Carlos Hyde's huge day helps plus how right was O'Brien to go for it late?
O'Brien's best coaching job to date has Texans rolling
Oct 14, 2019, 11:53 am
Photo by Thearon W. Henderson/Getty Images
3 Headlines, 2 Questions, and 1 Bet after the Texans defeat the Chiefs and get ready for the Colts.
Resiliency rules the day
Frank Clark dominates the line of scrimmage and knocks the ball away from Carlos Hyde
— Hunter W (@HW_Report46) October 13, 2019
FUMBLE!! KC has the ball at Houston 20#Texans #ChiefsKingdom #Chiefs #KCChiefs #HOUvsKC #NFL #NFL100 #SundayFunday pic.twitter.com/UdDqMU9gfG
There is a time where the Texans would have lost Sunday by about 20 or 30 points. We no longer live in that time.
-A broken play touchdown allowed
-Fumble on first play
-Top two corners out for majority of game
-Wideout who had fixed drop problems has drop problems
-Wideout who never drops the ball drops a touchdown
-Quarterback throws two interceptions when he had thrown one all year
-Kicker misses extra points and field goal
That's just a smattering of the things that could have derailed the Texans. In the past, just one or two of these would have doomed them. Instead, they dominated the second half and beat the Chiefs.
It is one of the most impressive wins in Bill O'Brien's tenure. Sure. It is also one of the most resilient wins in franchise history.
The offensive gameplan was awesome and well executed for the most part. The use of timeouts and challenges made sense. The team never spiraled out of control most importantly. Kudos to O'Brien for the successful day with the headset.
Bill "Coconuts" O'Brien
#Texans HC Bill O’Brien earns AWS Decision of the Week honors in Week 6!
— PFF (@PFF) October 14, 2019
📰: https://t.co/vrcwUdQARV pic.twitter.com/Jy585ieDyo
I thought the field goal to go up 10 points in the fourth quarter was the right move for the Texans.
O'Brien laughs in the face of the weak-minded who prefer to trust a shaky kicker over one of the best quarterbacks in football.
The above stats paint the picture of how smart it was to go for it.
I loved the gumption to go for it and the "trust the defense" mentality if the Texans failed to convert. There wasn't a "lose" situation short of a turnover and the Texans on the short and easy stuff had done a great job taking care of the ball.
It was something from a couple of seasons ago where I believe O'Brien would have attempted the kick and lived with the result. I also have faith the Texans defense could have stopped the Chiefs from scoring the way they played in the second half.
Runnin' Hyde
“They can’t f——— stop us”
— Nick Bromberg (@NickBromberg) October 13, 2019
Tell us how you really feel, Carlos Hyde pic.twitter.com/hlVpZqOwX4
Carlos Hyde was a man on Sunday. He touched the ball 26 times after his fumble. He had 13 of those 26 touches go for at least four yards and six of those went for at least nine yards. He was a workhorse running back and a physical runner than punished the Chiefs.
I never could have seen this coming from him. He is the perfect back for what Bill O'Brien wants to do with his first running back. He's been very impressive and went over 100 yards rushing for the first time in two years.
As for his colorful language, Hyde knew he let it slip.
"With the offense clicking like that, it's so hard to stop us," he said. "I was caught up in the moment right there. I've got to watch my language though. But, I was just caught up in the moment.When our offense is moving the ball like that, things are clicking, it's just hard to stop us."
Is this level of offensive line play here to stay?
No sacks. Two quarterback hits. One tackle for a loss. Woo boy. What a showing from the Texans offensive line. They worked over the Chiefs for a good portion of the game.
Now, the offensive gameplan helped them. Getting the ball out quick helped a ton for the protection but even then, they did amazing in keeping Watson clean and keeping the lanes open for Hyde and later Duke Johnson.
There wasn't even a big drop off when Roderick Johnson came in for the injured Tytus Howard.
Howard is going to miss time, but his season is seemingly not over per Aaron Wilson.
This has been an incredible job by this group coming together and really playing well.
Should we worry about Will Fuller's drops?
I made a compilation of all 3 dropped TDs today by Will Fuller.
— Dov Kleiman (@NFL_DovKleiman) October 13, 2019
Last week, he caught 3 TDs, today? dropped 3.pic.twitter.com/rRIl8wZe1a
Will Fuller didn't have the best day after an amazing one last week.
