COUNTDOWN TO THE SEASON
Cody Stoots: The 11 most important Texans not named Deshaun Watson
Cody Stoots
Jul 10, 2018, 8:13 am
DeAndre Hopkins might be the most important Texan not named Watson. Tim Warner/Getty Images
Obviously, Deshaun Watson is the most important player on this team. There won't be any debate. They're sunk without him. So these Texans players find themselves as the most important Texans players after QB1:
1) DeAndre Hopkins
Hopkins is the most important Texans player behind Deshaun Watson. His 94 receptions, 1,370 yards, and 10 touchdowns is the Hopkins average if you take out the year he couldn't get on the same page with Brock Osweiler. He is QB-proof, again except for Brock, having had success with every quarterback he has ever played with. He was amazing with Watson last year and should be even better this year. He could put up numbers as impressive or more than last year's figures. The offense is built around Watson but the passing attack is built around Hopkins. The defense though will need their own Mr. Consistent...
2) Jadeveon Clowney
Clowney finds himself constantly one step away from a game-breaking play. Those other times he is terrorizing the rushing attacks of other teams. The pass rushing is almost to an elite level for him. The new deal lingers and if for some reason the money isn't on the table making it hurt at the next negotiation will be Clowney's goal. If the new deal is in place then a happy Clowney loves football and is ready to dominate.
3) Whitney Mercilus
Him being this high on this list might surprise some but it shouldn't. Two seasons ago in J.J. Watt's absence, the defense found themselves as one of the best in football and Mercilus was one of the main reasons. With 2018 being the next to last year on his contract think of this upcoming season as a contract year for Mercilus. His current deal has been a steal for the Texans. A huge year could see Mercilus head to the negotiating table with a chance to make sure he finishes his career well paid and as a member of the Texans.
4) Will Fuller
Fuller has to have a full and competitive season for the Texans to be one of the best teams in the AFC. He was fantastic in his limited work with Watson totaling all seven of his touchdowns and 125 more yards working with Watson than after the quarterback's season ended. He is there to create a matchup problem for defenses and take some pressure off Hopkins but he will need to evolve. Fuller can't be a one trick pony and will need to be a complete wideout to help the Texans establish their offense.
5) Aaron Colvin
Colvin and his role with the team will help determine how the secondary is going to approach most opponents. He has been one of the best slot corners in the game but he wasn't brought over to be just a slot corner for the Texans. Colvin will need to be a consistent playmaker, on and off the box score, to make sure the Texans can stymie opposing offense for just that one extra moment to allow a hopefully healthy pass rush to earn sacks and disrupt pass catchers. He's easily the most talented cornerback on the roster.
6) Tyrann Mathieu
The Honey Badger has played safety the most of all the safeties on the Texans. Let that sink in. Now realize as far as starting safety experience he will outrank the next few names combined. Kareem Jackson is now at safety as is Treston Decoud. Corey Moore was demoted last season after the New England game. Justin Reid is a rookie. The constant comments that Mathieu would focus heavily on safety now make more sense. Mathieu will have to be an immediate impact player for Romeo Crennel's defense.
7) Lamar Miller
The No. 1 RB had no 100-yard rushing games last season. He also checked in with a career-low 3.7 yards per attempt. The offensive line was not effective last year so that has to contribute to it but Miller is also quickly approaching the time in his career when most running backs break or lose a step. The heaviest workload of his career what his first with Houston and last year wasn't good. Foreman is injured and the rest of the running backs are unremarkable. It is on Miller's shoulders to get this rushing attack going.
8) Ryan Griffin
He is really important and don't you dare laugh at this. The Texans face a premier corner in six of their first nine games. Stephon Gilmore, Malcolm Butler, Janoris Jenkins, Tre'davious White, and the Jaguars duo all show up in the first two months of the season. With those guys slowing down DeAndre Hopkins and Will Fuller the focus of the other secondary members the Texans will have to make sure Griffin gets going. He has played five seasons and the next three guys on the depth chart combine for two, with Stepehen Anderson having those two and the two rookies Jordan Akins and Jordan Thomas behind him. If Griffin isn't good it will be hard for Watson to get going early in the season.
9) J.J. Watt
Watt is of course very important. If he is good, the Texans should dominate people on defense. If he isn't good then the looming cloud of a forgotten Watt will be there all season. Watt and his teammates will answer questions of why the old Watt isn't on the field. Also, there isn't a lot of good depth behind him. He needs to be good, take up some of the important snaps on defense, and not be the Watt of old but be a good player.
10) Benardrick McKinney
He played better in 2016 than he did last season but he still earned a huger contract this offseason. He can't be just good enough for the Texans anymore. Yes, Zach Cunningham and Dylan Cole compose a decent amount of talent behind him, but McKinney has the significant experience. He is reliable but the Texans didn't pay for their middle linebacker to be reliable. If McKinney isn't better than 2017 the Texans and the fans watching him might be thinking buyer's remorse.
