Houston Texans Coaches:Brain Trust, Brain Thrust Or Brain Bust?

daniel v. woodson

bleacher reports

HOUSTON-Nine men, individually and collectively, will determine the success or failure of The Houston Texans' 2009 season.  Much credence is placed on the men on the field but, a team is only as good and as successful as its coaching staff.  As much as prima donnas and star players continue to get the glory, glamour, endorsements and multi-million dollar contracts, the coaches and their assistants are the ones who put in the long hours in preparation for the next weeks' opponents.  The following men and their resumes will demonstrate how the Texans and their coaches plan to GITTERDUN this year.

1. Head Coach-Gary Kubiak

Gary Kubiak’s road to being an NFL head coach has been filled with on-the-job experience from the bottom up.  He was a successful quarterback in high school here in Houston, in college at Texas A&M and had some NFL experience as a backup for the Denver Broncos. 

He began paying his dues by coaching running backs at his alma mater, Texas A&M from ’92-’93 and eventually by moving up to the big leagues as a quarterbacks coach at San Francisco in ‘94.  There, under George Seifert, he coached future Hall of Famer, Steve Young who won the NFL MVP Award and won a Super Bowl over the San Diego Chargers.

He has a track record of developing quarterbacks, running backs, great offenses and building sturdy and reliable offensive lines.  Both at Denver and in Houston, he has reduced the number of sacks of the quarterback from previous seasons and increased the offensive productivity.  That is especially important in Houston because of Matt Schaub’s susceptibility to injury.

In 1995, Kubiak was appointed offensive coordinator/quarterbacks coach for his former team, the Denver Broncos.  He worked closely with John Elway and had an immediate impact on his numbers and throughout the remainder of his career.  It can be said that Kubiak’s development of Elway, Terrell Davis and Shannon Sharpe was the singlemost reason the Broncos won consecutive Super Bowls in ’98 and ’99.

He duplicated his development of players with the likes of Brian Griese, Jake Plummer, Mike Anderson, Tatum Bell, Clinton Portis and others and the Broncos offense was one of the better offenses in the NFL over his 11 season with them.  His offenses have been very balanced, prolific and have produced multiple 1,000 yard rushers and 3,000 yard passers.

He has done the same in Houston by tutoring Matt Schaub to two relatively successful campaigns in which he has passed for a combined total of nearly 5,000 yards.  The development of Steve Slaton, the Texans’ rookie running back who rushed for over 1,000 yards last season, has been par for the course for Kubiak.  TE Owen Daniels made the Pro Bowl last year and Andre Johnson had another quality year at WR.  When Kubiak became the head coach of the Texans, there were high expectations for him.  So far, he seems to moving them in the direction of success.

If Kubiak can build on the offense’s success of last year by adding another 1,000 yard back to the lineup, another quality, reliable 1,000 yard receiver and utilize TE Owen Daniels a bit more effectively or add another TE, the Texans will be unstoppable.

Under Coach Kubiak, the Texans have finished each season strong but, have struggled at the beginning.  If they can start off over .500, they had a legitimate shot at being a playoff contender.  He has shown that he drafts well with standouts such as DeMeco Ryans, Owen Daniels, Steve Slaton and Fred Bennett who are having very good careers thus far.

2. Assistant Head Coach, Offense/Quarterbacks-Alex Gibbs

Alex Gibbs’ name has been synonymous with results throughout the NFL and he’s been recognized by all who have worked with him.  When it was announced by the Texans that he would be their assistant head coach in charge of offense, Mark Schlereth, one of his former players at Denver said that his acquisition would strengthen the offense immediately.  Schlereth said that Gibbs was the type of coach who would kick any player in the pants who wasn’t doing his job whether he was on offense or defense.  That type of leadership would hold all players accountable at all times and that’s what players need nowadays.