His first drop came in the end zone and led to the Texans settling for a field goal. It wasn't the easiest catch in the world but it hit his hands. In a close game, they could've used that to start the scoring.
The second drop came trailing by 14 points and again, wasn't an easy catch. I am giving him a pass on this one because it seems like it was a really hard catch to come down with. So, while he could have caught it, I am not sure he SHOULD have caught it.
The third one really hurt. The Texans led by six and had he reeled that one in, there's a chance the Texans blow the Chiefs out with plenty of breathing room on the scoreboard.
I am not worried about Fuller's drops. He had three all season before yesterday and had no drops last season. This seems like a hiccup more than an issue that could be popping up often.
I bet the loss to the Panthers really sticks with the Texans
When I asked Bill O'Brien about the offense and how they attack things quickly he mentioned the Panthers game. He was demonstrating they had bad second down situations that set them up for failure and called out their performance against Carolina by name.
While you can say the Saints and Jaguars games could have gone either way, the Texans absolutely should have beaten the Panthers. Kyle Allen didn't play well that day and the Texans offense has to be sick looking back on that performance. It was also the last time they looked bad on offense, so, if it got them going via fixing things, it is worth the headache.
It’s May 1, and the Astros are turning heads—but not for the reasons anyone expected. Their resurgence, driven not by stars like Yordan Alvarez or Christian Walker, but by a cast of less-heralded names, is writing a strange and telling early-season story.
Christian Walker, brought in to add middle-of-the-order thump, has yet to resemble the feared hitter he was in Arizona. Forget the narrative of a slow starter—he’s never looked like this in April. Through March and April of 2025, he’s slashing a worrying .196/.277/.355 with a .632 OPS. Compare that to the same stretch in 2024, when he posted a .283 average, .496 slug, and a robust .890 OPS, and it becomes clear: this is something more than rust. Even in 2023, his April numbers (.248/.714 OPS) looked steadier.
What’s more troubling than the overall dip is when it’s happening. Walker is faltering in the biggest moments. With runners in scoring position, he’s hitting just .143 over 33 plate appearances, including 15 strikeouts. The struggles get even more glaring with two outs—.125 average, .188 slugging, and a .451 OPS in 19 such plate appearances. In “late and close” situations, when the pressure’s highest, he’s practically disappeared: 1-for-18 with a .056 average and a .167 OPS.
His patience has waned (only 9 walks so far, compared to 20 by this time last year), and for now, his presence in the lineup feels more like a placeholder than a pillar.
The contrast couldn’t be clearer when you look at José Altuve—long the engine of this franchise—who, in 2024, delivered in the moments Walker is now missing. With two outs and runners in scoring position, Altuve hit .275 with an .888 OPS. In late and close situations, he thrived with a .314 average and .854 OPS. That kind of situational excellence is missing from this 2025 squad—but someone else may yet step into that role.
And yet—the Astros are winning. Not because of Walker, but in spite of him.
Houston’s offense, in general, hasn’t lit up the leaderboard. Their team OPS ranks 23rd (.667), their slugging 25th (.357), and they sit just 22nd in runs scored (117). They’re 26th in doubles, a rare place for a team built on gap-to-gap damage.
But where there’s been light, it hasn’t come from the usual spots. Jeremy Peña, often overshadowed in a lineup full of stars, now boasts the team’s highest OPS at .791 (Isaac Paredes is second in OPS) and is flourishing in his new role as the leadoff hitter. Peña’s balance of speed, contact, aggression, and timely power has given Houston a surprising tone-setter at the top.
Even more surprising: four Astros currently have more home runs than Yordan Alvarez.
And then there’s the pitching—Houston’s anchor. The rotation and bullpen have been elite, ranking 5th in ERA (3.23), 1st in WHIP (1.08), and 4th in batting average against (.212). In a season where offense is lagging and clutch hits are rare, the arms have made all the difference.
For now, it’s the unexpected contributors keeping Houston afloat. Peña’s emergence. A rock-solid pitching staff. Role players stepping up in quiet but crucial ways. They’re not dominating, but they’re grinding—and in a sluggish AL West, that may be enough.
Walker still has time to find his swing. He showed some signs of life against Toronto and Detroit. If he does, the Astros could become dangerous. If he doesn’t, the turnaround we’re witnessing will be credited to a new cast of unlikely faces. And maybe, that’s the story that needed to be written.
We have 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!
*ChatGPT assisted.
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