Texans draw criticism over Lovie Smith departure

The Houston Texans came under fire Sunday night when the team decided to part ways with head coach Lovie Smith after just one season at the helm.

The dismissal came hours after the Texans defeated the Indianapolis Colts and lost the No. 1 draft pick to the Chicago Bears.

“Nick Caserio and I spoke with Lovie Smith tonight and informed him that we will be moving in a different direction as an organization,” Texans chair and CEO Cal McNair said in a statement. “I appreciate Coach Smith and his entire family for their contributions over the last two seasons. We are grateful for his leadership and character, and we wish him the best moving forward. 

“While we understand the results have not been what we had hoped for, we are committed to building a program that produces long-term, sustainable success. Our fans and city deserve a team that they can be proud of. I will work alongside Nick Caserio throughout this process and I’m confident we will find the right leader for our football team.”

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Texans general manager Nick Caserio also released a statement.

“On behalf of the entire organization, I would like to thank Lovie Smith for everything he has contributed to our team over the last two seasons as a coach and a leader,” Caserio said. “I’m constantly evaluating our football operation and believe this is the best decision for us at this time. It is my responsibility to build a comprehensive and competitive program that can sustain success over a long period of time. We aren’t there right now, however, with the support of the McNair family and the resources available to us, I’m confident in the direction of our football program moving forward.”

However, after one season, the NFL world wondered what the Texans are doing. The team fired David Culley after one season before 2022 kicked off and have now done the same with Smith.

Houston finished the season 3-13-1.

Smith spent 2021 as the associated head coach before he took the job over from Culley. He was the head coach at Illinois from 2016 to 2020 before that.