Getty Images
The reactions are creeping in following the news that the Texans Patriots VP of player staff Nick Caserio will make the next general manager of the team. The general thread consists of two messages.
First, Easterby won. As in executive director of football operations Jack Easterby. Caserio is a man from Easterby, who will presumably refer to the authority that Easterby will have.
Tweedens, Easterby really win. As reported by Mike Garafolo of NFL Media, the Korn Ferry search firm five candidates identified for the post: Texans Director of Player Staff Matt Bazirgan, Seahawks VP of player staff Trent Kirchner, Steelers VP of football and business administration Omar Khan, Louis Riddick, and Ravens director of football research Scott Cohen. Korn Ferry did not include Caserio on his list of finalists.
But Caserio got the job, because that’s who Easterby wanted – and Easterby won the power struggle with Korn Ferry. (Korn Ferry is presumably still being paid its six-figure fee for creating a menu from which the Texans ultimately did not choose.)
“Easterby is a magician,” Garafolo declares.
Others in league circles use other terms to describe Easterby. However, when hiring a GM, Easterby got the man he was trying to get in 2019. This, as one league source noted, allows Easterby to pull the strings without the liability that comes with being the GM.
Next comes the question of whether Easterby will get his preferred coach. Some wonder if it will be the offensive coordinator of Patriots, Josh McDaniels, who toppled the Colts three years ago and who has received less interest in recent tenure cycles.
The first question is whether McDaniels is on Korn Ferry’s list. If not, McDaniels could be the man for the job.