HAVING FAITH
Faith, intelligence, people skills and boundless energy define interim general manager
Jack Easterby follows unconventional route to interim GM position
Full of energy and with a bounce in his step, Jack Easterby hit the Texans’ practice field running Friday morning. He greeted each stretching player with a smile and a few encouraging words.
Easterby, the team’s interim general manager, frequently delivers messages to players and staff, reminding them of the importance of humility and character, of not judging others based on titles or status, and being passionate about serving others.
Thosewho knowEasterby best have emphasized his strong Christian faith, his people skills, intelligence and an intense desire to absorb new skills. That includes negotiating contracts, managing the salary cap and how to conduct personnel evaluations through the time he spent in New England under Bill Belichick.
As a key executive, Easterby helped establish and maintain the Patriots’ ultra-focused culture as part of Belichick’s inner circle.
A deeply religious former basketball and golf team captainwho graduated with honors and earned a degree in sports management from Newberry College, Easterby, 37, has traveled an untraditional path to running an NFL team.
From his time as a team chaplain with Kansas City to being a character coach involved in team development with the Patriots, Easterby has emerged as an important figure within a Texans organization that has reached a 1-6 crossroads after firing coach and general manager Bill O’Brien.
A close confidant of Texans chairman and chief executive officer Cal McNair, Easterby previously helped the Chiefs and Patriots navigate turbulent times following some of theworst crises in NFL history.
“Jack is one of the most special people I’ve ever had the opportunity to be friends with inmy life,” said Tampa Bay kicker Ryan Succop, who got to know Easterby when they were both at the University of South Carolina. “I’ve never seen somebody pour into people and really invest into people the way he has, and it’s genuine. He’s a natural-born leader.”
Crisis management
Aformer academic advisor and Fellowship of Christian Athletes leader who worked with South Carolina men’s basketball coach Dave Odom and women’s basketball coach Dawn Staley, Easterby joined the Chiefs to lead their Bible studies on the recommendation of Succop to Kansas City general manager Scott Pioli.
After Easterby joined the Chiefs, linebacker Jovan Belcher committed suicide in the parking lot outside Arrowhead Stadium. Belcher, who had killed his girlfriend Kasandra Perkins, shot himself in the head in front of then-Chiefs coach Romeo Crennel, now the Texans’ interim coach, along with Pioli and linebackers coach Gary Gibbs.
A former seminary student, Easterby helped guide the Chiefs through the grieving process after that tragedy on Dec. 1, 2012.
“That was a really hard situation in Kansas City,” Succop said. “Your heart’s broken. Jack was really able to kind of help navigate our team, our organization, through that situation. The way he was able to do that was something that I always look back on.
“I’ve always thought that in really hard situations, you kind of find out what people are about.
Jack showed exactly who he is through that time. I’ve never seen one person invest and pour into so many people as Jack does. I’m very thankful to have a person like Jack in my life that I can go to and speak through these things because he’s really been a blessing.”
Easterby was hired by the Patriots in 2013 after tight end Aaron Hernandez was arrested on murder charges. During his time in New England, Easterby held a multi-faceted role that included counseling players and their families and hosting Bible studies, helping the coaching staff with drills on the field along with being involved in personnel and character evaluations.
While Easterby was in New England, he became close with wide receiver Brandin Cooks, now with the Texans.
“My time with Jack in New England and here has been nothing but amazing,” Cooks said. “At the end of the day, he’s a great man. He’s been nothing but great to me. That’s a guy that I think is going to be great moving forward, whatever that looks like.
“He connects with people really well. His faith is the foundation for him. I think the way that he’s able to connect with all walks of life speaks wonders ofwho he is.”
Finding a place in Houston
It’s that kind of steadiness and clarity of purpose that Easterby applies to life and football as he tries to get the Texans back on a winning track during a season gone awry after winning consecutive AFC South division titles.
TheTexans are leaning onEasterby during a time of transition. Easterby was elevated to interim GM from executive vice president of football operations after O’Brien’s dismissal following an 0-4 start. McNair plans to eventually hire a permanent general manager and head coach. Easterby
is expected to be among the candidates for the GM job.
“I think Jack is a very good person,” Crennel said. “He’s smart. In NewEngland, he began his rise in the business, learning about personnel, learning about operations and all of those things.
“That allowed him toworkwell with O’Brien when he got here. He’s conscientious. He’s a hard worker. He will do what’s needed for the players and give them a chance to be successful.”
Since joining the Texans, Easterby has been involved in contract negotiations. He hasworked with director of football administration Kevin Krajcovic on deals for quarter back De shaun Watson, offensive tackle Laremy Tunsil and linebacker Zach Cunningham.
