Agents Take Breaking down Bill OBriens biggest blunders while running the Houston Texans

head coach Bill O'Brien was sitting pretty when the Texans held a 24-0 lead over the, the eventual Super Bowl LIV champions, early in the second quarter of an AFC divisional playoff game last January. Everything started going downhill for O'Brien after the fake punt he called on fourth down from Houston's 31-yard line failed while ahead 24-7. The Chiefs rallied to beat the Texans 51-31.Texans chairman and chief executive officer Cal Milwaukee Brewers Blank Jersey McNair after an 0-4 start where he was losing the team by multiple accounts. O'Brien made several questionable personnel decisions after becoming the main power-broker with the Texans in June 2019 when general manager Brian Gaine was fired. Although O'Brien wasn't formally named general manager until late January, it was widely known that he had been in charge for several months.These decisions help accelerate O'Brien's departure from the Texans. Here's a look at the biggest blunders O'Brien made while running the Texans. tradeThe Texans sent shockwaves through the NFL in March by trading wide receiver DeAndre Hopkins and a 2020 fourth-round pick to the in exchange for running back, a 2020 second-round pick and a 2021 fourth-round pick. Hopkins wasn't surprised by the trade. The four-time All-Pro told Sports Illustrated with O'Brien. Part of O'Brien's justification for trading Hopkins was the receiver wanted his contract addre sed, which the Cardinals did in a major way. Johnson's last highly productive season was in 2016 when he led the NFL with 2,118 yards from scrimmage and 20 touchdowns. Inexplicably, O'Brien didn't make the Cardinals eat a portion of Johnson's fully guaranteed $10.2 million 2020 base salary a requirement for the trade to be completed. It shouldn't have been a foreign concept to O'Brien after trade to the last year.Hopkins wanting an upgraded contract despite having three years remaining and a deteriorating relationship with O'Brien may have been mitigating factors, but the return pales in comparison to what the got from the for, a wide receiver not on Hopkins' level. The Bills gave up a 2020 first-round pick, a 2020 fifth-round pick, a 2020 sixth-round pick and a 2021 fourth-round pick to get Diggs and a 2020 seventh-round pick. Another dynamic: it was fairly well known in NFL circles that the Bills were looking to improve at wide receiver. It's fair to wonder whether O'Brien placed a call to the Bills before making the trade considering that Gaine, who was ousted by O'Brien last June, is now a front office executive in Buffalo. Hopkins is thriving in his new surroundings. He has 39 catches for 397 yards and one touchdown in four games this season. If Hopkins can sustain his pace of production and COVID-19 doesn't shorten the regular season, he would finish with 156 receptions, breaking the single-season record wide receiver set in 2019 with 149 catches. Johnson hasn't been able to turn back the clock to 2016, as he has 297 rushing yards while averaging 3.9 yards per carry and two touchdowns. Johnson hasn't made much on impact in Houston's pa sing game with nine catches for 100 yards. contract leverageO'Brien made the an offer for Josh Hader Jersey offensive tackle Laremy Tunsil that couldn't be refused in the days leading up to the start of the 2019 season. He gave up a 2020 first-round pick (which ended up being 26th overall), a 2021 first-round pick, a 2021 second-round pick, safety and offensive tackle Julie'n Daveport in exchange for Tunsil, wide receiver, a 2020 fourth-round pick and a 2021 sixth-round pick. More problematic than the exorbitant trade compensation was O'Brien neglecting to sign Tunsil to a new deal when acquiring him. The Texans might as well as have given Tunsil a blank contract and let him fill out it in when trying to extend him, given the leverage handed to the tackle through the lack of a new contract and the trade compensation, which was e sentially two first-round picks and a second-round pick.Tunsil made O'Brien pay dearly for his mistake by exploiting his tremendous contract leverage although he was acting as his own agent. He significantly raised the salary bar for offensive linemen, becoming the highest-paid offensive lineman in NFL history at $22 million per year on a three-year extension. His deal averages 22.2 percent more than the four-year extension signed with the during the middle of last season for $18 million per year. Tunsil has an offensive lineman record of $40 million fully guaranteed at signing. His $50 million in overall guarantees are tied for second among offensive linemen with left tackle .Tunsil doesn't become the NFL's first, and only, $20 million per year offensive lineman if he signs a new deal in connection with his trade. At that time, right tackle was the league's highest-paid offensive lineman with the four-year, $66 million contract averaging $16.5 million per year he signed with the Raiders in 2019 free agency. A Tunsil deal done last September is probably in the same neighborhood as the $18 million per year extension Johnson signed with the Eagles last October.Jadeveon Clowney