EVERY-THING SPORTS
Unraveling wild chain of events that have Texans poised for postseason triumph
Jan 10, 2024, 12:36 pm
The Texans have all the ingredients for a playoff run. Photo by Carmen Mandato/Getty Images.
November 23, 2018 is when things changed for the Texans organization. Owner and founder Bob McNair passed away at the age of 81. From that day forward, Mrs. Janice McNair, her son Cal, and his wife Hannah took over control of the day-to-day decisions Mr. McNair used to do. Mr. McNair was a kind, gentle guy in person. Although he wasn't without controversy, I never got the impression he was a bad guy.
Everyone wondered how would things be run now that he was gone. Mrs. McNair seemed to stay out of the way for the most part publicly. Cal and Hannah became the public faces of the franchise. Bill O'Brien and Jack Easterby took this time to ruin the franchise. Thankfully, both were sent packing and a new regime was brought in. When Nick Caserio was hired as general manager, it set in motion a chain of events that set this franchise up for success…but it took a while.
Today's society wants everything yesterday, or last week in some cases. The NFL is no different. When people saw other teams turning it around quickly, they wanted the Texans to do the same. The shift in ownership and direction stunted the growth. Having your franchise quarterback (Deshaun Watson) uncovered as an alleged perv set them back further. Caserio was up against it. Add to it, the coaches they wanted to hire weren't available for one reason or another. They traded their QB and got a nice haul in return. Still, it took a little longer to get the meal out of the kitchen the right way.
The tweet above was posted a day or so after the Texans took Derek Stingley Jr number three overall instead of Sauce Gardner (more on that in a minute). The question being thrown around was who/what do they do at the most important position for a franchise? Tom Brady was rumored to be on the outs in Tampa, but decided to return for a last hurrah. I had enough foresight to say even if they can't draft a Bryce Young, or Caleb Williams, or trade for someone else (a vet), there was a guy I thought the team would like in the next draft. I got lucky that he ended up here. He was a guy who had prototypical size, great accuracy, seemed like a good kid, great teammate by all accounts, and had a love for the game.
No quarterback was worthy of a high first rounder in 2022. People were up in arms thinking the Texans made a grave mistake taking Stingley over Gardner. I defended it, believing he'd be used correctly in a man defense. People countered because Lovie Smith is a Tampa 2 guy. But I knew Lovie wasn't going to be the long-term answer here. Again, people kept champing at the bit. They were desperate for something tangible to hold onto with this team.
About a year ago, things finally fell into place. Lovie won that last game, the Texans got the number two overall pick instead of number one, and the rest is history! Caserio fired Lovie and was immediately placed on the hot seat at the presser by Cal. He responded by hiring DeMeco Ryans, a former Texans legend and the hottest coaching prospect that hiring cycle. They didn't flinch in the draft process, either. They took Stroud at number two, then shocked everyone by trading up to number three for Will Anderson Jr. Again, the moves were met with criticism.
What a difference a year makes! All of those moves paid off their weight in gold! Stoud is the Offensive Rookie of the Year (not named, yet), Anderson is a contender for Defensive Rookie of the Year, DeMeco should win Coach of the Year, Caserio should get votes for Executive of the Year, and this team won the AFC South! All of this with a first year head coach and a rookie quarterback on a team NOBODY thought would go anywhere near the playoffs! Well…except maybe a few hardcore fans.
Sometimes when you're in the kitchen, things have to be cooked a certain way. Some prefer to stir over a pot for hours, some like throwing things in the slow cooker to set & forget, others like to use an Instant Pot. With the Texans, it took a little while. They prefer to make a roux from scratch in a Magnalite pot, then start their gumbo. Most of you like gumbo, right? It takes time and is a labor of love. Now sit down and enjoy your first of what will for sure be many bowls of Texans gumbo to come over the years!
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Isaac Paredes has been a steady force in the middle of the Astros’ order, but a tweaked hamstring suffered during Thursday’s win over the White Sox may force Houston to recalibrate, again.
If Paredes misses time, the most logical shuffle would see Jose Altuve sliding back to second base, with Mauricio Dubón stepping in at third. It’s a reasonable patch. But internally, there’s also some intrigue around whether Cam Smith—currently thriving in right field—could slide back to his original position on the infield. The idea isn’t without merit; Smith is the club’s best offensive option at third in Paredes’ absence. But defensively, it’s hard to justify moving him right now. Smith made several standout plays in the Chicago series, reinforcing just how important his glove has become to the Astros’ outfield defense. One thing is for sure, the Astros can't afford to play both Dubon and Brendon Rodgers in the infield regularly. The offense would take a huge hit.
Timing, however, might be on Houston’s side. The next stretch of games features the Twins, Athletics, and Angels—three teams the Astros can beat even while navigating lineup instability. It helps that Yainer Diaz and Christian Walker are showing signs of life at the plate. Diaz, in particular, has been red-hot, posting an OPS north of 1.200 over the past week. Walker is batting over .300 during that same span, giving the Astros enough firepower to survive short-term turbulence.
Elsewhere, the outfield presents its own set of choices. Jacob Melton has shown enough in the field to warrant a serious look as Chas McCormick’s replacement when he returns from injury. He’s still searching for consistency at the plate, batting under .200 in his first 10 big league games. But his arm and left-handed bat give manager Joe Espada a little more lineup flexibility—especially with Yordan Alvarez still out and the offense skewing right-handed.
For now, the Astros have room to adjust. But if Paredes ends up missing significant time, they’ll need more than just a few temporary solutions to keep their momentum going.
There's so much more to cover! Don't miss the video below as we examine the topics above and much, much more!
The MLB season is finally upon us! Join Brandon Strange, Josh Jordan, and Charlie Pallilo for the Stone Cold ‘Stros podcast which drops each Monday afternoon, with an additional episode now on Thursday.
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