Initially regarded as something of an enigma when he arrived in Houston, Easterby has been building his relationships with players as he’s grown in the organization.
“We’re still in the process of getting to know each other,” Watson said. “I know last year he just got here, so hewas kind of behind the scenes, and I would see him here and there. Not too much communication, but it was just trying to figure out his position and his place in the organization.
“During the season, we’ve just kind of been growing. He’s a man of God who cares about this organization, these players.. He cares about players in that locker room to be the best of their ability and get whatever they can out of their careers. Having that good positive energy and spirit around the locker room is definitely good.”
A friend to Belichick, Tom Brady and several other high-profile athletes and coaches, Easterby’s South Carolina roots and beliefs helped guide him to this important step in his career.
“Iwas never in the NFL, I didn’t even play football,” Easterby
wrote in a column for a Christian web site. “It all started with a burden Jesus put on my heart to be a generation-breaker, helping others conquer sins through an intimate and personal relationship with Jesus. This is my passion, this ismy calling. It started with a Bible study in my home for the basketball team, then itmoved to a Monday night study for all athletes on campus, which then led me to chaplaincy.
“When some of these athletes went on to play professionally I found myself speaking to Olympic pros, other sports teams, and then on to seminary. I didn’t picture myself a chaplain. It wasn’t my long-term goal, but it was what the Lord wanted.”
Easterby often says his goal is simple: to serve others.
A history of leadership
Former South Carolina baseball coach Chad Holbrook called Easterby, “a true leader, a true champion and a true role model who will always ensure the organization is on the right path.”
Mark E. Ross, Easterby’s pastor since his childhood and later his professor at Erskine Theological Seminary, lauded him for his leadership skills.
“He is a friend youwould never want to lose,” Ross said. “He is eager to learn and eager to help others learn. I saw it in him as a student inmy class and I have seen it grow in him as he has made his way in theworldof sports. Hehas risen to circles far above my own standing in life, and yet in the times we have spoken together since he has moved on, he retains that same energy and humility I have always found in him, along with the wisdom and patience that has come with maturity and seasoning in tough situations.”
GeorgeMason athletic director Brad Edwards, a former NFL safety, hired Easterby to assist himat Newberry.
“Jack would have been a perfect fit to be the athletic director at Newberry had he not chosen to pursue the NFL,” Edwards said. “Instead, I asked him to consult for me on coaching searches at as a way of engaging his unique ability to fit people together to build championship caliber programs.”
Following an internship with the Jacksonville Jaguars that included working under director of football administration Tim Walsh, Easterby enrolled in seminary classes. He later became the academic adviser for the South Carolina men’s basketball program.
While Easterby was at South Carolina, he consulted with NBA teams and USA Basketball.
“We were looking for a young guy with leadership potential who could help us with academics and a variety of areas, and hiring Jack was a terrific decision by coach Odom,” said Ken Potosnak, an assistant coach for Odom who hired Easterby. “Jack had a really special way with the players. He could give them endless positive reinforcement and energy, and that was apparent in the campus community.
“Everybody could see that Jack was mature beyond his years, and there was no job too big or too small for Jack. He played a really important role in helping the players develop as men in life.”
Initially, Staley didn’t quite know what to make of Easterby when she saw him jumping up and down exhorting players at South Carolina women’s basketball games. She couldn’t help but notice his energy.
“Jack is a cool guy, a genuine guy, and hewas our spiritual leader,” Staley said Friday. “If you didn’t know him, just watching him, you might think he’s a cornball or he’s not real. I probably thought that until I got to know him watching him jump out of his seat. People are skeptical at first, but, if you have a conversation with him, you understand that Jack is a divine man, a man of faith. The players loved him.
“The way he approaches everything, it’s different, it’s infectious and he’s like this every day of the week. He actually shared the message with us that he shared with the Texans. They’re NFL players and grown men, but they’re human beings and athletes like my players. He has so much knowledge packed into him. He’s a gift. He texts me all the time. He does it nonstop. When he came on board as our chaplain and character coach, we saw our program change for the better. It was more positive, and we had a better understanding of our why.”
Unlike many NFL general managers who have an extensive background in scouting or coaching, Easterby reached this point through an unconventional path. He helped guide the Patriots through the Hernandez ordeal, the Deflategate controversy to four Super Bowl runs in six years.
“Jack is different, and he skipped a few steps on his way up the ladder because ofwhat he did with the Patriots,” Staley said. “That doesn’t mean that he didn’t put in the work. He just took a different ladder that didn’t have as many steps on it.
“He’s able to use what he learned in that environment in New England and apply it towhat he’s doing now with the Texans. I’m so excited to seewhat Jack will do with this opportunity, because of what he’s all about.”