Patriots file tampering charges against Texans over Caserio
In response to the Texans’ interest in interviewing Nick Caserio to be their new GM, the Patriots have filed tampering charges against Houston.
The New England Patriots are not going to let go of Nick Caserio without a fight.
Caserio, the longtime Patriots executive who currently holds the title of director of player personnel, has reportedly been linked to the Houston Texans’ vacant general manager job ever since the franchise fired Brian Gaines after just one season at the helm.
Now, it appears that New England is firing back in an effort to block Caserio from even interviewing for the job. The Patriots filed tampering charges on Wednesday against the Texans for their attempts to woo him away from Foxborough. According to the report, New England believes that Houston “contacted Caserio illegally or before they filed a formal interview request Friday night, hours after general manager Brian Gaine was fired.”
Ultimately, it will be up to the NFL to do a proper investigation, gather evidence and testimony from both teams, and make a formal ruling on the charges… all presumably before the new season gets underway in September.
Houston and New England have often found themselves connected and at odds over the past 10 years. Current Texans head coach Bill O’Brien was an offensive coach with the Patriots from 2007-2011, current Texans defensive coordinator Romeo Crennel occupied the same position with the Patriots from 2001-2004, and current Texans executive vice president of team development Jack Easterby was a character coach and Belichick assistant with the Patriots from 2013-2018.
According to another report, Easterby may be the “smoking gun” at the epicenter of the tampering charge. It is believed that conversations between Easterby and Caserio may have occurred at the Patriots’ Super Bowl ring unveiling ceremony last Thursday night… and that those conversations may have directly fed into the connection between Caserio and the Texans’ GM position, which opened up the very next day.
Evidence of potential tampering come from photos, videos, other proof of interactions between Texans exec @JackEasterby and Caserio at last Thursday's Patriots ring ceremony, which happened the night before the Houston G.M. job became vacant.
— ProFootballTalk (@ProFootballTalk) June 12, 2019
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Caserio has been with the Patriots in a variety of roles since 2001. Over that 18-year span, he has served as both an executive and as a coach, with at least six different official positions and titles attributed under his profile. He is often considered to be one of Bill Belichick’s most important allies and influences, with a creative mind that understands all aspects of the NFL in its entirety.