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Jamey Rootes Resigns
- Thread starter Mr. White
- Start date
BTW, that image isn't a pretty picture.
maverick512000
Hall of Fame
The real question is, who cares? No seriously when was the last time a team president resigning or even being fired got anything more than a passing note among other news? Most people don't even know a team has a president and even of those that do many have no clue who it is or what they do.
I guess you cared enough to respond to the question....
maverick512000
Hall of Fame
I guess you cared enough to respond to the question....
You confuse boredom with caring.
Touché. Great response. That was funny.
Agreed. This is the dude who raises ticket prices after 2-14 seasons. Churns out women's camo Watt jerseys, & leases space to high dollar donut shops.
I'm almost to "good riddance" about this. I can't believe Texans fans are crying over this guy.
Yes.
While I agree with your overall point - who cares about a team president of a marketing company - we have to step back and look at the overall optics of it.
It's the conditions surrounding his departure that is part of the on-going dumpster fire that is the Houston Texans right now.
People - both front office and players - want out. The reasonable question is why?
And I'll tell ya' my answer: crappy ownership. And that's a stain that's not coming out in the wash.
I just hope one of these people eventually spills the beans. The stupid franchise drama is probably the only entertainment this organization will be able to offer for a while.
maverick512000
Hall of Fame
Yes.
While I agree with your overall point - who cares about a team president of a marketing company - we have to step back and look at the overall optics of it.
It's the conditions surrounding his departure that is part of the on-going dumpster fire that is the Houston Texans right now.
People - both front office and players - want out. The reasonable question is why?
And I'll tell ya' my answer: crappy ownership. And that's a stain that's not coming out in the wash.
I just hope one of these people eventually spills the beans. The stupid franchise drama is probably the only entertainment this organization will be able to offer for a while.
I do understand what you are saying but in that stepping back lets be fair about the overall picture. The only players that want out, or at least have said in public they do, are Watt and Watson. I haven't heard Tunsil saying he wants out and at this point after 3 pro bowl seasons he could get on a nice team if he wanted, they may not pay him what Texans are but he could get out. Watt is in the twilight of his career and he wants to make a real run before he hangs it up. This is both understandable and very common in all sports. He has expressed frustrations, who hasn't, but honestly I can recall him more pointing the finger at players than the front office particularly after OB was fired.
The Watson drama is what it is but right now we actually know nothing solid about what his issue is. Is it crappy ownership, is it Easterby, is it Caserio, is it not hiring EB, was it going 4-12, is his agent whispering into his ear, was there not a fresh towel when he finished showering, did someone scratch his car or maybe they stopped serving his favorite ice cream that the ice cream kiosk. We really have no idea what his issue is and he doesn't seem to be willing to talk about it or fix it.
As far as the front office most of what been reported hasn't been people leaving as it has been people shown the door. Even Rootes resigning was that in protest, is he ready to retire or was it a case of you resign and save face or we fire you and then you can explain that at your next job intreview.
To be clear I do NOT think Cal has done a good job as an owner so far. The only good call IMO was hiring Caserio, I'm hoping his next good call is to his travel agent and telling them he is taking an extended vacation and he won't be back till the season starts.
Good conversation, man.
This is all just speculation, so obviously grain of salt stuff. We don't even have anything 'official' from Watson saying he wants out, but based on sources yada yada yada. . .
So in that context (based on sources) - we have been hearing reports from a variety of NFL reporters, including Peter King, John McClain, Rappaport, La Canfora, and the other usual suspects - that people want out of the organization.
What to believe? Yeah, I'm with you. Lots of chatter, not much confirmed. But, it's a smoke and fire situation, so I'm just taking all of that in context and wondering why is there even smoke to begin with? Maybe it is just the media kicking a franchise when it's down and wanting a sensationalized story. I can buy that.
But, then again, I'm a firm believer that stuff like this usually starts at the top. I have absolutely no confidence in Cal McNair after he promoted O'Brien to GM after 51-7 (among other things). And I have no reason to believe that he's somehow transformed into a better owner since that point. We are in complete agreement there.
I just hope that you are right about Caserio. He is the wildcard in all of this. I think they will eventually trade Watson and he's doing what a good GM would do: keep your cards close to your chest and get the best deal possible up to the last moment.
At least that's what I hope is happening on Kirby.
