Did J.J. Watt Get Bill O'Brien Fired?
The Houston Texans finally fired Bill O'Brien on Monday months after they should have done so. After so much awfulness out of O'Brien for years, many wondered what the final straw was. Well, we may finally have an answer.
Multiple reports now claim O'Brien got into a "heated exchange" with J.J. Watt before Houston's Week 3 game against the Pittsburgh Steelers. Things got so bad, Watt called out O'Brien for his terrible coaching:
A source tells me that JJ Watt and Bill O’Brien had a heated exchange on the practice field the week of the Steelers game in which JJ called BOB out for his coaching ability. It began a player revolt that ended up getting BOB fired.
— John Granato (@johngranato) October 7, 2020
Another report took things further and claimed the argument included defensive coordinator Anthony Weaver. It also indicated O'Brien had verbal altercations with multiple other staff members in the lead-up to his firing:
Bill O'Brien got into an argument with defensive end J.J. Watt and defensive coordinator Anthony Weaver on the practice field along with verbal altercations with other staff members during his final weeks as coach-general manager before being fired, according to league sources
— Aaron Wilson (@AaronWilson_NFL) October 7, 2020
That paints a portrait of a coach who was losing it as the end of his tenure rapidly approached.
In the end though, a coach can't mess with Watt. He's an incredibly well-respected member of that team and he has a sterling reputation around the NFL. A five-time first-team All-Pro and a three-time Defensive Player of the Year, Watt commands a ton of respect from other players. He's a leader and if O'Brien lost him, the rest of the locker room was sure to follow.
O'Brien did a lot of terrible stuff as Houston's head coach. But losing J.J. Watt likely sealed his fate.