Another training camp, another example of a Bill Belichick disciple overstepping his bounds.
This time, it is Texans general manager Nick Caserio, who spent 19 years working under Belichick in various player evaluation roles. On Wednesday, we learned the first-year boss tried to end training camp early, which would ban the media from watching practice.
The NFL rejected Caserio’s plan, according to John McClain of the Houston Chronicle. League rules state that all practices must be open to the media though Aug. 26.
Houston has been trending in this direction for a few years. The organization’s first two head coaches, Dom Kapers and Gary Kubiak, all reporters to watch all practices, But Bill O’Brien, who took over in 2014, restricted press access to a minimum.
The on-field results weren’t better than Kubiak’s final two years, when the Texans won 10 and 12 games, respectively, and made it to the Divisional Round.
Admittedly, Caserio is in a tough situation. The Deshaun Watson melodrama unfolds on a daily basis, with the latest chapter coming when the troubled quarterback snapped at reporters for filming him.
Watson, who demanded a trade this offseason, is facing 22 lawsuits alleging sexual misconduct. He’s currently listed as Houston’s fourth-string quarterback.
With that said, half-assed authoritarianism is not the way to improve the situation. Caserio is trying to take from Belichick’s playbook without any of his credentials.
We saw a similar story play out last year with Joe Judge and the Giants. He removed players’ names from the back of their practice jerseys during training camp and forced them to run laps after mistakes. Four Giants players retired over the first two weeks of camp this year.
Now, it’s worth mentioning that several Giants players defended Judge’s tough approach this week. Maybe he’ll be the rare Belichick imitator to break through. But most of the others — from Matt Patricia to Eric Mangini to Josh McDaniels — failed on their own.
Patricia was so loathed in Detroit, former Lions players celebrated his dismissal last year.
Now he’s back working under Belichick, right alongside McDaniels.
Caserio’s impact in Houston may be out of his control. It’s hard to win when your franchise quarterback turns into a malcontent with an array of female massage therapists accusing him of sexual assault. But inexplicably banning the media isn’t the way to reverse the Texans’ fortunes.