Sitting at 3-3, the Houston Texans headed to Carolina looking for their fourth win of the season as three point favorites against the winless Panthers.

Unfortunately for Houston, the team came up short, losing 15-13. Panthers QB Bryce Young outplayed CJ Stroud on Sunday, and the Texans running game was terrible once again. Which had many questioning the play calling from OC Bobby Slowik.

It's time to pivot

Slowik's unwillingness to get away from the running game, especially when it's not working, is causing some real concern. This offense needs to run through Stroud, and 24 pass attempts like we saw against Carolina isn't going to be enough.

It's also becoming clear that Tytus Howard needs to go back to playing tackle, and Houston needs to find a new answer at left guard.

Some other big lessons learned from the disappointing loss involves the passing game. Tank Dell and Dalton Schultz have to be able to produce in the same game. Schultz's increased production over the last few weeks seems to coincide with Tank Dell missing time from a concussion.

With Tank Dell back this week, Schultz only caught two passes for 5 yards. Penalties also hampered the Texans, especially a delay of game that knocked the Texans out of field goal range, leading to a punt.

Finally, the Texans offensive regression is starting to be more apparent. Houston only scored 3 points in the second half against the Saints, and the team went scoreless in the first and fourth quarters of the Panthers game.

On the bright side, Houston's defense is improving each week. We wondered if DeMeco Ryans had enough talent on defense to crack the Top 10. And as of right now, they've allowed the 6th fewest points per game at 18.3 points against per game.

Be sure to watch the video above as we react to the loss and look ahead to next week.

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