trade timingO'Brien created a blueprint of how not to deal a franchise player with edge rusher Jadeveon Clowney, who wasn't traded until the end of preseason last year. Waiting until after the July 15 deadline for franchise players to sign long-term limited the Texans' trade compensation. Other teams were only going to give up so much for Clowney with the potential for him to be just a one-season rental because he could only sign a one-year deal.The Texans received a 2020 third-round pick, edge rusher Jacob Martin and edge rusher (rumored to be near release in Seattle) from the Seahawks. Neither player was able to fill the void left by Clowney in 2019. Martin played 14 games and was on the field for 20.5 Milwaukee Brewers Jersey percent of Houston's defensive snaps. Mingo had 6.7 percent defensive playtime while appearing in all 16 games for the Texans.The optimal time to trade Clowney was prior to the 2019 NFL Draft, which was held in late April. If the acquiring team would have had an opportunity to negotiate a multiyear contract with Clowney, the Texans likely would have been able to get something between the second-round pick the gave the Chiefs for and the first-round pick and second-round pick the Seahawks received from the Chiefs to get. Clark and Ford were designated as franchise players in 2019, just like Clowney. Ford was traded in mid-March when free agency started at the beginning of the 2019 league year. The Seahawks dealt Clark a couple of days before the 2019 draft.To add insult to injury, the Texans converted $7 million of Clowney's $15 million 2019 salary into signing bonus to facilitate his trade to the Seahawks last year. Clowney was also able to finagle a clause preventing the Seahawks from designating him as a franchise or transition player once his one-year contract expired in connection with the trade. Before Clowney, a franchise player hadn't received a tag prohibition clause since defensive tackle Albert Haynesworth with the Titans in 2008.The 2020 third-round pick (91st overall) the Texans received from the Seahawks was dealt to the Raiders last October for cornerback, who was a 2017 first-round pick. The Texans declined to pick up a $10.244 million fifth-year option in 2021 for Conley.D.J. Reader's departureDefensive tackle D.J. Reader played his best football in 2019 during his contract year. His efforts were noticed by Pro Football Focus, who named him a second-team All-Pro as an interior defensive lineman.The Texans let Reader leave in free agency, and he signed a four-year, $53 million contract with the. Houston instead prioritized signing wide receiver to a three-year, $27 million contract and cornerback to a three-year, $18 million deal (with another $1.5 million in incentives). These two deals collectively average $15 million per year, which is $1.75 million more than Reader's contract.Reader's ability to stuff the run is sorely mi sed. The Texans rank last in the league in run defense, giving up 181.8 yards per game on the ground. tradeO'Brien gave the a 2020 second- Ryan Braun Jersey round pick for wide receiver Brandin Cooks and a 2022 fourth-round pick in April to help offset the lo s of Hopkins, although the 2020 draft was one of the deepest for wide receivers in recent memory. The trade compensation for Cooks and Hopkins should never have been in the same ballpark. Part of O'Brien's rationale for getting veteran help was that the coronavirus pandemic cancelling traditional offseason activities would hinder a rookie from being a major contributor this season. Cooks, who is coming off his worst season profe sionally after being slowed by concu sions, had career-lows of 42 receptions and three touchdown catches in 14 games to go along with 583 receiving yards. The Texans are paying Cooks $8 million this season, and he is under contract for three additional years, which aren't guaranteed, for $39 million.The Rams used the pick obtained for Cooks, 57th overall, to select wide receiver. His four-year contract is worth just over $5.6 million.Cooks has gotten off to slow start in Houston, where he has 10 catches for 138 yards and no touchdowns in the four games the Texans have played this season.The aftermathO'Brien's trades mortgaged the immediate future by depleting draft capital. Houston's five draft picks this year were the NFL's second fewest behind the Saints, who had four selections. Unlike the Texans, the Saints had a first-round pick. Miami owns Houston's first- and second-round picks next year because of the Tunsil trade. Pro Bowl quarterback still makes the Texans head coaching job Manny Pina Jersey attractive.McNair is expected to lean heavily on executive vice president of football operations Jack Easterby, who may deserve some blame for the personnel moves since he was supposedly O'Brien's closest ally, in the search for a head coach and general manager. Easterby has one of the more unusual backgrounds for a high-ranking NFL team executive as the ' character coach and team chaplain prior to joining the Texans. Easterby's meteoric rise up the front office ranks and influence might be a cause of concern to some potential candidates for jobs with the Texans.