Photo: David J. Phillip/AP
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Houston Texans head coach Bill O'Brien, left, shakes hand with Buffalo Bills head coach Doug Marrone, right, following an NFL football game, Sunday, Sept. 28, 2014, in Houston. (AP Photo/David J. Phillip)

Houston Texans head coach Bill O'Brien, left, shakes hand with Buffalo Bills head coach Doug Marrone, right, following an NFL football game, Sunday, Sept. 28, 2014, in Houston. (AP Photo/David J. Phillip)

Photo: David J. Phillip/AP
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Buffalo Bills head coach Doug Marrone, right, walks of the field after shaking hand with Houston Texans head coach Bill O'Brien, left, following an NFL football game, Sunday, Sept. 28, 2014, in Houston. (AP Photo/David J. Phillip)

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Buffalo Bills head coach Doug Marrone, right, walks of the field after shaking hand with Houston Texans head coach Bill O'Brien, left, following an NFL football game, Sunday, Sept. 28, 2014, in Houston. (AP

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Photo: David J. Phillip/AP
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FILE - In this Sunday, Oct. 15, 2017 file photo, Jacksonville Jaguars head coach Doug Marrone paces the sidelines during a timeout call in the second half of an NFL football game against the Los Angeles Rams in Jacksonville, Fla. The Jaguars (7-4) expect to bounce back from their first loss in six weeks when they host the Indianapolis Colts (3-8) on Sunday, Dec. 3, 2017. (AP Photo/Stephen B. Morton, File)

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FILE - In this Sunday, Oct. 15, 2017 file photo, Jacksonville Jaguars head coach Doug Marrone paces the sidelines during a timeout call in the second half of an NFL football game against the Los Angeles Rams in

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Photo: Stephen B. Morton/Associated Press
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Bill O'Brien is happy on the Texans' sideline. "My family and I, we love living here. And I enjoy coaching these players, and I enjoy coaching with this staff."
Bill O'Brien is happy on the Texans' sideline. "My family and I, we love living here. And I enjoy coaching these players, and I enjoy coaching with this staff."
Photo: Brett Coomer, Staff

The stumbles of the Texans aren't hard to track, or ascribe reasons behind.

It's a downward spiral marked by injuries at several key positions, including the losses of quarterback Deshaun Watson, defensive standouts J.J. Watt and Whitney Mercilus and rookie running back D'Onta Foreman.

The Texans have lost six of their past seven games and are 4-9 overall and rank third in the AFC South division.

The Texans' regression hasn't  been accompanied by a lack of effort, though, which is a credit to the players and coach Bill O'Brien and his staff.

The Texans remain competitive, but are typically overmatched in some key matchups with their personnel losses.

One of O'Brien's oldest friends in the industry is Jacksonville Jaguars coach Doug Marrone. Marrone has known O'Brien since they worked under George O'Leary at Georgia Tech, riding to work together in an old car. Their wives are best friends, and Marrone's wife introduced O'Brien to his future wife, Colleen.

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Media: R. Carter, Houston Chronicle

“I think he’s an outstanding coach," Marrone said during a conference call. "He’s one of the best coaches that I’ve ever coached with. I think, again, he knows how this league is. He’s been through it a lot. They’ve been through the hurricane, they’ve had an enormous amount of injuries, more than most teams. But when you turn the tape on, gosh, those guys are playing extremely hard.

"Schematically, they’re putting them in positions where they can make plays, so we understand that it’s a division game and I know that this team, the Texans, will be ready to come in and give us their best game and we’ve got to play extremely well. It’s a tough challenge for us.”

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