Should Richard Smith, the Def Coordinater Get Fired?

[Carlos]

Do you think Richard Smith has what it takes to be an effective Defensive Coordinator in the NFL? Granted, he doesn't have the best talent in the secondary, but too many times the defense looks lethargic and outschemed. Smith seems unable to make basic adjustments to stop what other teams are able to do over and over and over again.

[outofhnd]

No we dont have enough talent outside our front 4

[moses77550]

No he should be our waterboy.

He does not bring enough blitzes...you can't win in the NFL with just 4 people blitzen every play.

[Wolf123]

He definatly shouldn't be fired, things just snowballed today.

[Carlos]

No we dont have enough talent outside our front 4

Don't have enough talent? What about Robinson, the #10 pick in his draft class and Ryans, the Defensive Rookie of the Year last season?

[redkoolaid]

Richard Smith is garbage squared...

How do you think Bo Pelini would look as the new Texans DC?

he already has an NFL defense over at LSU

[B420tx]

Don't have enough talent? What about Robinson, the #10 pick in his draft class and Ryans, the Defensive Rookie of the Year last season?

Dunta Robinson was lights out today, he only allowed like 1 catch on him.

[Sprtsfanatic]

You CAN NOT blame our defense...our offense has kept them on the field all day long. You can not expect our defense to play 45 mins of a 60 min game...thats just unrealistic...that and the fact that faggins and salaam have extended their drives and killed ours respectively....you cant blame the defensive coordinator....the offensive coordinator on the other hand.....well thats something to look into.

[Towlie]

NO... yes

[Towlie]

Dunta Robinson was lights out today, he only allowed like 1 catch on him.

that one catch was a touchdown:mad:

[Pantherstang84]

He definatly shouldn't be fired, things just snowballed today.

At the very least, he needs to be put on a performance improvement plan. Look our D made Joey Harrington and Cleo Lemon look like pro bowlers. Harrington got benched the next week!!!!!!!

Tell me something isn't wrong with the defensive schemes.

[DeclanJr]

I say wait to evaluate him at the end of the year. This is a bad game. When you give up this many points to the Jags, something is wrong with the players or the playcalling. I think it is a combination.

[outofhnd]

Don't have enough talent? What about Robinson, the #10 pick in his draft class and Ryans, the Defensive Rookie of the Year last season?

Ok so thats 6 players that leaves 5 liabilities in tacklin g and coverage. Danny Clark was atrocious

[outofhnd]

At the very least, he needs to be put on a performance improvement plan. Look our D made Joey Harrington and Cleo Lemon look like pro bowlers. Harrington got benched the next week!!!!!!!

Tell me something isn't wrong with the defensive schemes.

There is nothing wrong with the schemes, its the execution thats lacking. take out clark and put in barber,

[Carlos]

Ok so thats 6 players that leaves 5 liabilities in tacklin g and coverage. Danny Clark was atrocious


I disagree. Faggins is horrible, but several of the other 5 players are serviceable. If Smith needs 11 first round draft choices to get it done, then he obviously is part of the problem. Smith is all sound and fury signifying nothing.

[Towlie]

At the very least, he needs to be put on a performance improvement plan. Look our D made Joey Harrington and Cleo Lemon look like pro bowlers. Harrington got benched the next week!!!!!!!

Tell me something isn't wrong with the defensive schemes.

we are playing zone, when none of our players can cover (exept dunta).

[Super Mario Bros]

No we need more talent in the secondary

[Marcus]

This is a knee jerk punk thread.

[Wolf123]

the texans do need more talent on defense. We have nothing in the secondary or Linebacking core other then Dunta,Ryans.

[outofhnd]

I disagree. Faggins is horrible, but several of the other 5 players are serviceable. If Smith needs 11 first round draft choices to get it done, then he obviously is part of the problem. Smith is all sound and fury signifying nothing.

Serviceable is a fancy word for ineffective. Ron Dayne is serviceable around the goal line

[Pantherstang84]

There is nothing wrong with the schemes, its the execution thats lacking. take out clark and put in barber,

It's not just Clark. The Texans seem to stay in the same defensive scheme no matter what the opposing offense does. Good OCs have figured it out and are exploiting it.

[Pantherstang84]

we are playing zone, when none of our players can cover (exept dunta).

Ummm. We play a lot of man to man.

[misterpc]

I'm not convinced about Smith, he never really seemed like the right guy for the job. I voted to give him till the end of the year, but our defense should be playing better than it has been.

