Detroit Lions GM candidate: Getting to know Rick Smith

The Detroit Lions have already interviewed four candidates for their general manager job, and they’ve got plenty more coming. Next week alone, the Lions are rumored to have three candidate interviews lined up for more-than-qualified candidates for the job.

One of those candidates is former Texans general manager Rick Smith. Smith has been out of the NFL since the end of the 2017 season, when he made the decision to step down from his position to take care of his cancer-stricken wife (though, there’s a little more to the story). Now, it appears he’s ready to re-enter the NFL and get a second shot in the NFL.

Smith has the unique qualifications of being an experienced general manager who never technically got fired from his position. He has big notches in his belt, like pounding the table for Deshaun Watson and acquiring superstars in DeAndre Hopkins and J.J. Watt, but he also has some significant misses, like signing Brock Osweiler.

So to better get to know this candidate, we chatted with NFL insider and current Texans beat writer Aaron Wilson to tell us everything he knows about Smith. Here are some interesting things we talked about:

• What kind of person is Smith?
• Who was to blame in his fallout with former Texans head coach Bill O’Brien?
• Which personnel decisions were his? Which were because of his staff?
• How is he at delegating?

Then, Wilson drops a JUICY rumor about who he’s hearing the Lions are focusing their GM search on.

This is a quick, short episode, so you aren’t going to want to miss this one. You can listen below, subscribe to us on your favorite podcast platform, or watch a replay on YouTube or Twitch.