Gibbs is from the old school and has been a coach in the NFL for 25 years.  He began coaching in the professional ranks with Denver as their offensive line coach in 1984 after coaching 15 years in the collegiate ranks at numerous division one universities.  I think it’s safe to say that he has put his time in.

He was an offensive line coach for the Denver Broncos, Los Angeles Raiders, San Diego Chargers, Indianapolis Colts and Kansas City Chiefs over an 11-year period.  During that timeframe, he was able to drop teams’ sack totals substantially and establish league-leading rushing attacks with each organization.

He returned to the Broncos in 1995 as their Assistant Head/Offensive Line Coach and under his tutelage, Terrell Davis rushed for 2,000 yards and earned NFL MVP honors and several offensive linemen, including Tom Nalen, had pro-bowl seasons.  The Broncos won two consecutive Super Bowls as well as their franchise quarterback for the ages, John Elway went out in a blaze of glory.

During his time at Denver, he and then Broncos offensive coordinator, Gary Kubiak worked together to make them an offensive juggernaut in the NFL establishing franchise records for total yards, first downs, rushing yards and rushing touchdowns.  He and Coach Kubiak also earned two Super Bowl rings during that time.

In 2004, Gibbs left Denver to assume the Assistant Head/Offensive Line Coaching position with the Atlanta Falcons and from 2005-2006, he served as their consultant.  During that time, the Falcons led the league with over 8,000 yards rushing and 5.1 yards/carry.

He took 2007 off but, in 2008, Gary Kubiak came calling and Gibbs joined the Texans in his current position.  Just as Schlereth predicted, he had an immediate impact on the Texans’ offense and they finished 3^rd in total offense in the NFL in 2008 and was 4^th in passing and 13^th in rushing.  That, my friends, is no small accomplishment.  Man, I sound like John McCain, my friends...

If in his second season with the Texans, Gibbs can continue to solidify their offensive line by developing Duane Brown as a preeminent left tackle in the league and produce similar results in Houston as he has everywhere else he’s been, the Texans will be nearly impossible to contain by NFL defenses.  His zone-blocking scheme enabled Steve Slaton to rush for over 1,000 yards in their first season together and if he can get Steve Slaton some help in sharing the rushing load, this will be the Texans’ breakout season!

3. Offensive Coordinator-Kyle Shanahan

If the name Shanahan sounds familiar in NFL circles, it should.  Kyle Shanahan is the son of former Oakland Raiders and Denver Broncos coach, Mike Shanahan.  Kyle has slowly, but surely stepped beyond his father’s long shadow to establish himself as a force to be reckoned with. 

This year will be his fourth with the Texans and the sixth in the NFL.  He began his NFL experience as the Offensive Quality Control Coach with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers and worked with receivers such as Michael Clayton and Joey Galloway and was instrumental in helping both players establish career highs in receiving.

In 2006, Shanahan joined the Texans as Wide Receivers Coach and helped guide Andre Johnson to his best season to that point in his career and his selection to the 2007 Pro Bowl. He led the NFL with 103 receptions and his second 1,000-yard receiving season.

In 2007, Shanahan was promoted to Quarterbacks coach during Matt Schaub’s first season with the Texans.  That season, the quarterback position broke all franchise records for completions, passing yards and touchdowns.  The quarterback sacked only 22 times all year; a far cry from David Carr’s 76 times in 2002.

In 2008, Shanahan was once again promoted; this time to Offensive Coordinator/Quarterbacks.  He and Coach Gary Kubiak collaborate on the game plan and under their direction, the Texans’ offense was rated 3^rd in the NFL and 4^th in passing. 

One of the most dynamic things that Shanahan has done is to mirror what Kubiak did at Denver and what many teams are trying to do in their offenses and that is to use the tight end position as more of a weapon.  Much like Dallas Clark in Indianapolis and Jason Witten in Dallas, Owen Daniels is being used more and more downfield as a third receiver to occupy linebackers and defensive backs.  This tactic has opened up the running game and Steve Slaton has been its beneficiary on many occasions.