Also, hire a new coach specifically for the D-Line, get Mario a mentor.

[HomeGrownTexan]

No we dont have enough talent outside our front 4

We have talent on defense, enough talent to not be playing the way we are.

This defense has NO identity what so ever.

[Sprtsfanatic]

I'm not convinced about Smith, he never really seemed like the right guy for the job. I voted to give him till the end of the year, but our defense should be playing better than it has been.

Also, hire a new coach specifically for the D-Line, get Mario a mentor.

What we need is an effective offense running an effective offensive game plan....our play calling has been the worst I have seen in any 3 week span going back to our inception.

[Zagen30]

We need to get rid of Richard Smith because it's confusing having a Richard Smith and a Rick Smith on the staff when both of them hold important positions :p

Seriously, I say let's give it some more time. After all, who would we promote to be the DC?

Maybe I'm just wary of knee-jerking and firing a coordinator after the Chris Palmer firing. Why on earth we promoted Pendry, the OL coach, when our OL was a big problem those first two games, is beyond me; it's like rewarding someone for severely underperforming.

[Little D]

Don't have enough talent? What about Robinson, the #10 pick in his draft class and Ryans, the Defensive Rookie of the Year last season?

Thats 2 of 11 players he may need a few more.

[bigcarlos]

Where's Buddy Ryan when we need him?

[TEXANottoMAN]

I don't has too much to work with. Time for a gut and heart check.

[schaubisgod]

I don't think you should hack off anyone on the coaching staff so early in the season. Let's not get dramatic.

[Carlos]

Thats 2 of 11 players he may need a few more.

You missed the first part of the thread. The poster I was responding to admitted our D-line was solid.

Let's take inventory:

On the D-line, we have 3 high 1st round picks and a high-priced free agent signee from last year who is well-regarded in the league and in his prime (Weaver).

At linebacker, we have the Defensive Rookie of the Year last season and a solid starter, Greenwood, who may not be an All-Pro but is a solid starter.

In the secondary, we have a high first round pick and three guys.

Granted, we don't have All-Pro's at every position, but no team does. We have enough talent on defense not to get blown out by other teams, and certainly enough to avoid making guys like Joey Harrington and Lemon of Miami look like Pro Bowlers.

When people defend Smith and talk only about what he lacks, it reminds me of Carr's supporters last year who focused on the shortcomings of his teammates rather than acknowledge Carr's obvious failings.

[Pantherstang84]

You missed the first part of the thread. The poster I was responding to admitted our D-line was solid.

Let's take inventory:

On the D-line, we have 3 high 1st round picks and a high-priced free agent signee from last year who is well-regarded in the league and in his prime (Weaver).

At linebacker, we have the Defensive Rookie of the Year last season and a solid starter, Greenwood, who may not be an All-Pro but is a solid starter.

In the secondary, we have a high first round pick and three guys.

Granted, we don't have All-Pro's at every position, but no team does. We have enough talent on defense not to get blown out by other teams, and certainly enough to avoid making guys like Joey Harrington and Lemon of Miami look like Pro Bowlers.

When people defend Smith and talk only about what he lacks, it reminds me of Carr's supporters last year who focused on the shortcomings of his teammates rather than acknowledge Carr's obvious failings.

Good post.

[HydrOshocK]

This thread is ridiculous. We've only played 6 games. The knee jerk reactions on this board have gone way passed tiresome. :rolleyes:

[Pantherstang84]

Sticking your head in the sand and pretending everything is ok isn't good either.

[HydrOshocK]

Sticking your head in the sand and pretending everything is ok isn't good either.

Sticking your head up your @$$ is worse

[Pantherstang84]

Sticking your head up your @$$ is worse

I'm just sayin'. Making mediocre QBs look like pro bowlers 3 weeks in a row might be a clue there is a problem. I dunno. Just call me Capt. Obvious.

But keep trying the same thing over and over again expecting to get a different result and tell me who has their head where.

[Carlos]

Sticking your head up your @$$ is worse

The Texans will be a lot better off if Smith can get his head out of his @ss, ASAP. We were supposed to be beyond getting blown off the field after the first three games of last season. The key players have all had a full year under his system, the young players presumably have improved with a season of experience, and the personnel has been upgraded.

Facts are facts, deal with them.

