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Texans owner 'shocked' GM Smith pulled off Osweiler trade

Troy Taormina / USA TODAY Sports

The Houston Texans pulled off a seemingly impossible move when they traded Brock Osweiler to the Cleveland Browns on March 9.

Texans owner Bob McNair still can't believe it happened almost three weeks after the fact, lauding general manager Rick Smith for the execution.

"I couldn't believe that Rick was able to pull it off," McNair said to John McClain of the Houston Chronicle. "It's unbelievable. Everybody around the league, their jaws are still hanging open.

"It's something no one thought (about), and I think other people have looked at that, and they've been trying to do the same thing without success."

The Texans signed Osweiler to a four-year, $72-million contract last spring, but the quarterback struggled throughout the season, completing 59 percent of his passes for 2,957 yards and 15 touchdowns against 16 interceptions.

McNair admitted that the Texans' personnel group, including himself and head coach Bill O'Brien didn't get a chance to acclimate themselves properly with Osweiler before inking him to a gargantuan deal.

"We didn't know Brock well enough," McNair said. "Coach (Bill O'Brien) didn't have a chance to get to know him.

"That's one of the problems with free agency. In the draft, we're able to bring them to Houston, sit down with them, watch them interviewed by a bunch of coaches, and you have time to check them out.

"You can't talk to them before they become a free agent. You can't work them out. We didn't know him that well."

McNair and the Texans would've likely lived to regret the Osweiler deal if they hadn't found a willing trade partner in Cleveland. Moving forward to the draft, Smith appears to have the full confidence of McNair as the Texans look to bolster their roster.

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