How compounding reality of Texans situation isn’t being talked about enough

Buckle up

The Houston Texans came up short against the Ravens in their opening game of the season. DeMeco and company had a tough challenge in front of them, with so many injuries to the offensive line and the defense.

Which makes us wonder, how much can we really judge the team with so many players injured or added to the team right before Week 1?

Houston went into the game missing 3 of their 5 starting offensive lineman, and starting safety Jimmy Ward was inactive as well. Not to mention their other starting safety Jalen Pitre left the game just before halftime.

Plus, the team's usage of Dameon Pierce in the running game was puzzling. They kept taking him off the field on third down, and only gave him 13 total touches in the game.

You would think the Texans want their best weapon on the field and able to run or catch passes on third down, but that wasn't the case on Sunday.

Be sure to watch the video above as we discuss the challenges listed above for the Texans, and how they can get Pierce more involved in the offense to take some pressure off CJ Stroud.

If you enjoy the videos, be sure to subscribe on YouTube.

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The Astros beat the Brewers, 9-1. Photo by Jack Gorman/Getty Images.

Framber Valdez pitched seven strong innings and Jeremy Peña homered and drove in four runs as the Houston Astros defeated the Milwaukee Brewers 9-1 on Wednesday.

Houston earned just its second victory in seven games to snap Milwaukee’s three-game winning streak and leave both teams with .500 records. The Brewers were attempting to sweep a series from the Astros for the first time since 2012.

The Astros led 3-1 before Peña broke the game open by delivering a three-run homer to left off reliever Elvin Rodriguez with two outs in the sixth inning.

Valdez (2-4) struck out seven while allowing three hits, two walks and one run to earn his first win since the Astros’ March 27 season opener. He threw a season-high 101 pitches.

Milwaukee’s only run off Valdez came on Eric Haase’s fifth-inning homer, a 425-foot drive to center.

The Astros took a 1-0 lead off Quinn Priester (1-1) in the second inning as Jake Meyers hit a two-out single and scored on Zach Dezenzo’s double.

The Brewers have lost all 13 games this season in which their opponent scored first.

Five-time All-Star closer Josh Hader worked the ninth while pitching in Milwaukee for the first time since the Brewers traded him in 2022.

Key moment

The Astros led 1-0 and had runners on third and second with one out in the fifth when Peña hit a bouncer to third.

The throw home beat Dezenzo to the plate. Home plate umpire Chris Conroy initially ruled Dezenzo out, but the Astros challenged the call and replays showed the runner slid home ahead of Haase’s tag.

Key stat

Valdez has now pitched at least seven innings an MLB-leading 57 times since 2020.

Up next

The Astros host the Cincinnati Reds on Friday. Scheduled pitchers are right-hander Hunter Brown (5-1, 1.67) for the Astros and right-hander Nick Martinez (1-3, 4.19) for the Reds.

The Brewers visit the Tampa Bay Ray on Friday. Left-hander José Quintana (4-1, 2.83) will pitch for the Brewers.

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