[sleepwalker]

I'm tired of this bend-don't-break style of D. Sure it looks okay in the stats sometimes, but we went through this same crap with Carr. Teams just control the ball and dink and dunk us to death.

What the *ell is going on here? Is our front 7 really THIS bad?

[Pantherstang84]

I'm tired of this bend-don't-break style of D. Sure it looks okay in the stats sometimes, but we went through this same crap with Carr. Teams just control the ball and dink and dunk us to death.

What the *ell is going on here? Is our front 7 really THIS bad?

No. Only our defensive play calling.

[HydrOshocK]

The Texans will be a lot better off if Smith can get his head out of his @ss, ASAP. We were supposed to be beyond getting blown off the field after the first three games of last season. The key players have all had a full year under his system, the young players presumably have improved with a season of experience, and the personnel has been upgraded.

Facts are facts, deal with them.

I deal with the facts just fine dude, I just don't call for our coaches to be fired after only 6 games....3 of those we've won. All the arm chair coaches and GMs need to submit their resumes to the commissioner if they think they have all of the answers.

Calling for a coach to be fired after 6 games and a .500 record is over reaction in its purest form. Say what you want but I choose to stay level headed and take my losses like a man.

[Pantherstang84]

You show me a content loser and I'll show you a loser. Just sayin.

[HydrOshocK]

You show me a content loser and I'll show you a loser. Just sayin.

You show me a team that is finished at .500 after 6 games......just sayin

[Pantherstang84]

You show me a team that is finished at .500 after 6 games......just sayin

Is there any coherence there? Just askin

[HydrOshocK]

Is there any coherence there? Just askin

There's nothing you could type that I wouldn't understand. Don't insult my intelligence. If you don't like my positive attitude then don't respond...but don't get personal

[Pantherstang84]

There's nothing you could type that I wouldn't understand. Don't insult my intelligence. If you don't like my positive attitude then don't respond.....but don't get personal.

It was an honest question. Wasn't sure what you were getting at in that statement. I'm not the one getting personal.

[Jwwillis1]

Smith is all sound and fury signifying nothing.


LOL...This is the perfect description for your post!

Nobodys firing anybody before the season ends much less in week 6. Get a grip man.

[HydrOshocK]

It was an honest question. Wasn't sure what you were getting at in that statement. I'm not the one getting personal.

My statement implies that I don't give up on my team and decide the season is over, and call for a coach to get fired, when we are 3-3 and still in it. You guys can choose to get down and wallow in self pity, but it's not over until the final game has been played. My problem lies in the fact that a large portion of the fans on this message board always want to throw in the towel after a loss. I'm just glad our team doesn't have that mentality.

[Pantherstang84]

My statement implies that I don't give up on my team and decide the season is over, and call for a coach to get fired, when we are 3-3 and still in it. You guys can choose to get down and wallow in self pity, but it's not over until the final game has been played. My problem lies in the fact that a large portion of the fans on this message board always want to throw in the towel after a loss. I'm just glad our team doesn't have that mentality.

And if you had bothered to read the whole thread you would have known that I'm not the one calling for the man's head. I have said that he needs to re-evaluate how he calls the defense.

I'm no Rhodes Scholar. However, I can see when something is not working. I would think a good football coach can recognize when plan A is getting exploited by other teams. I mean Harrington got benched the week after we made him look like Brady and your telling me everything is ok?

So if calling a spade a spade is being negative, so be it. As is stands now the defense has stunk the last three weeks. There needs to be some improvement.

[Carlos]

I deal with the facts just fine dude, I just don't call for our coaches to be fired after only 6 games....3 of those we've won. All the arm chair coaches and GMs need to submit their resumes to the commissioner if they think they have all of the answers.

Calling for a coach to be fired after 6 games and a .500 record is over reaction in its purest form. Say what you want but I choose to stay level headed and take my losses like a man.

Read the thread carefully. I'm not calling for Smith to be fired, I'm raising the question whether he should be fired. The defense has certainly had its share of rocky moments, so it's a fair question. This question was also being asked last year, if you recall.

Go ahead "and take your losses like a man", but winning organizations are always looking for ways to improve, no matter what their record. Consistently defending the performance of those who might not be the best suited for the job is a good way to achieve mediocrity. We've certainly had more than our share of that over the last few years.

