When Bill O’Brien was the coach, the Houston Texans knew immediately what they would do if he had to isolate himself from the team due to a positive COVID-19 test: turn to Romeo Crennel.
Crennel was the associate head coach, and his experience as a head coach in the past made him a great candidate.
With the 73-year-old now the interim coach of the team following O’Brien’s firing on Oct. 5, Crennel admitted they don’t have the same set plan in place should he have to isolate from the team.
“I think we have several guys on the staff who are capable with NFL experience who will be able to step in,” Crennel said. “I have not sat down with [interim general manager] Jack (Easterby) and talked to Jack about who might replace me, but I’m sure that there is a succession plan on the desk.”
Though Crennel couldn’t point to anyone specifically, he expressed confidence in the staff to present an interim interim if the situation called for it.
“We’ve got several guys with NFL experience who have been around and who would be experienced enough to step in and do the job through the end of the season,” said Crennel.
The Texans don’t have anyone remaining on the roster who has NFL head coaching experience. In 2015, running backs coach Danny Barrett was the interim head coach for the UCF Knights.