AFC Notes: Bill O’Brien, Tyjae Spears, Jaguars, Texans, Titans

Jaguars

Jaguars OC Press Taylor said during a press conference that he believes that football comes naturally to talented first-round WR Brian Thomas Jr.

“Brian has done a great job. Brian is what we expected,” Taylor said, via Pro Football Talk. “He is long, fast, and smart. So those things have shown up early on of getting him involved. He spent a lot of the meeting time with [receivers coach] Chad [Hall] and being around Christian [Kirk], Gabe [Davis], who not necessarily knows our system, but knows the NFL and what things are going to look like. I think it’s been really good for him. You see, obviously, the intelligence in the quick twitch, in the long speed show up throughout our practices as we go through things, or even routes on air. He grows every single day. He is a guy that’s very easy to communicate with because he’s intelligent. Football comes naturally to him. Learning, picturing concepts, understanding routes, how we’re attacking certain coverages. So, you see his growth every day, which is fun to see.”

• Taylor believes WR Parker Washington has taken strides at spring practices: “Parker’s definitely playing more confidently. I think he’s a lot healthier than he was this time last year when we got him, but just things slow down as guys [go into their second year]. … He knows the expectations of that particular player in that particular concept, and so now you just see the skill set start to come out. That confidence is a big thing and he will continue to grow.” (ESPN)
• Jaguars WR Kyric McGowan signed a one-year deal worth $795,000, per Aaron Wilson. 

Texans

Former Texans GM Bill O’Brien cited several reasons, including contract negotiations and trades, that he regrets taking the job and is now focused on being the head coach at Boston College for the upcoming season. 

“That was a tough time in Houston,” O’Brien told Adam Breneman. “We were a good team, we made some decisions relative to the organization to try to fill the GM role, we went after some guys, we couldn’t get them, at the end of the day we went a full year really without a GM . . . and then there was a year we just said, ‘We’ll make you the GM.’ In the end, that’s not who I am.”

“I didn’t really enjoy being the GM,” O’Brien added. “I didn’t enjoy negotiating contracts. In some respects, I lost relationships with some of the guys that I was coaching because I didn’t enjoy that. In my opinion, there’s very few guys in the history of football that can ever do that — and they’re the greatest of the greats. I feel like I’m a good coach, I know how to coach, but those things I’m not great at. I can evaluate talent, I know how to evaluate talent, but I shouldn’t be negotiating contracts and things like that. So in the end, that was a mistake by me. I really wish I didn’t do that to be really honest with you.”

Titans

Titans RB Tyjae Spears is setting the bar high for him and teammate RB Tony Pollard in 2024. 

“We’re just pushing each other, we want the best. I want to see both of us in top-5 rushing, top-5 best backs this year,” Spears said, via Coral Smith of NFL.com. “With the O-line we’ve got, we can reach those heights, but we’ve got to push each other, and it starts now.”