A 31-23 loss to the Minnesota Vikings appears to have been the final straw, but the may have decided well before that to fire head coach and general manager Bill O'Brien.
The Texans confirmed Monday that O'Brien was out:
According to ESPN's Dianna Russini, the coach "lost the team" two weeks ago as the situation deteriorated to the extent there was a "verbal blowup" during practice:
Dianna Russini @diannaESPNI spoke with sources in Houston and they tell me two weeks ago is when it really started to fall apart. One source said “that’s when OB lost the team” The offense was beyond frustrated and it even turned into a verbal blowup at practice.