Houston Texans coach Bill O’Brien is very much on the hot seat. The team’s former punter, Shane Lechler, is probably not terribly surprised.
Lechler spoke about O’Brien on the Pat McAfee Podcast. Specifically, he talked about the frustration that came with listening to O’Brien talk to a struggling team.
“Driving in every morning and I’m like s**t, ‘What is he going to say today?'” he said on the podcast. “I’m tired of hearing we are so close. No we are not, we are 2-10.”
Lechler would definitely be an authority on what’s normal when talking to a bad team late in the year. From 2003-2012, his Oakland Raiders teams were never better than 8-8, and reached that only once. Lechler was also a part of the 2-14 Texans in 2013.
That wasn’t the only thing that annoyed him about O’Brien. Lechler also didn’t like the kicking schedule in camp.
“The kicking schedule we had in camp, OTAs and mini-camp. Man, that was absolutely brutal. I really get like a rookie again. I know what you’re trying to do, kick me out of the game.” Shane Lechler On the Pat McAfee Podcast #Texans
— patrick (@PatDStat) September 19, 2018
PM: “You felt kinda disrespected, I assume?”
SL: “Oh yea.”
PM: “I don’t like that all.”
SL: “It is what it is.”
Shane Lechler On the Pat McAfee Podcast #Texans
— patrick (@PatDStat) September 19, 2018
But it wasn’t all bad news for Houston and its fans.
While Lechler isn’t terribly fond of O’Brien, he does like Deshaun Watson. He and Watson were only briefly teammates with the Texans. But that was enough for Lechler to become a fan.
“I think they do, Deshaun is the first guy I felt even down 14 or 10. I never felt like we were out of it.“ also adds the Texans have the right guy at the QB position. Shane Lechler on Deshaun Watson on the Pat McAfee Podcast #Texans
— patrick (@PatDStat) September 19, 2018
That’s certainly something positive for Houston, especially after an 0-2 start.