Probably why they got rid of Leak, Cavenaugh, & Price before the draft. They keep acting like we don’t have 1st or 2nd round picks & Nick kept saying, “But if we did.....?”
maverick512000
Hall of Fame
Not 100% sure if you are being sarcastic or not but I actually do think this has been a problem with the scouting department and why in drafts we always seem to be like we are just making it up as we go.
Scouting department should be looking at the whole draft and not even thinking about where or what picks the Texans have because frankly it doesn’t matter. Their job is to evaluate players and say “X should be drafted in Y round”. I think partly they have looked at the picks Texans have and thought “no need to look at anybody in the first round unless we think they will drop.”
maverick512000
Hall of Fame
Good discussion indeed.
I agree that whether the smoke is a real fire or just somebody with a smoke bomb Cal and Texans have handled it badly. He didn’t want to fire Easterby fine then send him home and say “Jack you’re working from home from now on and the only numbers that should ever come across your phone are mine and the pizza delivery guy. You don’t call anybody, you don’t talk to anybody and you have no social media presence. As far as the world is concerned you dropped off the face of the planet or I’ll have no choice but to drop you off the team.”
I can, and have, give reasons as to why I think Cal promoted OB but what he didn’t have to do was give him the actual power to go along with it. Add to that clearly OB being here or not didn’t affect Caserio’s decision and Cal should have dug a little deeper before promoting him. Even down to calling Caserio and saying “Hey Nick hypothetical question but do you think you could work for a team that just fired a HC that had been there over 5 years and is just coming off getting embarrassed in the playoffs but is personal friends of the guy you want to hire as GM? Asking for a friend.” Yeah, yeah tampering and all that but you get my meaning.
Honestly I think they will trade Watson before it’s all said and done as well but what people forget is as tired as we are of hearing about it there is still a long time before the draft and teams haven’t even come close to making their best offers yet. In reality many teams themselves don’t know what their best offers are because they are still looking over their roster deciding ho to keep and who to cut. The only team I’ve seen actually make moves that you can say are them preparing an offer is Carolina. All the rest are fantasy drafts and “what if’s”.
If Caserio is smart then he has a price in mind of what it would take from each interested team. People are tagging on the Texans for not even answering calls but I’ve seen reports that some teams are even leaving offers on voice mail so why should Texans take calls and act interested. It’s like the hot woman at the bar, she doesn’t need to leave her drink and seat because guys are going to come to her and all she has to do is figure out which ones interest her the most and if none do she goes home alone and doesn't feel like she missed out on anything.
If he’s smart he’s already working with a couple of teams that aren’t saying anything until everything is finalized.
But he’s not taking calls from teams that are just fishing.
As always, I appreciate the well thought out replies and on-going conversation. It's fun to peak down the various rabbit holes sometimes, and it's enjoyable to do with with other fans that respect each other and realize none of this stuff is personal.
I like your thoughts on Caserio. I don't blame him for not taking calls. That doesn't mean anything other than he's not going to reveal his intentions. This is part of the art of negotiation. At this point, Watson is just a commodity for this franchise, and they drive up the potential price of that commodity by not seeming at all desperate and taking a hard-line stance.
I'm actually looking forward to seeing what they can get for him and to move forward with a full rebuild. I can embrace the suck as a fan, and even enjoy the process, if I believe the GM is competent and has a plan. And right now, I've got no reason to doubt Caserio. If anything, as a fan, I want to believe that he's the real deal. He's certainly got the pedigree.
The Easterby angle is fun to play around with, but with all the backlash, I would not doubt if his role is not only highly scrutinized, but marginalized, as well. And like we've said before, he's just a symptom of the ownership. He's not operating in any sort of way without their authority.
maverick512000
Hall of Fame
I actually wonder if the Texans are using Easterby to take any heat off of Caserio. Right now with Rootes resigning and all the firings everyone is pointing the finger at Easterby and screaming bloody murder. Now it very well could be that he is doing it, who knows with this organization, but it also could be he's just there to draw fire.
I was talking with a coworker the other day, not about the Texans, and he was telling me about a position in Japanese companies nicknamed "The loud American". Basically since a lot of workers in Japan are, shall we say, reluctant to confront a boss or speak up about their ideas they bring it all to this one person, not always an American but someone not afraid to speak up, and then that person plays the part of court jester in the sense that they can tell the king he's an idiot without fear of punishment.
