STOOTS ON TEXANS
11 observations from Texans' 23-10 loss to Commanders
Nov 21, 2022, 8:45 am
The Texans had five net yards at halftime. Photo by Bob Levey/Getty Images.
The Houston Texans played one of their worst games of the season. The Washington Commanders marched their way to a 23-10 victory. Here are 11 observations from the thrashing.
1. The offense was anemic in the first half. There was nothing working at all and it frequently drew boos from the crowd. It was the worst half of offense this team has played in a long time.
2. The Texans had five net yards at halftime. Per TruMedia Sports there have only been 11 instances this century of a team failing to get 10-plus yards in the first half. The Texans were the last team before today when they had negative yards last year in Buffalo against the Bills.
3. The offensive play calling is putrid. Pep Hamilton’s offense, when it is executed, is bad. There is no faith in this team to throw the ball deep, and if the rushing attack gets stuffed it is almost assuredly a punt.
4. Davis Mills threw a bad interception to start the game. Mills shouldn’t be staring down wideouts, much less Brandin Cooks. Terrible job by the future backup quarterback.
5. Kenyon Green has had a bad stretch the past few weeks. This was among his worst games. One play saw Green used to tackle Davis Mills basically as he got blown off the football. Another play saw Green quickly dispatched and his man earn the sack. Kenyon Green hit the rookie wall and then it fell on him.
6. The entire offensive line played poorly on Sunday. Thankfully this hasn’t been an every-week occurrence with the full line playing poor, but it tanked the offense. Lovie Smith said after the game the performance of the offensive line kept anything from being able to happen on offense.
7. Lovie Smith was incredulous when it came to being asked about changes on the team. Smith was adamant the team played the players they believed helped them win. It doesn’t sound like changes on offense are coming.
8. The Texans should consider making a change to the offensive staff. Pep Hamilton has been poor this year. Ben McDaniels is the wide receivers coach & passing game coordinator and the younger brother of Raiders head coach Josh McDaniels. I would see if he can call an offense like his brother.
9. Jalen Pitre must catch interceptions when they hit him in the hands. The game might be totally different if the rookie safety holds on to the early opportunity. He bounced back well from a subpar performance last week.
10. The defense was fine. Nothing amazing from the defense, and the offense put them in some unfavorable spots. The defense doesn’t possess the ability to win the team games nor can it overcome this level of offense, but it was a fine performance from the unit.
11. The fans that attended the game made their presence known. NRG Stadium was maybe sixty percent full and had a good amount of Washington fans. The Texans fans were loud with boos a few times. The Commanders fans were very loud with a “defense” chant late in the game. The rest of the home games should be interesting observations in the fan base's interest in the team. Especially the next home game against the Browns with Deshaun Watson’s debut.
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Rockets stumble as Grizzlies snatch victory in controversial finish
Jan 31, 2025, 12:11 pm
Thursday night's one point loss at Memphis aside, what a run the Houston Rockets have been enjoying. Within a two week stretch the Rockets beat the last two NBA Champions (winning on the road in Denver and Boston), and twice beat the Cleveland Cavaliers who have the best record in the league this season and against all other teams are 39-7. Yes, the Nuggets were without Nikola Jokic in their loss to the Rockets but don’t nitpick. Entering February with a 32-15 record exceeds even optimistic preseason hopes. The preseason betting line for the Rockets' season win total was 43, give or take a game. They are on pace to win 55.
In the 2022-23 season the Rockets completed a three-year run as an on-court laughingstock with a 22-60 record. That tied for the second worst record in the NBA, following seasons of 20-62 and 17-55 which each were the worst record in the league. It was an embarrassing stretch for a proud franchise. The Rockets had just three losing seasons total in the 36 seasons prior to their recent three years in the toilet. Following the ‘22-’23 slog, the Rockets’ cross their fingers really hard hope was to win the draft lottery where the unquestioned grand prize was Victor Wembanyama. Alas, the Rockets drew only the fourth pick on lottery night. “Wemby” hasn’t disappointed the San Antonio Spurs at all, and in this his second season he stands a strong chance of winning the Defensive Player of the Year Award.Prevailing sentiment had point guard “Scoot” Henderson as the second-best prospect in the ‘23 draft. The Charlotte Hornets took forward Brandon Miller at number two because they already had LaMelo Ball at point guard. The Portland Trail Blazers then took Henderson at three. Would the Rockets have taken him at number two or three? We don’t know with certainty. Other than for laughs they have no reason to admit they'd have selected "Scoot," any more than Nick Caserio would have to admit the Texans’ would have drafted Bryce Young over C.J. Stroud if they had picked first not second in the 2023 NFL draft. What we do know is the Rockets picked Amen Thompson fourth. Amen to that.
Thompson individually best mirrors the Rockets’ rapid rise from mediocre last season (41-41) to legitimate contender. Thompson was the fourth pick in his draft class, after the Rockets took Jabari Smith third the year before, with Jalen Green the second overall pick the year before that. It was Smith’s broken hand in early January that spurred head coach Ime Udoka to insert Thompson into the starting lineup. I’m guessing neither Thompson nor Smith know the story of Wally Pipp (or perhaps Lou Gehrig either), but how can Udoka put Smith back in the starting lineup? The race is on for which in hindsight will be general manager Rafael Stone’s greater move, taking Thompson at four or swinging the post-draft trade that netted 2021 number 16 selection Alperen Sengun. Sengun Thursday night was named an All-Star game reserve for the first time. One can envision Thompson joining Sengun on an All-Star squad as soon as next season. Credit to Jalen Green for some improvement this season, but the idea that he has made a huge leap and should have made the All-Star game is silly. Green has stretches where hot shooting combines with his explosiveness to make him look like a star, but that is not his body of work. Green’s shooting percentages remain below average from the floor overall and from behind the three-point line.
The Rockets are second in the Western Conference while getting essentially nothing from the third pick in last June’s draft, guard Reed Sheppard. He’s just 20 years old and there is no reason for a pure shooter to lose that skill before he can legally buy a beer, so bust talk is way premature. But Sheppard looked like a poor man’s Bryce Drew (that’s not a compliment) in his early season opportunities, overmatched physically with the game way too fast for him.
When you draft in the top four for four consecutive years, you’re supposed to assemble some stout talent. In consecutive drafts the Seattle Supersonics/Oklahoma City Thunder picked Kevin Durant (at number two), Russell Westbrook (at number four), and James Harden (at number three). Success is no given however even with a raft of high lottery picks. The Minnesota Timberwolves in successive drafts selected third, fifth and sixth the same year, fourth, and second. Their “haul” was O.J. Mayo, Ricky Rubio/Jonny Flynn, Wesley Johnson, and Derrick Williams. Yikes.
The current iteration of the Thunder is obviously the best team in the Western Conference, but until OKC breaks through and wins a conference title, it’s not unreasonable to think OKC can be had in a best-of-seven. That the Rockets make the list of teams who wouldn’t require a miracle to topple the Thunder is a phenomenal development.
Still counting down to the start of spring training, but we have taken no offseason from discussing the Astros. Join Brandon Strange, Josh Jordan, and me for a New Stone Cold ‘Stros podcast which drops each Monday, with an additional episode now on Thursday. Click here to catch!
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