TEXANS ON TAP
Exciting takeaways from Houston Texans preseason finale against Rams
Aug 24, 2024, 3:48 pm
Texans defeat the Rams, 17-15. Composite Getty Image.
Tim Boyle threw for 142 yards and two touchdowns to lead the Houston Texans to a 17-15 win over the Los Angeles Rams on Saturday in the preseason finale for both teams.
The Texans led 10-9 when Boyle threw a 10-yard touchdown pass to Johnny Johnson III on the second play of the fourth quarter to make it 17-9.
Houston quarterback C.J. Stroud and Rams QB Matthew Stafford weren’t even in uniform for this one as most starters from both teams sat out.
Houston third-string quarterback Case Keenum started with Stroud and backup Davis Mills not playing Saturday. He led the offense on Houston’s first two possessions before Boyle took over.
Cam Akers, a former Ram fighting for a roster spot with the Texans, ran for 53 yards and had 19 yards receiving. He had a career-best 786 yards rushing with seven touchdowns for the Rams in 2022.
Dresser Winn played the entire game for Los Angeles and was 9 of 16 for 72 yards. Zach Evans ran for 45 yards and two touchdowns for the Rams. His 3-yard run with about three minutes left cut the lead to 17-15. But he was stopped short of the goal line on the 2-point conversion attempt.
The game was tied at 3-3 after both teams made field goals in the first quarter. The Texans made it 10-3 when Boyle connected with Troy Hairston on a 5-yard touchdown early in the second.
Los Angeles cut the lead to 10-9 when Evans scored on a 4-yard run about seven minutes before halftime. Rookie Joshua Karty’s extra point was no good after it bounced off the upright.
Stafford and backup Jimmy Garoppolo didn’t play this preseason. Stafford, who has missed practice time recently with a tight hamstring recently and is also dealing with a cut on his left thumb played extensively Thursday when these teams held a joint practice.
Third-stringer Stetson Bennett didn’t play Saturday after getting all the QB snaps in the first two preseason games. Sean McVay said that Bennett will serve as Stafford’s backup for the first two regular-season games with Garoppolo suspended for those games for violating the NFL’s policy on performance-enhancers.
Xavier Hutchinson, who is vying for one of Houston's last receiver spots, led the team with four receptions for 34 yards.
Injuries
Texans: S Brandon Hill was carted off the field in the first quarter with what appeared to be a right leg injury. … CB Kris Boyd looked to injure his left leg in the first half and didn’t return.
Up Next
Rams: Visit Detroit in a Sunday night game in their opener Sept. 8.
Texans: Open the season Sept. 8 at Indianapolis.
Be sure to watch the video above as the crew from Texans on Tap react to the game live.
What looked like a minor blip after an emotional series win in Los Angeles has turned into something more concerning for the Houston Astros.
Swept at home by a Guardians team that came in riding a 10-game losing streak, the Astros were left looking exposed. Not exhausted, as injuries, underperformance, and questionable decision-making converged to hand Houston one of its most frustrating series losses of the year.
Depth finally runs dry
It would be easy to point to a “Dodger hangover” as the culprit, the emotional peak of an 18-1 win at Chavez Ravine followed by a mental lull. But that’s not the story here.
Houston’s energy was still evident, especially in the first two games of the series, where the offense scored five or more runs each time. Including those, the Astros had reached that mark in eight of their last 10 games heading into Wednesday’s finale.
But scoring isn’t everything, not when a lineup held together by duct tape and desperation is missing Christian Walker and Jake Meyers and getting critical at-bats from Cooper Hummel, Zack Short, and other journeymen.
The lack of depth finally showed. The Astros, for three days, looked more like a Triple-A squad with Jose Altuve and a couple big-league regulars sprinkled in.
Cracks in the pitching core
And the thing that had been keeping this team afloat, elite pitching, finally buckled.
Hunter Brown and Josh Hader, both dominant all season, finally cracked. Brown gave up six runs in six innings, raising his pristine 1.82 ERA to 2.21. Hader wasn’t spared either, coughing up a game-losing grand slam in extra innings that inflated his ERA from 1.80 to 2.38 in one night.
But the struggles weren’t isolated. Bennett Sousa, Kaleb Ort, and Steven Okert each gave up runs at critical moments. The bullpen’s collective fade could not have come at a worse time for a team already walking a tightrope.
Injury handling under fire
Houston’s injury management is also drawing heat, and rightfully so. Jake Meyers, who had been nursing a calf strain, started Wednesday’s finale. He didn’t even make it through one pitch before aggravating the injury and needing to be helped off the field.
No imaging before playing him. No cautionary rest despite the All-Star break looming. Just a rushed return in a banged-up lineup, and it backfired immediately.
Second-guessing has turned to outright criticism of the Astros’ medical staff, as fans and analysts alike wonder whether these mounting injuries are being made worse by how the club is handling them.
Pressure mounts on Dana Brown
All eyes now turn to Astros GM Dana Brown. The Astros are limping into the break with no clear reinforcements on the immediate horizon. Only Chas McCormick is currently rehabbing in Sugar Land. Everyone else? Still sidelined.
Brown will need to act — and soon.
At a minimum, calling up top prospect Brice Matthews makes sense. He’s been mashing in Triple-A (.283/.400/.476, 10 HR, .876 OPS) and could play second base while Jose Altuve shifts to left field more regularly. With Mauricio Dubón stretched thin between shortstop and center, injecting Matthews’ upside into the infield is a logical step.
*Editor's note: The Astros must be listening, Matthews was called up Thursday afternoon!
The Astros are calling up Brice Matthews, their top prospect on @MLBPipeline
via @brianmctaggart pic.twitter.com/K91cGKkcx6
— FOX Sports: MLB (@MLBONFOX) July 10, 2025
There’s also trade chatter, most notably about Orioles outfielder Cedric Mullins, but excitement has been tepid. His numbers don’t jump off the page, but compared to who the Astros are fielding now, Mullins would be a clear upgrade and a much-needed big-league presence.
A final test before the break
Before the All-Star reset, Houston gets one last chance to stabilize the ship, and it comes in the form of a rivalry series against the Texas Rangers. The Astros will send their top trio — Lance McCullers Jr., Framber Valdez, and Hunter Brown — to the mound for a three-game set that will test their resolve, their health, and perhaps their postseason aspirations.
The Silver Boot is up for grabs. So is momentum. And maybe, clarity on just how far this version of the Astros can go.
There's so much more to discuss! 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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