Bill O'Brien to Return to Texans: Latest Comments and Reaction

After two playoff appearances in three seasons, Houston Texans head coach Bill O'Brien will return in 2017. Rumors swirled that O'Brien could leave the team because of tension with general manager Rick Smith, according to Mike Florio of Pro Football Talk.

Following Houston's wild-card win over the Oakland Raiders and prior to its AFC Divisional Round showdown with the New England Patriots on Saturday, however, O'Brien made it clear to John McClain of the Houston Chronicle that he would be back in 2017.

NFL Network's Ian Rapoport added that the Texans front office wanted O'Brien to return as well.

Houston hired O'Brien from Penn State in 2014 with the hope his five seasons as an assistant coach under New England head coach Bill Belichick would help him become the next big thing in the NFL's head-coaching ranks.

O'Brien has gone 9-7 in each of his three seasons with the Texans, who won the AFC South in both 2015 and 2016.

The 47-year-old was supposed to find a viable quarterback and spark the Houston offense, but he has struggled despite the reputation he built as the Patriots quarterbacks coach and then offensive coordinator.

O'Brien cycled through a number of signal-callers during his first two years at the helm, including Ryan Fitzpatrick, Ryan Mallett, Case Keenum, Brian Hoyer, T.J. Yates and Brandon Weeden.

The Texans lured Brock Osweiler from the Denver Broncos during the offseason, but he hasn't established himself as a reliable performer and temporarily lost his job to the unheralded Tom Savage.

Despite O'Brien's issues in terms of finding an answer under center, he has helped Houston complete three consecutive winning seasons for the first time in franchise history.

The Texans also boasted the NFL's No. 1 defense during the regular season despite the fact that three-time Defensive Player of the Year J.J. Watt missed nearly the entire campaign.

Houston has yet to become a true contender in the AFC, but with a potentially dominant defense developing under coordinator Romeo Crennel, it may be just a quarterback away from evolving into a Super Bowl threat.

That is a significant missing piece, though everything else appears to be in place for the Texans to be a perennial playoff team.

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