FanHouse JethroFranklin

FanHouse readers who pay attention to such things may note that I have never been a big fan of Texans defensive coordinator Richard Smith. (massive understatement)

In a move that was long over due, Smith was fired today, along with defensive backs Coach, Jon Hoke and defensive line coach, Jethro Franklin.

According to Football Outsiders stats, the Texans defense under Smith's tenure was ranked as follows:

2006: 31st
2007: 30th
2008: 29th

So instead of waiting a few more decades to build a dominant defense, head coach Gary Kubiak finally pulled the plug.

It is coming up on year three of the Texans under coach Gary Kubiak. Even though they haven't completely implemented it, you can see they have a very specific philosophy on offense.

The defense, with the transition from the 3-4 to the 4-3 has been a bit more of a mystery. I have read every thing written about the Texans defense, and the best I can tell it is supposed to be an aggressive 4-3, which translates to telling you pretty much zero about it.

For example, you know what types of defensive players a lot of teams covet in the draft and free agency, but do you know much about what the Texans are looking for in a defensive player? What is the Texans defense supposed to look like other than bad?

Well, thanks to a recent interview (below) of Texans defensive line coach Jethro Franklin by John Granato and Lance Zierlein on 1560 the Game, you may get at least a few of your questions answered. I can't believe that some of this stuff are things that are public only for the first time. (Actually, I can believe it as it seemed last offseason most of the mainstream media Texans stories were fluffy, superficial pieces about the leadership ability of Matt Schaub).

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Here are some highlights from the Franklin interview (but it is worth a listen if you are able):