Lovie Smith Fired After 1 Season as Texans HC; Houston Finished 3-13-1

The Houston Texans fired head coach lovie smith after just one season, a move that came hours after the team pulled out a 32-31 victory over the Indianapolis Colts

Ian Rapoport and Mike Garafolo were the first to report it. The Philadelphia Eagles and the San Francisco 49ers have been mentioned as possible replacements for Smith.

Houston ended with a 3-13-1 record. The Texans have won 11 games since the playoffs began.

Sunday's victory bumped the Texans down one spot in the draft order, with the Bears taking the top spot.

They have a lack of a long-term direction. The third coach in as many years will be hired by the team's owner.

Smith's firing didn't come as a big surprise.

Rapoport and Pelissero reported on Saturday that the team's performance had fallen short of expectations. There were concerns behind the scenes.

"Sources say frustration has mounted in the locker room and elsewhere in the building over many aspects of Smith's program, including overall operational struggles. It has spilled to their best players, such as receiver Brandin Cooks being stripped of the captaincy after trying and failing to get himself traded before November's deadline."

Smith appeared to be a stopgap from the moment he arrived.

Over the course of five seasons, the Fighting Illini went 17-39 and reached a bowl game. As they adjusted to life after Deshaun, the Texans were in a holding pattern as well.

Houston had to keep its powder dry because of a weak quarterback class in the draft that year, which made it hard to find a replacement for him. The uncertainty surrounding the three-time Pro Bowler didn't make the franchise attractive to potential coaching candidates.

With the stage set for a true rebuild and Jack Easterby out of the picture, how much of the perception of the Texans has changed?

Easterby, the former executive vice president of football operations, was seen as a major source of chaos in the organization.

Houston could be an interesting job for the right coach as the Texans are without a head coach. According to Spotrac, they could remake the roster with a lot of draft picks and salary cap space.

Houston has finally figured out the quarterback position.

Caserio could take Ohio State's C.J. Stroud or Alabama's Young with the 2nd overall pick. They could choose to target Kentucky's Will Levis, Florida's Anthony Richardson or another signal- caller later on.

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