HOUSTON -- Mike Vrabel stood at the podium at NRG Stadium for nearly eight minutes on Thursday, by far his longest news conference of the season. The defensive coordinator may have to get used to extended periods with the media, as he could find himself as a head coach in the near future.
During the offseason, Vrabel’s name was in the mix for the Los Angeles Rams’ head-coaching job, and in January 2016 Vrabel reportedly turned down a job as the San Francisco 49ers’ defensive coordinator to stay with the Houston Texans. Last January, Vrabel was promoted from linebackers coach to defensive coordinator, with then-defensive coordinator Romeo Crennel becoming an associate head coach.
As the season winds down, head-coaching jobs have started to open, including that of the New York Giants, who fired Ben McAdoo last week. On Thursday, Vrabel said “obviously I would entertain” any head-coaching jobs during the offseason.
“When you get into coaching I think that everybody aspires to lead at the highest level, and clearly being a head coach in the National Football League is the opportunity to do that.” Vrabel said. “When I started coaching, I didn’t think I would be in the NFL. When I started coaching, I didn’t think I’d be at Ohio State. Didn’t think I would be coordinating. So you never really know. You try to do as good a job as you can in the role that you have and then you go from there.”
When asked if he felt he was ready to be a head coach, Vrabel said, “Right now I’m trying to be ready to take on the San Francisco 49ers” on Sunday.
Vrabel is just one year into his role as defensive coordinator for the Texans, but drew praise from his players and coach Bill O’Brien. O’Brien said there’s “no question” he sees Vrabel being a head coach one day.
“[Vrabel has] done a good job,” O’Brien said. “He’s doing a good job adjusting and putting guys in position to make plays. We always can improve, everybody can improve, but I think overall, he’s done a good job.”
O’Brien believes Vrabel’s best characteristic is his ability to connect with players. During training camp, he was one of the most vocal people on the practice field and had fun with his players, joining in on the team's game of Four Square. Veteran cornerback Johnathan Joseph said he has a good relationship with Vrabel and appreciates the perspective the former player brings as a defensive coordinator.
“He has very good relationships with his players,” O’Brien said. “One of the things about Mike is he takes a vested interest in his friendships, his relationships with his players. He knows a lot about every guy, whether it’s family things or whatever it might be.
“I think it helps in the fact that those guys are going to play very hard. I think they play hard for us. I think they play hard for each other. But I think part of it is their respect for our coaching staff, [for] him on defense. I think it’s important to know your player on a personal level so that when things are going a certain way in a game you can kind of figure out what the signs are that can help get that player back to what he needs to focus on.”
Vrabel said he doesn’t necessarily expect to take the first head-coaching job that is offered to him, if he gets the chance, because he wants to make sure it is the right opportunity for him.
“I think that every job’s not a great job. It’s got to be the right fit,” Vrabel said. “It’s got to be the right time. It’s got to be right for you and your family and what you’re doing at the time and where you see yourself in five or 10 years.”