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Houston Texans coach Dom Capers has led two expansion teams from their inception.
On Monday, he will have been fired by both of them after a fourth season.
The Texans plan to fire Capers, but will retain general manager Charley Casserly, a person close to the organization told the Associated Press on Sunday.
Capers, 55, was let go by the Carolina Panthers in 1998.
The Texans plan to make the announcement Monday, according to the person who spoke on condition of anonymity because the announcement was pending. The team lost Sunday to the San Francisco 49ers to finish the season 2-14, the worst record in the NFL and the worst record in the Texans' history.
When asked about his status after the game, Capers said: "Those decisions are beyond my control. I always tell the players to focus on the things you can control."
But he added that the team's woeful season has been "extremely difficult."
"You don't want to have years like this," Capers said. "I told the guys, you have to learn from this."
The Texans did not immediately return a call from the AP on Sunday night, but following the game team owner Bob McNair said he would "make some announcements (Monday) of where we're going in the future."
Capers' plan for bringing along the Texans slowly and building for future success worked well until this season. The Texans won seven games last season after winning five in 2003 and four in their first season.
Houston opened this season 0-6 before beating Cleveland and then losing six more. The Texans picked up a win over the Arizona Cardinals and then lost their last two games. They own the top pick in April's draft.
Capers, who has one year remaining on his five-year Texans contract worth $9.5 million, was hailed as an expansion wizard after leading Carolina to seven wins in its first season and the NFC title game in the team's second year in 1996. The feat earned him NFL coach of the year honors.
Things went downhill from there and Capers was fired after the Panthers went 4-12 in 1998. When the Texans hired him in 2001, he said he hoped fans would be patient as they slowly built the program after he failed in Carolina following early success.
"You have to be careful and stay with your step-by-step program," Capers told the AP in 2001. "Then, you have to have the courage to stick with it and not sacrifice the future for the quick fix."
Source: AP
On Monday, he will have been fired by both of them after a fourth season.
The Texans plan to fire Capers, but will retain general manager Charley Casserly, a person close to the organization told the Associated Press on Sunday.
Capers, 55, was let go by the Carolina Panthers in 1998.
The Texans plan to make the announcement Monday, according to the person who spoke on condition of anonymity because the announcement was pending. The team lost Sunday to the San Francisco 49ers to finish the season 2-14, the worst record in the NFL and the worst record in the Texans' history.
When asked about his status after the game, Capers said: "Those decisions are beyond my control. I always tell the players to focus on the things you can control."
But he added that the team's woeful season has been "extremely difficult."
"You don't want to have years like this," Capers said. "I told the guys, you have to learn from this."
The Texans did not immediately return a call from the AP on Sunday night, but following the game team owner Bob McNair said he would "make some announcements (Monday) of where we're going in the future."
Capers' plan for bringing along the Texans slowly and building for future success worked well until this season. The Texans won seven games last season after winning five in 2003 and four in their first season.
Houston opened this season 0-6 before beating Cleveland and then losing six more. The Texans picked up a win over the Arizona Cardinals and then lost their last two games. They own the top pick in April's draft.
Capers, who has one year remaining on his five-year Texans contract worth $9.5 million, was hailed as an expansion wizard after leading Carolina to seven wins in its first season and the NFC title game in the team's second year in 1996. The feat earned him NFL coach of the year honors.
Things went downhill from there and Capers was fired after the Panthers went 4-12 in 1998. When the Texans hired him in 2001, he said he hoped fans would be patient as they slowly built the program after he failed in Carolina following early success.
"You have to be careful and stay with your step-by-step program," Capers told the AP in 2001. "Then, you have to have the courage to stick with it and not sacrifice the future for the quick fix."
Source: AP