11) Julién Davenport
He makes the list because he is the only member of this turned over offensive line without some significant experience. There isn't a backup plan for left tackle. The Texans have focused on him and with or without earning it he takes over at left tackle for better or worse. The leash won't be short either. The positive for him is no elite pass rushers show up early on the schedule. He has six weeks to get comfortable before the Jaguars terrifying defense shows up.
So there you have it. The most important Texans after Deshaun Watson. Watson's injury would be devastating and sink the team but the Texans don't have the talent to afford one of these key players to miss significant time.
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After finishing up with the Guardians the Astros have a rather important series for early May with the Seattle Mariners heading to town for the weekend. While it’s still too early to be an absolute must-win series for the Astros, losing the series to drop seven or eight games off the division lead would make successfully defending their American League West title that much more unlikely.
Since their own stumble out of the gate to a 6-10 record the Mariners have been racking up series wins, including one this week over the Atlanta Braves. The M’s offense is largely Mmm Mmm Bad, but their pitching is sensational. In 18 games after the 6-10 start, the Mariners gave up five runs in a game once. In the other 17 games they only gave up four runs once. Over the 18 games their starting pitchers gave up 18 earned runs total with a 1.44 earned run average. That’s absurd. Coming into the season Seattle’s starting rotation was clearly better on paper than those of the Astros and Texas Rangers, and it has crystal clearly played out as such into the second month of the schedule.
While it’s natural to focus on and fret over one’s own team's woes when they are plentiful as they have been for the Astros, a reminder that not all grass is greener elsewhere. Alex Bregman has been awful so far. So has young Mariners’ superstar Julio Rodriguez. A meager four extra base hits over his first 30 games were all Julio produced down at the ballyard. That the Mariners are well ahead of the Astros with J-Rod significantly underperforming is good news for Seattle.
Caratini comes through!
So it turns out the Astros are allowed to have a Puerto Rican-born catcher who can hit a little bit. Victor Caratini’s pedigree is not that of a quality offensive player, but he has swung the bat well thus far in his limited playing time and provided the most exciting moment of the Astros’ season with his two-out two-run 10th inning game winning home run Tuesday night. I grant that one could certainly say “Hey! Ronel Blanco finishing off his no-hitter has been the most exciting moment.” I opt for the suddenness of Caratini’s blow turning near defeat into instant victory for a team that has been lousy overall to this point. Frittering away a game the Astros had led 8-3 would have been another blow. Instead, to the Victor belong the spoils.
Pudge Rodriguez is the greatest native Puerto Rican catcher, but he was no longer a good hitter when with the Astros for the majority of the 2009 season. Then there’s Martin Maldonado.
Maldonado’s hitting stats with the Astros look Mike Piazza-ian compared to what Jose Abreu was doing this season. Finally, mercifully for all, Abreu is off the roster as he accepts a stint at rookie-level ball in Florida to see if he can perform baseball-CPR on his swing and career. Until or unless he proves otherwise, Abreu is washed up and at some point the Astros will have to accept it and swallow whatever is left on his contract that runs through next season. For now Abreu makes over $120,000 per game to not be on the roster. At his level of performance, that’s a better deal than paying him that money to be on the roster.
Abreu’s seven hits in 71 at bats for an .099 batting average with a .269 OPS is a humiliating stat line. In 2018 George Springer went to sleep the night of June 13 batting .293 after going hitless in his last four at bats in a 13-5 Astros’ win over Oakland. At the time no one could have ever envisioned that Springer had started a deep, deep funk which would have him endure a nightmarish six for 78 stretch at the plate (.077 batting average). Springer then hit .293 the rest of the season.
Abreu’s exile opened the door for Joey Loperfido to begin his Major League career. Very cool for Loperfido to smack a two-run single in his first game. He also struck out twice. Loperfido will amass whiffs by the bushel, he had 37 strikeouts in 101 at bats at AAA Sugar Land. Still, if he can hit .225 with some walks mixed in (he drew 16 with the Space Cowboys) and deliver some of his obvious power (13 homers in 25 games for the ex-Skeeters) that’s an upgrade over Abreu/Jon Singleton, as well as over Jake Meyers and the awful showing Chas McCormick has posted so far. Frankly, it seems unwise that the Astros only had Loperfido play seven games at first base in the minors this year. If McCormick doesn’t pick it up soon and with Meyers displaying limited offensive upside, the next guy worth a call-up is outfielder Pedro Leon. In January 2021 the Astros gave Leon four million dollars to sign out of Cuba and called him a “rapid mover to the Major Leagues.” Well…
Over his first three minor league seasons Leon flashed tools but definitely underwhelmed. He has been substantially better so far this year. He turns 26 May 28. Just maybe the Astros offense could be the cause of fewer Ls with Loperfido at first and Leon in center field.
Catch our weekly Stone Cold ‘Stros podcast. Brandon Strange, Josh Jordan, and I discuss varied Astros topics. The first post for the week generally goes up Monday afternoon (second part released Tuesday) via YouTube: stone cold stros - YouTube with the complete audio available via Apple Podcast, Spotify, or wherever you get your podcasts.