The head coach addressed the potential future of the headset
O'Brien not yet sure who is calling plays
Feb 27, 2019, 4:15 pm
Cody Stoots/SportsMap
The head coach of the Houston Texans isn't ready to declare which voice Deshaun Watson will hear the play calls from next season.
"I think it's so early right now to really talk about any of that," Bill O'Brien said Wednesday from the NFL Scouting Combine when asked who would be the person calling the plays on Sundays.
The only options are O'Brien remaining the man with the microphone or newly promoted offensive coordinator Tim Kelly.
O'Brien was bullish on Kelly's potential as the team's offensive coordinator.
"We have a system in place, he knows the system, he knows where the system needs to be improved, he knows how it can be tweaked, he knows the things that we have to keep doing that we did well last year."
Kelly finds himself in this position after being the team's tight ends coach. O'Brien said the team has a philosophy of preparing young coaches and giving them more as the team's faith in them grows.
Kelly, of course, fits that mold.
"He's run the third down meeting. He's run our Wednesday morning meeting where we introduce the opponents' defense. He's done a lot of things in front of the unit because I do think that you can't just take a guy and say 'OK, he coached tight ends and that's all he ever did' and then you just put him in front of a unit of professional football players. That's not what we've done here."
It very well could still be O'Brien with Kelly as the backup option, or vice versa. As for the current task in front of the team's new offensive coordinator O'Brien trusts Kelly.
"He's had a lot of input into what we do. He's had a big part of the process and he's ready for the challenge."
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Jose Altuve hit a two-run homer in the sixth inning that sent the Houston Astros to an 8-5 win over the Detroit Tigers on Monday night.
That ball landed on Mars.#TheNextFrontier pic.twitter.com/yDh0fp1RvO
— Houston Astros (@astros) April 29, 2025
Christian Walker also had a two-run shot in the fourth to begin Houston's comeback from a 3-0 deficit. The Astros still trailed by one when Jeremy Peña singled in the sixth. Altuve followed with his drive off Jack Flaherty (1-3) that crashed off the wall above the left-field seats to put Houston up 4-3.
Altuve had two hits and three RBIs while batting second for the first time since 2023. He asked to move out of the leadoff spot to give him more time to get ready to hit in the first inning after coming in from the outfield. The nine-time All-Star moved to left field this year after spending his first 14 major league seasons playing second base.
Houston’s victory snapped a four-game winning streak for the Tigers, who got two homers from Riley Greene and one from Kerry Carpenter but managed just two other hits.
The Astros tacked on four runs in the seventh with the help of sloppy defense by the Tigers. Rookie shortstop Trey Sweeney made throwing errors on consecutive plays with no outs to put runners at second and third.
Mauricio Dubón singled to score them both and extend the lead. Houston added runs on a groundout by Altuve and an RBI single by Yordan Alvarez to push it to 8-3.
Houston starter Ronel Blanco allowed three hits and three runs while striking out six in five innings. Steven Okert (1-0) worked a scoreless sixth for the win. Josh Hader pitched the ninth for his eighth save.
Flaherty yielded six hits and four runs — both season highs — in five-plus innings.
Key moment
Altuve’s home run.
Key stat
Peña has four hits in two games batting leadoff. He hit first Sunday — with Altuve getting a day off — and stayed in the top spot Monday when Altuve dropped to second.
Up next
Houston RHP Ryan Gusto (3-1, 2.78 ERA) opposes RHP Reese Olson (3-1, 3.28) when the series continues Tuesday night.