I'm most likely giving the Texans WAY to much credit but if I was Caserio I would keep Easterby around so he gets the blame for all the unpopular moves I'm about to make as the new GM. So he takes the heat and it really doesn't affect him because he doesn't do anything and I have free reign to hire and fire while still smelling like a rose.
How Caserio handles the Watson situation, either play hardball or make history with the amount he gets in trade, will determine how hopeful I am for the future of this team.
Interesting take. And it could be true. Caserio learned the art of front office mind games from one of the best in Belichick. It's his experiences in NE, and the fact they valued him so much, that makes me think he's a helluva' lot deeper than any of us know right now.
Like you, I seriously doubt he plans to let the beginning of his GM career be controlled by an entitled player. Based on Cal's words (for what they're worth), Caserio is now running the show on Kirby. I'm sure there is some boardroom going on, but I just can't imagine anyone but the owners are equal in power to Caserio. Certainly not Culley, and I doubt Easterby (other than just another voice in the room).
I'd be ecstatic if they could deal Watson for four 1st round picks, which seems to be the consensus. I think he's an awesome player, but unless a serious reason(s) for his alienated state comes to light, I just can't respect his power play after being given so much respect just six months ago. The speculated reasons provided so far does not justify his position.
maverick512000
Hall of Fame
Cal, for all his dumb moves and dumb looks, did graduate with a masters from Rice and even if you have money they don't just hand those out. Doesn't mean he's a good business man but I do think he's smart enough not to hire someone for 30 million just so they can be your figure head. If he had hired someone completely out of nowhere for dirt cheap then yeah I'd say that person has no power but the McNairs chased Caserio like Ahab hunting Moby Dick and then Cal made a first time GM the 3rd highest paid of them all. That suggests to me that he wanted someone to he could say to "Here you fix this crap, I'll be on a beach somewhere lighting cigars with $100 dollar bills."
Yep. I think you nailed it. He wants someone qualified to run his franchise so he can Homer Simpson into the bushes.
Bob McNair had already approved of Caserio, who has a great resume and pedigree, so it makes sense.
Especially if Cal just wants to hang out in his office playing video games. I honestly couldn't blame him. lol
amazing80
Hall of Fame
I don't know, smart people do dumb things all the time. They run organizations and businesses right into the ground. A piece of paper is worthless in the real world.Yep. I think you nailed it. He wants someone qualified to run his franchise so he can Homer Simpson into the bushes.
Bob McNair had already approved of Caserio, who has a great resume and pedigree, so it makes sense.
Especially if Cal just wants to hang out in his office playing video games. I honestly couldn't blame him. lol
Cal has shown over and over again that he wants to be involved and will do things his way, you need to get on board and trust him, as he put it. I think some of his decisions have been fine, but making decisions is only half the battle. Managing personalities is a large part of being a leader. Whether you agree with Watson or not, Cal has shown the inability to converse and lead grown men.
I still think there is much more to this than Watson simply not getting his GM pick and HC pick. People don't quit jobs, they quit management and bosses. That has never rung more true than it does for this team. We were not privy to any conversations between Watson or Cal, so we have no idea who is at fault and what hurt feelings or lack of trust there is. Maybe down the road, the truth will come out, maybe not.
I am 100% in the corner of Watson when it comes to forcing this organization to change. I just hope they do it instead of trading him. I am not in favor, however, of his cryptic tweets. If you want to draw the line in the sand, then draw it and own up to it. Grow a pair and say what you think.
maverick512000
Hall of Fame
I asked this once before, and to be fair I don’t think it was you I asked, and didn’t get an answer but what other changes can they make? They have fired pretty much everyone they can and replaced them. Unless you really think the only thing that would make Watson happy is firing Easterby in which case fair enough but seems kind of weird. Really the only other change that can be made is McNairs selling and no player anywhere is going to force an owner to sell.
Watson seems less interested in seeing changes than he does in just leaving so I guess my other question is are you still in his corner 100% if he keeps refusing to even consider staying?
I respect your perspective and I understand where you're coming from.
I agree that there is likely more to the story that we are not privy to. I have not seen enough to justify the 180° turnaround from his contract signing in Sept 2020 to wanting nothing to do with the franchise a few months later.