Shanahan has also used a balanced offensive approach and the numbers attest that out.  The quarterback position threw for 4,267 net yards which was the most in franchise history so, Shanahan is definitely making an impact on starter Matt Schaub.  If he can continue to develop Schaub and with Coach Alex Gibbs, minimize his exposure to pressure and sacks, Schaub just may have a Pro Bowl-caliber season.  Several draft picks on offense may be key additions to their arsenal and with his and Coach Kubiak’s experience, the Texans’ offense will certainly be a potent and prolific scoring machine.

4. Offensive Assistant-Bruce Matthews (HOF)

Having a NFL Hall of Famer on your staff, regardless of where on the field he played, is a plus and the Houston Texans hired HOF Bruce Matthews as an offensive assistant on February 27, 2009.  Bruce was a player who seemed to always report for work and that’s a rarity these days in professional sports. 

When guys are missing games because of hangnails, stubbed toes, bruised rubs and the like, Matthews’ resume’ of playing 296 games over his career speaks volumes.  No full-time positional player has played more games in NFL history so he will bring toughness and a sense of duty to this team.

He was selected as the 9^th pick overall in the 1983 draft by the Houston Oilers from the University of Southern California and played 19 seasons for the franchise and retired as a Tennessee Titan.

Matthews played every position on the offensive line at some time in his career and went to the Pro Bowl for 14 years in a row, 9 times at guard and 5 at center.  That was a span from 1988 to end of his career in 2001 and ties HOF Merlin Olsen as the most ever.  He selected as an All-Pro nine times and went to the playoffs seven consecutive seasons with the Houston Oilers.  His repertoire gives him the game experience that allows him to mentor ALL of the offensive lineman.

With his experience, durability and reputation, Matthews should make an immediate impact on the psyche of the Texans’ offensive linemen and they should step their games up because with a man like Matthews to look up to, they have no excuses.  Bruce didn’t make any.  He put his helmet on and lined up 296 times so, he’ll demand toughness and dedication from the team.  Hopefully, that will correlate to a winning attitude and a winning season.

5. Assistant Head Coach, Defensive Line-Bill Kollar

Bill Kollar played 8 seasons in the NFL as a defensive lineman and has 20 years of NFL coaching experience, the last 19 as a defensive line coach so, he’s “been there and done that” numerous times.  He began his NFL coaching career as a defensive assistant/special teams with Tampa Bay in 1984.

He left the NFL to hone his skills at Illinois as a graduate assistant in 1985 then, he moved up to the defensive line/special teams coach in 1986 and served in that capacity for the next two seasons.  From the 1988-’89, he held the same position at Purdue before heading back to the NFL promise land in 1990.

From 1990-2000, he was the Atlanta Falcons defensive line coach and in 1998, led them to a tie for the best in the NFL only allowing 6 rushing TD’s and establishing a new team record by allowing only 75.2 yards rushing per game.  That was the year the Falcons won the NFC Championship and went to the Super Bowl.

While at St. Louis from 2001-’05 as the defensive line coach, Coach Kollar helped Leonard Little become a premier sack leader with 57 sacks over that period and the Rams make it to and win the Super Bowl in 2001, his first year with the team.

From 2006-’08, Kollar served as the defensive line coach at Buffalo and was hired by the Texans in January.  Kollar inherits Houston’s emerging superstar Mario Williams at a time in his career where he can take off and possibly be one the NFL greats of all time.  Kollar’s experience should be a plus for Mario as well as Amobi Okoye.  Okoye, has yet to have a breakout season and this could be it. 

Nosetackle Travis Johnson has been a problem child for the Texans and hopefully Kollar’s track record will mold Johnson into an Albert Haynesworth prodigy.  Hey, why not wish for the stars?  Maybe you’ll land in the clouds! 

