CODY STOOTS
On the Texans after Week 2: 3 Headlines, 2 questions, 1 bet
Sep 17, 2018, 2:28 pm
It's Monday and here are three headlines, two questions, and one bet for this week.
Texans defensive standout Jadeveon Clowney declined to speak at length with the media today. He did not address directly the play and said he's moving onto the Texans next opponent the Giants.
Early in the fourth quarter the Titans first play of the drive saw their tight end catch a ball and stumble out of bounds onto the Texans sideline. Clowney, inactive for the game and in street clothes, was bumped by Luke Stocker after moving towards him three yards and later had an unsportsmanlike conduct penalty assessed on him giving the Titans 15 yards. Tennessee would finish that drive with a field goal from the Texans 24-yard line.
Bill O'Brien said he knows the taunting rule is a big emphasis but he isn't sure of the details of the Clowney penalty.
"I don't really know," was O'Brien's response to a question about Clowney's availability this weekend.
The Titans first score of the game came on a beautifully executed fake punt after their offense had stalled out. With the Texans leaving the Titans gunner Dane Cruikshank uncovered Tennessee's Kevin Byard caught the snap and threw it for a touchdown to his fellow defensive back.
O'Brien said it was a mistake on his part.
"That was a bad play call," said O'Brien. "Studying that during the week we felt like they would handle that differently."
The Texans final play saw quarterback Deshaun Watson run the final 17 seconds of the game out completing a pass in the middle of the field to DeAndre Hopkins. O'Brien said today he needed to call a better play in the situation.
Watson yesterday bristled at the notion he should have thrown the ball out of bounds.
"I mean, of course," he said. "But while you’re playing, you can sit back and sit in your seats and say that I need to throw the ball away, but I tried to take a shot. We didn’t have any timeouts and they guarded the sideline very well, so my instincts took over and I tried to get the ball, and time ran out."
The Texans lead the league in rushing. Deshaun Watson, for the most part, had a nice game through the air against the Titans. Houston has just four touchdowns and three field goals to show for their efforts which is good for 26th in the NFL at 18.5 points per game. With the defense far from the shutdown defenses of the past, the offense has to take some pressure off the other side of the ball and put some pressure on teams, especially ones with backup quarterbacks.
Four drives into Titans territory ended without points for the Texans. They convert about a third of their red zone opportunities. This team is going to have to score points and stop making it so tough on the defense. A defense, mind you, that has allowed just 12 second-half points. The current scoring pace is not going to cut it. It is up to Bill O'Brien's play calling and Deshaun Watson's decision making to put up more points.
The Texans committed 11 penalties for 88 yards against the Titans. The following downs and distances were all caused via penalty.
1st and 15 (False Start)
1st and 15 (False Start)
2nd and 21 (Clipping)
1st and 20 (Holding)
1st and 20 (Holding)
It is incredibly hard for an offense to make up those penalties and play from behind the chains. This team has the talent to overcome them with big plays but not this often. They were able to turn some of those around and put points on the board though and cleaned them up in the second half not committing an offensive penalty. Do you want the answer to slow starts and uneven first half play? There it is.
The Giants top overall pick has impressed a ton so far this season but especially catching the ball. He has as many targets as DeAndre Hopkins, 22, and more receptions than teammate Odell Beckham, Julio Jones, Keenan Allen, and Hopkins with 16.
The Titans didn't throw the ball to their running backs much but the Patriots in week one saw success getting the ball to their backs. Tom Brady also had a rare miss overthrowing Rex Burkhead on what would have been a touchdown. Barkley is no joke, especially in the passing game, and he will be used to slow down the Texans pass rush.
The Houston Texans have a big challenge in store as they look to start the season with a win against the Colts this Sunday. When these two teams met in Week 2 last year, the Colts dominated the Texans, despite losing their QB Anthony Richardson to a concussion after the first quarter.
Keeping Richardson contained on Sunday will go a long way in increasing the Texans' chances of coming home with a win. The Texans defense will have their hands full containing the Colts backs and tight ends in the passing game.
Scoring touchdowns with their wide receivers could prove difficult, as the Texans allowed the second-fewest TDs (10) to the receiver position in 2023.
Limiting running back Jonathan Taylor will also be a top priority. While the Texans had an elite defense against the run last season, they struggled with Taylor in Week 18 as he almost rushed for 200 yards.
Houston's D allowed only four carries to running backs in 2023 that went for 20 or more yards. Two of which were to Taylor in the final game of the regular season.
Finally, DeMeco Ryans and company have to find a way to get pressure on the QB. They only had one QB hit and zero sacks on Richardson and Garner Minshew the first time they faced off last year.
On offense, the Texans have two big x-factors to watch for on Sunday. The offensive line that suited up to play the Colts in Week 2 last season is completely different from this year.
The o-line was ravaged with injuries to start the 2023 campaign, so we expect a big jump in productivity in the trenches this year.
Another big addition in 2024 is the presence of running back Joe Mixon. The running game only produced 2 yards per rush in Week 2 against Indy last year, so there's clearly room for improvement.
Be sure to watch the video above for our in-depth preview of Texans-Colts!
And catch Texans on Tap (a Texans podcast) live on our SportsMapTexans YouTube channel following every game this season!