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Is it time to start changing your opinion of Bill O'Brien?

Is it time to start changing your opinion of Bill O'Brien?
Bill O'Brien deserves some credit for the win streak. Joe Robbins/Getty Images

Look, I have been as critical as just about anyone in this market about the short comings of Bill O' Brien and let's face it, he has been an easy target. From clock management, to timeout usage, play calling and challenge flag issues, he has offered up more than enough ammunition for media types and fans to tee off on.

Then there was the contract extension that no one felt was timely or necessary, as well as the highly publicized internal strife between Rick Smith and his head coach for all those mediocre seasons, bad drafts and disappointing playoff defeats. All of that and more led to fans outraged and calling for O'Brien's ouster at the end of this season and the fire was fueled to towering inferno levels when the team started 0-3 and were written off for dead by everyone in the football world.

Lo and behold, after nine straight wins that absolutely no one saw coming and a firm grasp on the AFC South that comes with a guaranteed spot in the playoffs, I ask you,  is it time to start to reconsider our evaluation and opinion of B.O.B.?

I realize that as this streak started and as it progressed on a game by game basis, there were plenty of flaws, calls and mishaps that led to people questioning how good this team really was and if luck was the biggest factor in the team racking up some consecutive wins.

But with each win and every passing week, there was no denying that this team was improving and making progress as they learned from their mistakes and close calls and didn't get too drunk on their own Kool Aid to let over confidence outduel the momentum that success creates.

Everyone knows and understands that it is the players who deserve a majority of the credit, but the coaches' scheme and game plan and in some cases motivate less than exceptional position groups to overachieve and reach new levels of success.

The Texans' offensive line comes to mind in that regard. The man that oversees all of those groups while calling the plays and making crucial in-game decisions is Billy O. As quick as we all were to point fingers and place the blame on the guy in charge of football operations when it looked like they had hit rock bottom, we all need to start to reconsider our critiques and give credit where credit is due for the incredible, season saving turnaround and nine straight wins.

After all, this is the NFL and wins don't come easy. In the case of the Cleveland Browns, some seasons they may not come at all. A team can only control what they have in front of them; they play the games on the schedule and take care of everything on their sidelines, locker room and front office. Everything else is out of their control and can't be included in the grading game. Coaches decisions on fourth down, missed field goals and less than stellar performances by backup quarterbacks are not your problem or concern; wins and losses are.

The reality of it all is Bill O'Brien is a leading candidate for NFL Coach of the Year and we all need to take a step back and recognize, he may be growing up and maturing as a head coach in this league right before our eyes and right after snatching a division title right out of the jaws of an absolute disaster of a start. Never has being wrong felt so right for Texan fans everywhere. 


 

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Dusty Baker collects more hardware. Photo by Steph Chambers/Getty Images.

Dusty Baker has won the fourth Lifetime Achievement Award presented by Baseball Digest.

The beloved Baker retired following the 2023 season after spending 56 years in the majors as a player, coach and manager. He was honored Thursday with an annual distinction that “recognizes a living individual whose career has been spent in or around Major League Baseball and who has made significant contributions to the game.”

Willie Mays won the inaugural award in 2021, followed by Vin Scully in 2022 and Joe Torre last year.

“Receiving this award is a tremendous honor,” Baker said in a news release. “I never thought that I’d be in the class of the people that received this award. I know that my late mom and dad would be proud of me. This is really special.”

The 74-year-old Baker broke into the big leagues as a teenager with the Atlanta Braves in 1968 and played 19 seasons. He made two All-Star teams, won two Silver Slugger awards and earned a Gold Glove in the outfield.

He was the 1977 NL Championship Series MVP and finished fourth in 1980 NL MVP voting before helping the Los Angeles Dodgers win the 1981 World Series.

Following his playing career, Baker was a coach for the San Francisco Giants from 1988-92 and then became their manager in 1993. He won the first of his three NL Manager of the Year awards with the Giants that season and spent 26 years as a big league skipper, also guiding the Chicago Cubs, Cincinnati Reds, Washington Nationals and Houston Astros.

Baker took all those teams to the playoffs, winning 10 division crowns, three pennants and finally a World Series championship in 2022 with the Astros. He ranks seventh on the career list with 2,183 wins and is the only manager in major league history to lead five franchises to division titles.

In January, he returned to the Giants as a special adviser to baseball operations. Baker's former team is 7-18 under new Astros manager Joe Espada.

“On behalf of Major League Baseball, I am honored to congratulate Dusty Baker as the 2024 recipient of Baseball Digest’s Lifetime Achievement Award. He joins an incredible club," Commissioner Rob Manfred said. "Dusty represents leadership, goodwill, and winning baseball. His ability to connect with others, across generations, is second to none. He is a championship manager and player. But, most importantly, Dusty is an extraordinary ambassador for our national pastime.”

Baker was selected in voting by an 18-member panel from a list of candidates that also included Bob Costas, Sandy Koufax, Tony La Russa, Jim Leyland, Rachel Robinson and Bud Selig, among others.

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