Three headlines, two questions, and one bet after the late loss to the Saints

Colvin's rough day highlighted in loss

Cody Stoots
Sep 10, 2019, 1:03 pm
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Happy to be at the Watson magic show

Deshaun Watson was amazing on Monday night. Not much else can be said. He survived another poor performance from the offensive line, he escaped far more pressure, and he made big throw after big throw.

"He's a very instinctive, great player, plays with poise, always looking to improve, and he's a winner," said head coach Bill O'Brien. "I think that's what I was saying after the game and that's what I told our team."

Watson is a little banged up according to O'Brien but it isn't anything too serious. He said it was "normal bumps and bruises" for his star quarterback.

Watson added another bump and bruise in all likelihood on his big strike to Kenny Stills. O'Brien praised him for his toughness in that moment.

"To hang in there and take a hit and to deliver that ball with the accuracy that he delivered it – that one play kind of says it all about the guy."

Watson's potential is through the roof for the Texans right now.

Running back duo impresses in debut

I have to be honest, I didn't expect much out of Carlos Hyde. He was on his fourth team in less than a year and his stats that matter have been just dropping and dropping over the past few seasons.

That ain't the Carlos Hyde who played in New Orleans last night. He had plenty of juice and took care of business.

Hyde and his running buddy Duke Johnson combined for 140 yards on the ground on 19 carries. That's 7.3 yards per carry. They don't have to be that but the running game can be effective especially as the line continues to gel going forward.

Howard and Coutee almost ready

Tytus Howard and Keke Coutee didn't play on Monday but they were close to playing.

Bill O'Brien said both players were very close and "there's a chance" both will be playing on Sunday when the Jaguars come to town.

Where was Watt?

No tackle. No sack. Not even a quarterback hurry.

Ryan Ramczyk won handily against Watt on the right side of the Saints line. He graded out as the second best tackle in the opening weekend on NFL action with the majority of his work coming against Watt.

Bill O'Brien made it clear Watt is an impact player even if the box score doesn't show it.

"So, I think that they did a good job," O'Brien said. "Give them credit, but I also think that he still impacted the game. I know that he didn't show up on the stat sheet, because we're all so used to him showing up on the stat sheet because of what just a great football player he is, but that doesn't mean he didn't impact the game."

The natural idea is Jadeveon Clowney could have helped and we'd all be foolish to not think that is the case. Clowney, however, is a Seahawks defensive player and not on the Texans. Houston needs some help and in a hurry from the pass rush standpoint. Yes, Drew Brees gets the ball out quick and rarely gets sacks, but there has to be some success up front. The players added in the Clowney trade need to figure out how to help fast.

Can Aaron Colvin bounce back?

Aaron Colvin gave up too much space on the last offensive play for the Saints and he gave up too much other stuff as well. He was picked on all night by Drew Brees.

Pro Football Focus had Colvin down for allowing eight of nine completions for 117 yards and a touchdown. The one that wasn't a completion was a drop.

Colvin has to be better if he is going to be the slot option on this team. He hasn't flashed any of his success from his time in Jacksonville. There may not be better option on this team right now for the slot so Colvin and the Texans have no choice but for him to bounce back.

UPDATE: Colvin was cut by the Texans Tuesday

I bet Gardner Minshew is going to have a tough time this weekend

Despite being upset with Romeo Crennel and his defense, the longtime defensive coordinator is stellar against rookie quarterbacks.

Last year Baker Mayfield and Josh Allen struggled while Sam Darnold, who was one of the best quarterbacks late in the year, succeeded against the Texans defense. Crennel should have plenty dialed up for the Jaguars new starting rookie.

Minshew will be getting the ball out quick. He made some big plays in defeat when he came in for Foles. This won't be a cake walk but history should stay on the Texans side.

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Houston gets the lopsided win

Valdez, Astros dominate the Angels in 10-0 rout in Anaheim

Framber Valdez was dominant against the Angels on Monday night. Photo by Bob Levey/Getty Images

With a series win at home over the weekend, the Astros started their final regular-season road trip on Monday, squaring off against the Angels in Anaheim. They held the momentum firmly in their favor all night, dominating both sides of the game to start the series with a victory.

Final Score: Astros 10, Angels 0

Astros' Record: 89-61, first in the AL West

Winning Pitcher: Framber Valdez (11-5)

Losing Pitcher: Jaime Barria (2-4)

Siri leads off with a bang

With Jose Altuve being given the night off, Houston gave Jose Siri a shot at the leadoff spot, and he delivered to start the opener in Anaheim. He launched a missile to left field, 426 feet, to put the Astros in front 1-0 before the Angels could record an out. Later that same inning, they strung together three singles, the third being an RBI by Carlos Correa to double the lead.

Valdez goes seven shutout innings

That gave Framber Valdez a lead to work with as he stepped on the rubber in the bottom of the inning, and he didn't give it up as he would post a dominant start. He started with a 1-2-3 first, worked around a couple of singles in the second, then used a double play to face the minimum in the third.

He retired Los Angeles in order again in the fourth, stranded a two-out single in the fifth and a single and a walk in the sixth. He had his worst inning of the night in the seventh, giving up a leadoff single then loading the bases on back-to-back two-out walks. He'd escape the jam, though, keeping the shutout alive and finalizing his impressive line: 7.0 IP, 6 H, 0 ER, 3 BB, 6 K, 98 P.

Astros take the opener in lopsided fashion

Houston tacked on an insurance run in the top of the eighth, getting a one-out double by Correa to set up an RBI single by Marwin Gonzalez, pushing the lead to 3-0. Things escalated from there, as another single put two on base for Martin Maldonado, who blew the game open with a three-run homer to make it a six-run lead.

Brooks Raley took over for Valdez in the bottom of the inning, and with a 1-2-3 inning, made it his eighth appearance in a row without allowing a run. The Astros didn't let up in the top of the ninth, getting two hits and a walk to load the bases before a grand slam by Gonzalez made it 10-0 and gave him 5 RBI in a two-inning span. Seth Martinez, called up by the Astros earlier in the day, made his big-league debut in the bottom of the ninth and closed out the lopsided win to put Houston's magic number at 6.

Up Next: The second of this four-game set will be another 8:38 PM Central start on Tuesday. Jose Urquidy (7-3, 3.38 ERA) will take the mound for the Astros, going opposite Packy Naughton (0-2, 4.32 ERA) for the Angels.

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