PANTHERS DEFEAT TEXANS
11 critical observations from the Texans' 24-9 loss to the Panthers
Sep 24, 2021, 10:51 am
Davis Mills made his first NFL start on Thursday. Photo by Bob Levey/Getty Images.
The Houston Texans couldn't get anything consistent on offense as they drop their second game to the Panthers 24-9. Here are 11 Observations from the loss.
1. Davis Mills is very much a rookie and very limited. Mills still struggles to be in a rhythm and makes numerous rookie mistakes. There are flashes of solid play, but he can't put it together very often. Mills was a project and is still a project.
2. Davis Mills has trouble figuring out pressure. The identification of pressure is something a lot of young quarterbacks struggle with, and with reps, he should be better. The problem is he will play some ferocious defenses in the next few weeks. Mills will have to learn on the fly.
3. With less than two minutes in the first half, expectations were low for the Texans on offense. Davis Mills was perfect, sans a spike to stop the clock, in leading a drive for a touchdown. The big play was a pass to Brandin Cooks and it finished with a touchdown pass to Anthony Miller. This was the best drive of his short NFL season. What worked here needs to be replicated into non-hurry situations.
4. Brandin Cooks is getting the bulk of the receptions and targets in this offense, and he is still successful. Cooks getting open non-stop despite being the sole dangerous receiver on this team will not stop being impressive anytime soon.
5. Joey Slye missed an extra point and it led to David Culley making another punt decision that drew criticism yet again. The Texans ended up punting despite being just four yards away from a first down. Slye was not comfortable with that range according to Culley, and so the team took a delay of game and punted. Culley didn't throw his kicker under the bus and that's an admirable move by him.
6. Ross Blacklock and Jonathan Greenard each recorded a sack. The young defensive linemen have to be building blocks for this team going forward.
7. The defensive line matched their combined numbers from the first two games in tackles for a loss and sacks. Despite the successful box score night, the pass rush is still so inconsistent it puts the defense in terrible positions trying to cover pass catchers.
8. Vernon Hargreaves was picked on by the Panthers. He had a very rough night for this defense against a talented receiving group. Stefon Diggs is next up for him.
9. There are good signs on this defense, but Lovie Smith has to get players healthy and find the perfect mix to maximize his talent each week.
10. Andre Roberts again looked lost on special teams despite being a specialist for this team. The team should look long and hard about replacing Roberts. The toughest part is Alex Erickson, who was in camp for the Texans, was the solid punt returner and slot receiver for the Panthers Thursday night.
11. Injuries and the short week with a rookie quarterback doomed the Texans. This is also a team that could look on the bright side and convince themselves they would be 2-1 or maybe 3-0 with Tyrod Taylor at quarterback. He isn't the quarterback though; it is Davis Mills. And it will be for the future. So the team should strap in for their bumpy ride.
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With the Astros now officially ten games under .500 for the season, manager Joe Espada is taking a lot of heat from the fanbase for the team's struggles.
While we don't agree with the sentiment, we even hear fans clamoring for the return of Dusty Baker and Martin Maldonado, thinking the Astros wouldn't be in this mess if they were still here.
Which is ridiculous. First of all, Maldonado has been awful for the White Sox, hitting .048 (even worse than Jose Abreu's .065). And for those of you that think his work with the pitching staff justifies his pathetic offense. Let me say this: Where was Maldy's game calling genius for Hunter Brown, Cristian Javier, and Framber Valdez last year? All of them regressed significantly.
And as far as Baker is concerned, we have no idea how much a difference he would make, we can only speculate. Baker would also be dealing with a pitching staff ravaged with injuries. And let's not forget, Baker was the guy that refused to move Jose Abreu down in the batting order, even though he would finish the regular season with the ninth-worst OPS in baseball.
The reality of the situation is managers can only do so much in baseball. Which leads us to something else that needs to be considered. Is Espada being handcuffed by the front office? Espada and GM Dana Brown both said recently that Jon Singleton was going to get more at-bats while they give Abreu time off to try to figure things out. Yet, there Abreu was in the lineup again in the opening game of the Cubs series.
It makes us wonder how much power does Espada truly have? The Astros have some other options at first base. Yainer Diaz may only have eight games played at the position, but how much worse could he be than Abreu defensively? Abreu already has four errors, and Diaz is obviously a way better hitter. Victor Caratini isn't considered a plus offensive player, but his .276 batting average makes him look like Babe Ruth compared to Abreu. Let him catch more often and play Diaz at first. Starting Diaz at first more often could also lengthen his career long-term.
Maybe that's too wild of a move. Okay, fine. How about playing Mauricio Dubon at first base? I understand he doesn't have much experience at that position, but what's the downside of trying him there? If he can play shortstop, he can play first base. He's driving in runs at a higher rate (11 RBIs) than everyone on the team outside of Kyle Tucker and Yordan Alvarez. And he's producing like that as part-time player right now.
The other criticism we see of Espada is his use of Jon Singleton to pinch hit late in games. Let's be real, though, who else does Espada have on the roster to go to? Batting Abreu late in games in which you're trailing should be considered malpractice. Espada can only use who he has to work with. This all really stems from the Astros poor farm system.
They don't have anyone else to turn to. The draft picks the club lost from the sign-stealing scandal are really hurting them right now. First and second rounders from 2020 and 2021 should be helping you in 2024 at the big league level.
Maybe they go to Astros prospect Joey Loperfido soon, but after a hot start he has only two hits in his last six games.
Finally, we have to talk about what seems like a committee making baseball decisions. Lost in a committee is accountability. Who gets the blame for making poor decisions?
As time continues to pass it looks like moving on from former GM James Click was a massive mistake. He's the guy that didn't sign Abreu, but did trade Myles Straw (recently DFA'd) for Yainer Diaz and Phil Maton. He also built an elite bullpen without breaking the bank, and helped the club win a World Series in 2022.
The reality of the situation is Dusty Baker and James Click are not walking back through that door. And all good runs come to an end at some point. Is this what we're witnessing?
Don't miss the video above as we hit on all the points discussed and much more!
Catch Stone Cold 'Stros (an Astros podcast) with Charlie Pallilo, Brandon Strange, and Josh Jordan. We drop two episodes every week on SportsMapHouston's YouTube channel. You can also listen on Apple Podcast, Spotifyor wherever you get your podcasts.