If Kollar can bring these young men along as he’s done for many others in his career, the Texans will have a run-stopping defensive line that will give it’s fledging secondary an opportunity to lay some big hits on opposing receivers in obvious 3rd and long passing situations. That would be an obvious step toward the Texans becoming a playoff-bound organization and bring a rambunctious atmosphere to Reliant Stadium and shades of “Luv Ya Blue” in the key of RED!

6. Defensive Coordinator-Frank Bush

Frank began his football career as a member of the Houston Oilers in 1985 where he played defensive back.  An unfortunate spinal cord injury ended his career but he remained with the Oilers and served as a college scout from 1987-’92.  

For three years, Coach Bush was the linebackers coach with the Oilers bringing his service with the team to ten years.

In 1995, he moved his operation to the Denver Broncos as their linebackers coach where his backers helped the defense make significant strides by upgrading their performance from 28^th to 15^th in the NFL.  In 1996, the defense was ranked 4^th overall and 1^st against the run.  In 1997 and 1998 with players such as Bill Romanski, John Mobley and Glenn Cadrez, the Broncos won consecutive Super Bowls.

He served a total of nine seasons (1995-2003) with the Broncos in various positions including three as special teams coach, one as defensive secondary/nickel packages and five as linebackers coach.

In 2004, he worked for Dennis Green in Arizonaand his linebacking core helped Arizona improve to 8^th in the league in total defense in 2005 from 12^th in 2004 after being the 26^th ranked defense in 2003.  In the 2006 campaign, Bush was promoted to and served as the Assistant Head Coach/Linebackers.

He joined in the Texans in 2007 and worked as the senior defensive assistant and with the defensive line.  That year, Mario Williams and Amobi Okoye made significant strides and Williams made second-team All-Pro and in 2008 he was named as a Pro Bowl starter.

Now as the Texans' new defensive coordinator, he will be responsible for making them a more cohesive, effective unit.  If he can hone Travis Johnson’s sometimes misplaced and mismanaged energy to focus on the job at hand, develop Mario Williams and Amobi Akoye as a menace to all NFL offenses, the Texans’ defensive line will be impermeable.  The linebackers and secondary will have to develop a reputation of more than just playmakers but also as hard hitters.  If he can do that, I don’t see why the Texans shouldn’t be competing into early, if not late January.

7. Defensive Backs-David Gibbs

I’m not going to say that there’s nepotism in the NFL but, it seems to be just a little bit easier to get a job if your daddy works there.  Keeping the job, however, that’s a different story and David Gibbs has been able to do just that.  David is the son of Texans’ Assistant Head Coach, Offense/Quarterbacks, Alex Gibbs but, he’s paid his own dues to get to this point in his career as the Texans’ secondary coach.  Gibbs has his work cut out for him because the Texans’ secondary has some weaknesses that need to be addressed.

Before breaking into the NFL coaching ranks, David coached for ten years at several programs including Oklahoma and Colorado as a graduate assistant, Kansas as the secondary coach and Minnesota as the defensive coordinator where he was the youngest DC in the NCAA Division I.

In 2001, he ascended to football heaven, the NFL with the Denver Broncos to coach safeties and by ’03-‘04, he was coaching all defensive backs.  In 2003, the Broncos were 4^th in the league in total defense and the pass defense was 6^th in league allowing only 176.8 yards per game.

In 2006, he left the NFL to go to Auburn to be their defensive coordinator and returned to the league to the defensive backs coach for the Kansas City Chiefs in 2007.  Their secondary allowed only 208.4 yards passing per game in 2006 and 188.9 yards PPG in 2007 ranking 5^th in the NFL.

Now, he has to address those weaknesses at safety.  The Texans don’t have a big hitter in the secondary and they don’t have a vocal leader in the defensive backfield.  In order to limit losses from defensive letdowns in the fourth quarter, they need to make stops.  To this point, the defensive backfield has not done so and they are porous and don’t strike fear into the hearts of opposing receivers.  If David’s defensive backs can knock down the Goliaths of the NFL receiving cores with just one shot, the Texans can do great things in the 2009 season.