And I'm not a fan of Cal McNair's decisions. I lost all faith in the guy when he appointed O'Brien as GM after the KC playoff meltdown and then signed on to shipping Nuk off. To me, he's not even the shadow of Bob McNair.
That said, I do think there is a chance that he wants out of running the team's football operations. Only time will tell us if this is true, but at face value, it appears that he's hired Caserio to run the football side of things. He's not running a boardroom front office like his father. Culley is not equal to Caserio.
Leaks out of Watson's camp (fwiw) is that his stance has nothing to do with Caserio or Culley. That only leaves the McNairs and their proxy in Easterby.
What the heck happened to disrespect Watson to the point that he's completely alienated from the Texans? Maybe those reasons, if ever known, will change my mind. Who knows.
Right now, though, we are looking at a franchise that is crippled by Watson's NTC and guarantees. As a fan of this team, how am I supposed to act like Watson is 100% in the right when all the facts are unknown and giving into his demands will set them back for awhile if they are unable to get the best value for his trade?
This is a good post with great points. Some fans act like nothing changed after he signed the contract. My take has been that something happened AFTER O'Brien was fired. However, we are not privy to what happened and we might never know what took place between Watson, Cal and/or Easterby.
As a result, I'm just watching with amusement and annoyance that it has come to this.
Because as far as many here are concerned the Texans are dysfunctional & have been for some time. It’s easy for them to pile on a wagon they’ve been trying to get rolling for years.
& the Texans are dysfunctional to a point. But this Easterby thing (spying on players, calling mom’s, being a dbag) isn’t the norm. & the Texans have done better than half the teams in the league over the last decade. Maybe not on a per year basis. But overall, as a body of work. Since Jj got here this had been a perineal playoff team.
Watson was supposed to get us to the next step.
I remember a time on this MB when the national guys reported on the dysfunction within the Texans org and posters blew it off by saying those guys dont know anything. My how times have changed.
So wasteful, it's more cost effective just to use poor peoples' clothes to light your cigars.
Texian
Hall of Fame
It's all kind of an exercise in futility and stupidity, if the very first thing you do is put strict limited parameters around what kind of coach you want your new GM to hire. I'm all for this process of a dumpster fire ignorant clown show if it will get the Houston Texans sold in the next two years.
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maverick512000
Hall of Fame
Did he though?
Texian
Hall of Fame
Yes Janice and Cal made it quite clear they wanted a culture change and what they wanted in a new coach and no college coaches. No cussing, bullying or vulgarities.
maverick512000
Hall of Fame
When and where did they make this clear?
McClain said early on that college coaches would not be considered. Pretty clear they didn’t want another “teapot “ by the coaches considered for the position.
National reporters have always been the only true source for unbiased info on the Texans. Who else were we going to get info from? The General? The 610 guys? You make me laugh on a Sunday morning.
Texian
Hall of Fame
So, they wanted the anti-BoB? If this is the case, why did they promote BoB to GM after his "you suck too..." rant? That should have embarrassed them and the combination of the rant and the 51-7 run, should have been enough to fire his a$$.
maverick512000
Hall of Fame
So in other words it’s dependent of if you trust the person reporting it and their sources. That’s a long way from being made clear.
maverick512000
Hall of Fame
That’s different from what is being implied that they have to meet some moral standard. Even then I’m not sure I believe it fully.
Texian
Hall of Fame
Usually the case when it doesn't fit the agenda or narrative or what one WANTS to believe.
I for one find Stephanie as well connected to all things Texans as anyone. I find no reason not to believe her since she does not operate with an agenda or narrative. And the Texans are NOT buttering her bread.
maverick512000
Hall of Fame
Fair enough but they aren’t buttering the bread of very many of these reporters. I don’t really trust any of them because they all have to be the one with breaking news to get clicks and eyeballs.
But again for the sake of argument let’s say you are right. So what? I’ve seen companies, owners and managers “limit” who can be hired all the time. I can personally recall two times I was told about some unwritten limitations.
One was because it was for an emergency position so they wanted somebody local within real quick driving distance and in another they told me not to hire anyone from a certain staffing company because they were having so many contract problems with that company.
Agreed and always have agreed with this.
