Dismal Texans fire VP Jack Easterby amid 1-3-1 start

The Texans have reportedly fired executive vice president of football operations Jack Easterby, the controversial executive and former NFL team preacher believed to have had the ear of Houston CEO Cal McNair.

Adam Schefter of ESPN was the first to report the news Monday morning after the team’s farewell week. Houston is just 1-3-1 under new head coach Lovie Smith, who was hired by general manager Nick Caserio prior to the season.

Team spokespersons did not immediately respond to DailyMail.com’s confirmation request.

“A source said it wasn’t a surprising development,” Pro Football Network’s Aaron Wilson reported.

“There will be joy throughout the organization,” tweeted former Houston Chronicle reporter, John McClain.

While working for the Patriots and Texans, Easterby reportedly grew close with New England head coach Bill Belichick (far left, with Easterby) and Texans CEO Cal McNair (right)

While many expected Easterby to be fired, few expected it to happen so soon

A fan holds up a sign during an NFL game at NRG Stadium in Houston on September 23, 2021, in which Houston Texans executive vice president Jack Easterby is critical of the Carolina Panthers.

Easterby is believed to have influenced the decisions to hire both Smith and Caserio.

He has also undergone intensive research, including a… Sports Illustrated Piece 2020who accused him of undermining team decision-makers, holding training sessions at a coach’s home during the pandemic, violating NFL rules, and cultivating distrust among players and staff.

He also raised eyebrows in November 2020 for firing the team’s popular PR woman, Amy Palcic, for being a poor “cultural fit,” according to an ESPN piece at the time. Palcic was the only woman in charge of the public relations department of an NFL team. And in 2017, her staff won the Pete Rozelle Award, which is presented by the Pro Football Writers of America (PFWA) to the league’s top public relations department.

More than anyone else, Easterby is associated with team culture in Houston, where the Texans went from winning the AFC South in its inaugural season, 2019, to a struggling franchise with a 9-28 record since then.

Easterby was a Christian pastor and Kansas City Chiefs chaplain when he was hired as a “character coach” by the New England Patriots in 2013. He stayed with the team until 2018, when he resigned after owner Robert Kraft was accused of recruiting prostitutes in Florida, although Easterby did not cite that arrest as his specific reason for leaving New England.

He was allegedly accused of improving the culture around the Texans founded under former coach and general manager Bill O’Brien, who was fired after the 2020 season and now serves as Alabama’s offensive coordinator.

In 2020, the Houston Texans fired the NFL’s highest PR woman, Amy Palcic (left, right with JJ Watt on the set of Saturday Night Live). Palcic, the former Texan VP of communications, was no longer a “cultural fit” within the team, sources told ESPN at the time

During Easterby’s tenure, Deshaun Watson (pictured) submitted a swap request to the team before the 2021 season and was eventually charged with sexual misconduct by more than 20 female massage therapists.

Easterby is believed to have influenced decisions to hire Smith (left) and Caserio (right)

Easterby was put in charge of football operations in 2020, which was a surprise given his relative lack of football experience.

During his tenure in Houston, Easterby was criticized over a trade that sent All-Pro wide receiver DeAndre Hopkins to the Arizona Cardinals for David Johnson’s aging and second-round pick. Controversy over that deal subsided after Hopkins tested positive for a banned substance in May, resulting in a six-game suspension, but the drama surrounding Easterby has barely subsided.

Most notable was the manner of quarterback Deshaun Watson, who applied for a trade with the team before the 2021 season and was eventually accused of sexual misconduct by more than 20 female massage therapists.

Watson was eventually traded to Cleveland for three first-round picks and was subsequently banned for the first 11 games of this season.

Some Texan fans have backed Easterby, crediting him with unloading Hopkins before he got into trouble with the league, and getting three first-round picks for the embattled Watson.

Pastor Jack Easterby speaks onstage during the 16th Annual Super Bowl Gospel Celebration at ASU Gammage on January 30, 2015 in Tempe, Arizona. He also worked as a team chaplain for the Kansas City Chiefs and as a “character coach” for the New England Patriots