Doublespeak and non-speak certainly aren't new concepts for head coaches of pro sports teams, but O'Brien has learned a lot from his former boss up in New England. Bill Belichick who is--on good days--passively belligerent with the media, knows the value of a controlled message. He controls what information comes out from his staff and players alike.
And now we're seeing it here in Houston. Since the beginning, O'Brien has stressed the team mentality. Grubb compiled this list of eerily similar quotes from enough players to establish a clear pattern:
• QB Ryan Fitzpatrick - "The whole goal is to get us playing as one, as a team and we’ll expect good results if that happens."
• DE J.J. Watt - "I come every single day and try to do the best I can, be a good teammate and do my job."
• NT Louis Nix III - "Just working hard and being a good teammate to everybody around. I feel like that is all you can do, just work hard."
"I just want to learn from whatever Coach teaches me and learn from them and do a good job at it. At this point, that’s my job."
• FB Jay Prosch - "I’m just trying to get better and become a better teammate and really just work hard."
• QB Tom Savage - "You just have to compete. You have to do whatever you can to help this team out and that’s all I’m going to do."
• G Xavier Su’a-Filo - "It’s about working hard and trying our best, do our job, be as coachable as possible and be a great teammate here."
Even though he's had this job for over half a year now, O'Brien has had less than a month of interaction with these players and already he's got them all whistling the same tune. This is in extreme contrast to Gary Kubiak's laissez-faire, "it's on me" style of coaching.
Remember "On the Nose with Shaun Cody?" It started up in 2011 and ran through the end of the 2012 season. I'm guessing if O'Brien had been the coach three years ago, he would have told Cody two things:
1.It's too ego-centric, and it doesn't help the team win.
2.I cut you two weeks ago; why are you still here?
Antonio Smith's beloved ninja antics might have been dampered, too. J.J. Watt playfully mocking Aaron Rodgers and Clay Matthews with sack celebrations might have earned him an unpleasant earful from his coach... especially since they were crushed on prime-time television.