

"Splash", for me, would be no more interference from Uncle Bob. Just sign the checks.
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All I mean about "splash" is to see a bold decision by the OWNER, not a four person corporate committee + a professional consultation company that arrives at a safe decision.

The OWNER needs to hire a football GM and get out of his way. Not someone that is beholden to a hot seat coach and a boardroom, but someone that has vision, direction, and understands how to achieve it. Right now that person with the Texans is Bill O'Brien. Seems like the cart is in front of the horse.

What is this team's identity and direction? Put everything on the shoulders of one 22 yo QB and hope for the best? I have confidence in DW4, but c'mon, it takes a team around him to earn a championship.

What I would hate to see a bunch of ass-kissing executives that are mediocre at their jobs.

Doing the same things over and over but expecting different results? I don’t want a re-hash of past mistakes, I want someone with a fresh mindset that is The Man for this franchise. That is what I mean by "splash".
 
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