Bill O'Brien Discusses Relationship with Rick Smith After Ryan Mallett's Release

The days of Hard Knocks-inspired optimism seem like years ago for the Houston Texans.

The team is a disappointing 2-5 on the 2015 season, and head coach Bill O’Brien commented on his highly discussed relationship with general manager Rick Smith on Wednesday instead of Houston’s upcoming game against the Tennessee Titans on Sunday.

O’Brien said, per Tania Ganguli of ESPN NFL Nation, “Rick Smith and I both have respect for each other. ... Decisions are made by the two of us. Require concurrence of the owner.”

The coach also talked about his contract, per Ganguli: “Mine says that it’s a partnership and any decisions that are made are with the concurrence of the GM.”

Any questions about the relationship between O’Brien and Smith came on the heels of a Monday report by Brian T. Smith of the Houston Chronicle that said the coach wanted to cut quarterback Ryan Mallett before the Texans’ game against the Miami Dolphins on Sunday. However, Smith reportedly overruled him so that the team wouldn’t only have one quarterback (Brian Hoyer) on the roster for the contest.

According to Smith, O’Brien wanted to cut Mallett because the backup signal-caller was late for meetings Saturday and then missed a chartered flight. The 27-year-old blamed traffic for his mishaps, which was just the latest noise surrounding the former Arkansas Razorback.

He overslept and missed a practice during training camp and demonstrated less than ideal body language on the sidelines after he was benched in a game against the Indianapolis Colts.

Houston eventually released Mallett on Tuesday after it signed free agent T.J. Yates for depth purposes, but the relationship and power dynamic between O’Brien and Smith were fully in the public view by then.

Perhaps the Texans can finally focus on turning their season around on the field after O’Brien addressed the situation Wednesday.