Texans coaching search dominates the conversation; Here’s my pick

Defensive Coordinator DeMeco Ryans of the San Francisco 49ers looks on during the first half against the Dallas Cowboys in the NFC Divisional Playoff game at Levi's Stadium on January 22, 2023 in Santa Clara, California. (Photo by Lachlan Cunningham/Getty Images) (Lachlan Cunningham, 2023 Getty Images)

HOUSTON – Hi everyone! This is KPRC 2 Sports Director Randy McIlvoy checking in with your weekly Houston Texans Newsletter!

We are two weekends into the NFL playoffs and have these been fun games to watch or what? The divisional round was fantastic and saw the Bengals, Chiefs, 49ers and Eagles all punch their tickets to the Conference Championship games. The AFC and NFC showdowns are Sunday and the two survivors will advance to the Super Bowl out in Arizona in a couple of weeks.

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Playoff time is fun, but what’s not so fun is the Texans sitting where they are on the outside looking in. Let’s hope that time will return sooner rather than later.

State of the Texans coaching search

Two weeks have passed since they fired Lovie Smith, so here we are now into week three of their coaching search. I’m writing this here late Monday night after the Texans wrapped up their 8th interview on Sunday with Giants OC Mike Kafka. Will he be the guy? I don’t think so but he’s done a great job with the G-Men. His offense this season ranked 18th in the NFL. Progress, but personally, I would need to see more on Kafka’s resume to get excited. What about you?

Right now it appears to be a four person race for the Houston job. Sean Payton’s not ruled out yet, but his salary demand may be too much to deal with. That leaves, in my opinion, DeMeco Ryans along with Eagles DC Jonathan Gannon and Eagles OC Shane Steichen. Not sure if Denver’s Ejiro Evero is high on the list or not. Same goes for Rams Assistant Head Coach Thomas Brown.

My choice: I am a huge DeMeco Ryans fan. Get him to Houston as head coach and DC and allow him to hand pick his own offensive coordinator like a Frank Reich or someone like that. I’ve seen and heard several times that could be a potential match.

What’s ahead

The Texans coaching search takes the spotlight for now and then the focus shifts to the NFL Combine in late February and first week of March in Indy. The pro days will follow and the draft will take place beginning with the first round on April 27.

With the No. 1 pick in the 2023 NFL Draft, the Houston Texans select...? Have you changed your mind since last week?

Keep it locked on KPRC 2, KPRC 2+ and Click2Houston.com Sports for all of your Texans offseason news.