[BornOrange]

I don't know about Richard Smith and his schemes, but I do know that the defensive players played like crap regardless of scheme. For the most part, the defensive line was man-handled. Mario Williams made a great tackle on one run play, made a bone-headed offsides penalty that cost the team 4 points, and wasn't heard from the rest of the game. But he wasn't the only one, just the focus because of his draft position. With 3 guys not only taken in the first round, but the top half of the first round, there should have been someone in the backfield every single play. That is on the players themselves, not on the coaches.

I'm not defending Richard Smith, just saying that the players should have played better even if they were coached by Richard Simmons.

[outofhnd]

you mean he is still the coach with a .500 record???? we should fire mcnair :rolleyes:

I think this is our best record over 6 games?

[HydrOshocK]

Read the thread carefully. I'm not calling for Smith to be fired, I'm raising the question whether he should be fired. The defense has certainly had its share of rocky moments, so it's a fair question. This question was also being asked last year, if you recall.

Go ahead "and take your losses like a man", but winning organizations are always looking for ways to improve, no matter what their record. Consistently defending the performance of those who might not be the best suited for the job is a good way to achieve mediocrity. We've certainly had more than our share of that over the last few years.

By asking the question you are implying that he is worthy of being fired. I don't agree. I think it's an incredibly premature and unwarranted question.

[Pantherstang84]

I don't know about Richard Smith and his schemes, but I do know that the defensive players played like crap regardless of scheme. For the most part, the defensive line was man-handled. Mario Williams made a great tackle on one run play, made a bone-headed offsides penalty that cost the team 4 points, and wasn't heard from the rest of the game. But he wasn't the only one, just the focus because of his draft position. With 3 guys not only taken in the first round, but the top half of the first round, there should have been someone in the backfield every single play. That is on the players themselves, not on the coaches.

I'm not defending Richard Smith, just saying that the players should have played better even if they were coached by Richard Simmons.


For the record, Mario got back to his side of the LOS with plenty time to spare. So the bone headed offsides penalty really wasn't a penalty.

[Carlos]

By asking the question you are implying that he is worthy of being fired. I don't agree. I think it's an incredibly premature and unwarranted question.

Then we have a difference of opinion -- I think it is a fair question.

[vonbock]

I have an answer. The defense is going to stink up the rest of the season anyways. Marvin Lewis is probably going to be let go by Cincinatti at the end o the year the way they are playing. Everywhere he has gone, the team has a top rated defense. Richard Smith probably won't cut it. How many first round picks have we spent on dfense and look at the showing we have.
BY the, if we are going to be good as New England, we need a cameraman on the sideline also :)

[Wolf123]

I have an answer. The defense is going to stink up the rest of the season anyways. Marvin Lewis is probably going to be let go by Cincinatti at the end o the year the way they are playing. Everywhere he has gone, the team has a top rated defense. Richard Smith probably won't cut it. How many first round picks have we spent on dfense and look at the showing we have.
BY the, if we are going to be good as New England, we need a cameraman on the sideline also :)

Thats stupid to say! How do you know what the defense will do? They had two poor games, take a deep breath!

[sleepwalker]

I don't know about Richard Smith and his schemes, but I do know that the defensive players played like crap regardless of scheme. For the most part, the defensive line was man-handled. Mario Williams made a great tackle on one run play, made a bone-headed offsides penalty that cost the team 4 points, and wasn't heard from the rest of the game. But he wasn't the only one, just the focus because of his draft position. With 3 guys not only taken in the first round, but the top half of the first round, there should have been someone in the backfield every single play. That is on the players themselves, not on the coaches.

I'm not defending Richard Smith, just saying that the players should have played better even if they were coached by Richard Simmons.

I agree too.

However I do feel some coaching is to blame also.

[TxnRckr]

Mixing it up on D WOULD be nice.... More creativity.
Honestly the Jags looked better than last yr.
I hate to have to say it but c'mon... and... our nxt meeting w/them is in OUR
House! We will have +70 thousand screamin lunatics! YEAH...!

NO SEATS Covered up here!

[Pantherstang84]

I have an answer. The defense is going to stink up the rest of the season anyways. Marvin Lewis is probably going to be let go by Cincinatti at the end o the year the way they are playing. Everywhere he has gone, the team has a top rated defense. Richard Smith probably won't cut it. How many first round picks have we spent on dfense and look at the showing we have.
BY the, if we are going to be good as New England, we need a cameraman on the sideline also :)


Are you talking about Marvin Lewis of the Cincinatti "No Defense" Bengals? lol