Just pointing out when Glazer brought up the dysfunction with RS/BOB national media was dicounted on this MB by quite a few. Now some of those same posters are taking the national media as gospel becuse it fits their narrative. (In this case I think the national media has it spot on, just like i thought the same thing with the RS/BOB dysfunction.) I just find it hilarious to see how posters react to when the national media reports what they want to hear vs what they dont want to hear.
amazing80
Hall of Fame
You may have asked me, I was recently serving a week-long suspension for my Potty Mouth.
Honestly, with the limited info we have, it's impossible to answer this. Everyone has a theory on what is happening but zero evidence. I have no idea what caused this rift, I just don't buy he didn't get his GM or HC so he is throwing a tantrum. I just don't think that is the character of Watson.
I think the culture within that building is out of whack and completely ignorant on social issues today. Hiring a black GM or having black players has nothing to do with culture. Sure it checks some boxes, but what kind of things go on behind closed doors? There have been rumors for years about inappropriate conduct in the front office. With Watson and his agent being more vocal on social issues, it wouldn't surprise me if they don't like the culture within the organization and don't truth it to resolve. Brown left for similar reasons. So it's not far-fetched. Just my opinion with no evidence.
Let's assume this is the reason, how do you change or fix it? You need to wipe out all of the stink, but if it comes from Cal and Janice, then I don't think you can fix it. If it's a different issue, I think you can manage emotions and personalities to resolve things. This is a bad situation with no great fix. If it were me, I would force Watson to play for the Texans. No trading. You either play or lose 10s of millions of dollars per season. We can control him through 2025 and then can tag him twice. If things aren't fixed by then you have plenty of time to build the team and find a replacement with no rush. If you strike gold in the draft, you can unload him in the coming years. If you are lucky and work hard, you resolve your differences and keep him forever.
amazing80
Hall of Fame
I would ask instead, what has Watson done since he's been here to show you you shouldn't trust him? Why are we siding with an owner and family who have shown repeatedly to care more about money than winning. Why do we side with that? I would understand if our ownership was better, but they suck. They make dumb decisions, make ridiculous statements, show repeatedly their lack of knowledge of football. The thing is completely dysfunctional, even if you remove Watson from the equation. So why do we blame him and not take his side?
maverick512000
Hall of Fame
Because currently his side is "I signed a mega contract but now I'm unhappy so lets just forget the whole thing. Oh except the part where you keep paying me, that we need to still have." thats what he's done to show we can't trust him. Also if he gets what he wants the it will hurt the fans for the next 5+ years, not ownership because they will still make their money but the fans that have supported him and cheered him because he doesn't just want traded he wants traded for peanuts so that his new team isn't hurt by having to pay for him. Basically he is asking the Texans and their fans to be garbage for the next decade so that he can go get a ring, thats selfishness.
I don't buy its a social issue or a cultural issue, he's been there for almost half a decade and now he finds something that offends him? If thats the case why not speak up and have real changes made instead of this high school BS of cryptic tweets and ignoring calls. If Watson is trying to get people to support a cause of his he is completely going about it wrong. Why are you so quick to take Watson's side and assume that the Texans and ownership are to blame? From everything we've seen and heard they've tried to extend olive branch after olive branch and this was all after making him one of the highest paid players in sports history.
As much as I dislike the idea of Easterby, all the things reported about him have been mostly from anonymous sources and has been rank speculation. For all we know, Bill O'Brien and his sour groups could be the primary source.
I have yet to see even one CREDIBLE source that confirms any of it. And when I say credible, I mean someone with the public clout that has access to the inner workings of the Texans front office. Read the SI stories again with an objective mind. I did, and it made me realize that while entertaining, there's not a lot there to really take to court (i.e. credible sources).
And this franchise has been dysfunctional with short periods of minor success since 2002. Watson should have done his history research before signing a long term extension if his sensibilities were so shallows that he'd start pouting at the first sign of turbulence during his time here.
btw, JJ experienced a 2-14 season and two 4-12 seasons while here, so I'm just not sure about perennial playoffs.
All of that was true about this franchise before September 5, 2020.
And trust is earned. He had it when he signed the contract. Four months later and pouting, he loses that privilege with fans. (I don't trust these owners, either, but I wasn't the fool that signed a 5 year extension to my career with these people.)
