HOFFMAN'S HOUSTON
How the crossroads of Astros, Texans, and Rihanna reveals eye-opening realities of viewing trends
Sep 26, 2022, 1:49 pm
The fourth quarter continues to frustrate Texans fans. Photo by Michael Reaves/Getty Images.
Here's where we stand, our Houston Texans have played three games against arguably the three worst teams in the NFL (present company excluded) and have zero wins to show for it.
Sunday’s heartbreaking, but thoroughly deserved 23-20 loss to the grounded Bears was a tour de force of futility, a total team collapse for the Texans. Everybody did their share, the offense, defense, coaches, and the Texans left Soldier Field with a loss that shoulda, coulda been a victory. Losing close games is what bad teams do, why coaches get fired.
This was the second consecutive game on the road for the Texans where the home team was booed by their fans - and still beat the Texans.
Here’s an alarming stat: the Texans have been outscored 30-0 in the fourth quarter. More troubling for the rest of 2022: the Texans are a boring, lousy, losing product that will lead to a half-empty NRG Stadium like recent years.
On Sunday, like the week before, I turned to the Astros game on AT&T SportsNet SW during Texans TV breaks and it got progressively harder to return to the Texans game. I wound up watching the Astros live and Texans later on DVR.
Sunday’s Texans game would have been a comedy of errors if the team weren’t so tragically awful. Maybe CBS should run a laugh track during Texans broadcasts.
The Texans now find themselves alone in last place in the AFC South. They’re winless after playing three patsies. Now they get ready to host the Los Angeles Chargers, then head east for the first-place, you read that right, Jacksonville Jaguars and later the 0-3 Las Vegas Raiders. Before the season started, oddsmakers had the Texans as underdogs all 17 games this season. It still looks that way.
Fans and the media are losing faith in Davis Mills as the team’s quarterback of the future. Yes, Davis has been disappointing so far in 2022, with the 30th lowest quarterback rating in the NFL. Mills looks like a young quarterback who’s in over his head and shows little signs of being a firebrand leader. Mills went 20-32 for 245 yards, one touchdown and two interceptions on Sunday.
It’s true, teams have won the Super Bowl with lesser talented quarterbacks, like Brad Johnson for Tampa Bay in 2002 and Trent Dilfer for Baltimore in 2000. This just in, however, Houston will not be going to the 2023 Super Bowl.
While Mills continues to cast doubt on his future as QB1, Bears quarterback Justin Fields was stunningly horrible Sunday. At least Texans coaches involved Mills in the offense. The Bears know they have clunker in Fields, who went 8-17 for 106 yards, two interceptions and no touchdowns. Those are Air Force vs. Army numbers, unseen in the NFL in decades.
I asked a buddy, is Justin Fields the worst quarterback in the NFL? His answer: “You mean besides our guy?” I don’t know if he was joking or not. Note to Alabama quarterback Bryce Young - your scripts for next year’s H-E-B commercials are in the mail. Stay upright.
Sunday also saw the NFL announce that Rihanna would be the half-time headliner at this season’s Super Bowl. The reveal came with the factoid: Rihanna is the second biggest-selling female recording artist of all-time. OK, trivia buffs, who’s the No. 1 selling female artist?
(Answer: Madonna has sold 335 million records since 1982, while Rihanna has sold 250 million since her debut in 2005.)
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The Astros dropped a tough one Tuesday night, falling 4–2 to the White Sox after slipping behind early. But before anyone reaches for the panic button, take a breath — this team may not look like the dominant, late-inning machine from 2022, but there are still reasons to believe something bigger could be brewing.
In this episode, we unpack what this loss really means and why the bigger picture still matters. Despite a wave of injuries, the Astros are hanging a few games over the .500 mark — a feat that may be more impressive than it seems on the surface.
We take a closer look at Lance McCullers Jr., who’s no longer fighting for a spot at the back of the rotation. His stuff looks sharper, and his role as a solid No. 3 is starting to take shape. We also spotlight Ryan Gusto, a young arm who might quietly become a key piece down the stretch.
The offense hasn’t exploded the way fans hoped, but maybe that’s the point — Houston is still in the fight, and in some ways, overachieving considering the circumstances. Rookie Cam Smith is settling in nicely at the big-league level, and although Christian Walker has underwhelmed, Isaac Paredes has emerged as one of the top third basemen in the American League. Plus, let's not forget Yordan Alvarez should be returning in short order to give the offense a lift.
And yes, it’s early, but we can’t help but wonder… could this be the start of another World Series run? After all, the Astros were swept by the White Sox in 2017 — and we all remember how that story ended.
Be sure to watch the video below as ESPN Houston's John Granato and Lance Zierlein weigh in!
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