Was Brian McCaffrey supposed to be this unlikeable?

I tried to find a reason to root for the guy because he’s supposed to be the protagonist, but he constantly acts like an entitled little s**t throughout the film. He quits the job, comes back, tries to get special treatment as a rookie, lashes out at his older brother (who’s only crime is trying to look out for him), gets a cushy position at the investigator’s office after less than a year on and still has his a** on his shoulders, then literally blames Stephen for Tim’s injuries while they’re standing there watching the guy get worked on in the hospital. I mean good lord, in a real firehouse back then this dude would have been figuratively and literally taken to the woodshed very early on by his coworkers.