Speedy
Former Yeller Dweller
Right. People keep bringing up Duane Brown, and Watson has been here another 3 years after that, so he doesn't know about any social or cultural issues in that time? 3 years after Brown, he still signs the contract and takes the money.
Andre Johnson is probably a credible source.
Sure, but it does not confirm any of the stuff Easterby has been accused of masterminding by SI and other national sources (i.e. spying on players, calling mom’s, etc.).
He said "Since Jack Easterby has walk into the building nothing good has happened in/for the organization", but I'd disagree. They fired Bill O'Brien. Did AJ consider that a bad thing?
maverick512000
Hall of Fame
Just gonna leave this right here DB.
Those were some fun “discussions”.
I read that SI article and it’s basically a hit piece that requires you to trust them in order to believe they have any creditable sources. It attacks his religion as much as it does his job in the Texans. You can just read the part about what they said of Gaine being fired and most on here know that SI got that wrong so it makes you question what if any real source they had. They didn’t name a single person as a source but they sure threw out a lot of numbers “three of those people”, “over a dozen” yet not one of these people could be named?
As I said it’s a very badly written hit piece that you would expect to see in a political section of the paper not a sports paper and I question the motivation behind it seeing how many scum bags in sports that did truly deplorable things never got such a long article written about them.
However if you prefer I will edit my post to reflect its my opinion.
EDIT: Here is the opposite of the SI article.
Why Jack Easterby won't be GM but is 'incredibly valuable' to Texans
Easterby's unique leadership skills have made him a trusted confidant wherever he has gone. Now, he's facing another challenge in a career that has been full of them.www.espn.com
maverick512000
Hall of Fame
Credible yes but is he unbiased? Everyone has somebody that doesn’t like them and if you look enough you will find somebody that said something bad about anybody. Hell in the JJ thread @zshawn10 just posted were a supposed Texan coach called JJ selfish and said he only cared about his stats and hurt the defense. In reality other than Andre Johnson nobody has really spoken out about Easterby. Even Watson said his issue was with Cal.
I’m not defending Easterby by no means, in reality I think he’s a non-factor that was hired to lure Caserio, but I also find it interesting that just as soon as the source of all the Texans problems, OB, is fired people immediately find a new source of all the Texans problems.
Just gonna leave this right here DB.
Those were some fun “discussions”.
Yep. I listen to what y'all have to say. I might not always agree in the moment, but when I step back and see it objectively, the fan collective can offer some insight.
Once Watson made it it known he wanted out just a few months after signing his contract extension, I re-examined everything.
I enjoy the hearsay, but ultimately I want verifiable, credible evidence. And based on what we actually know, Watson signed a contract and wants out a few months later for. . ."reason(s)".
Speedy
Former Yeller Dweller
That's all fine, but the fact that that was so out of character for him says a little something. And to answer DB, no, he didn't mention anything specific, but he did put a name to it. I suppose the fact that bad wiring hasn't caused NRG to burn to the ground is something good for the organization too, if you want to get technical about it. Sure OB getting fired was good, but that's like finally fixing that cabinet door in your house while wading through 3 feet of flood waters.
And yeah, if you look hard enough you'll find somebody that doesn't like you, sure, but who's looking hard? Easterby didn't get the reputation he has because there's an exhaustive, painstaking search for some dirt on him. This stuff came out for some reason. SI didn't just throw darts at a dartboard and it hit do a fictional hit piece on the Texans character coach/VPFO, just missing hit piece on the Falcons equipment manager.
maverick512000
Hall of Fame
There is a legitimate argument to be made that all this came out after the head of PR was fired for posting her political views. @Texian posted the timeline and all of this comes right after that. Now there is of course no way to know for sure if that had anything to do with it but SI has tended to be left leaning in past articles.
Also you are right this stuff did “come out” for a reason but what could that reason be? Texans have a very small fan base nationally and have never gotten national media attention except as a side note in a story about another team. Now all of a sudden SI writes a cover story about a member of the staff that most wouldn’t know if they passed him on the street? Why it’s not like that is going to drive up subscription numbers because outside of Houston, and a lot in it to, nobody cares. It’s not like we are talking about Dallas or NE or GB or any team with major worldwide following.
Ask yourself this, of all the scandals and scum bags in the NFL why did this get a cover story? I don’t know, I can’t help but find it all very suspicion.