SHAKE IT UP!
Here's an easy fix to one of the most aggravating parts of watching Texans, NFL
Dec 21, 2021, 2:23 pm
Running the ball up the middle on first down is killing the Texans. Photo by Douglas P. DeFelice/Getty Images.
The returner catches the punt on his 25-yard line, evades the first tackler, breaks to the sideline, finds a wall of blockers and races 55 yards before being forced out of bounds. It’s a spectacular runback and sets his team up for a last-second field goal that will send the game into overtime. What a play!
Except for one thing. There’s a flag back on the returning team’s 30-yard line. The umpire clicks on his microphone and calls “illegal block on the receiving team.” It’s a 10-yard penalty, the offense now starts deep in its own territory, winds up throwing a desperation Hail Mary on 4th down that fails. Game over.
There used to be a comic strip in the Sunday paper called “They’ll Do It Every Time.” In the NFL, when a kick returner gains more than 20 yards, referees will call a penalty. At least it seems they’ll do it almost every time.
Special teams account for 17 percent of all penalties called in the NFL. That's an awful, and I do mean awful, percentage for players who aren't on the field that much.
It’s like the movie Jaws when the audience hears that scary “dun-dun-dun,” you know a shark attack is coming. In the NFL, when there’s an exciting kick return, fans start looking up-field for an inevitable yellow flag lying on the turf. Even the punt returner turns back as he crosses the goal line checking for a flag before he starts celebrating. Like in WWE wrestling when three heels are getting heat on a babyface, fans look to the entrance for John Cena to make the rescue.
The Texans are the sixth most-penalized team in the NFL with 95 total penalties. Illegal blocks during kick returns fall into the “others” category on the league's breakdown of penalties. The Texans have 24 of those, also Top 10.
There’s an obscure stat in the NFL called “lost yardage.” When a team returns a punt to the 50, but a penalty brings the ball back to the 20, that’s 30 yards of lost yardage. It adds up and it turns touchdowns into field goals and possibly wins into losses.
Illegal blocking penalties need to stop in the NFL. They drag down the game, waste time and steal excitement. Here’s one way to cut down on the problem: change the penalty from 10 yards to 30 yards, or half the distance to the goal line no matter where the block occurred. Make it hurt. That’ll put an end to illegal blocks on kick returns.
Do I have to come up with every good idea around here?
Here’s another play that’s ruining the fun of an NFL game: running the ball up the middle on first down. I’ll be watching a game on TV and turn to friends, “Here it comes, a run up the middle for two yards.” Sure enough, a handoff up the gut for two yards. So boring. The offense is immediately in a hole.
If I know it’s coming, doesn’t the other team’s defense? Obviously. That’s why the Texans are stuck with second down and 8 so often. The Texans are the third worst running team in the NFL.
Why up the middle? Offensive line blocking schemes are simpler and the shortest distance between two points, in this case the center snap and the goal line, is a straight line.
Fun stat: the two least successful plays in the NFL are running the ball up the middle on first down and passing on third down. Second down is the money play.
Solution to the tedium and predictability of the Texans running on first down? The same answer to all the Texans problems: Cal McNair fires Jack Easterby, hires a new head coach, apologizes to fans and sells the team.
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The Jets host the Texans and their scary defense on Halloween night! Photo by Tim Warner/Getty Images.
Houston (6-2) at New York Jets (2-6)
Thursday, 8:15 p.m. EDT, Amazon Prime
BetMGM NFL odds: Jets by 2.
Against the spread: Texans 3-4-1; Jets 2-6.
Series record: Jets lead 7-3.
Last meeting: Jets beat Texans 30-6 in East Rutherford, New Jersey, on Dec. 10, 2023.
Last week: Texans beat Colts 23-20; Jets lost to Patriots 25-22.
Texans offense: overall (9t), rush (18), pass (8), scoring (14).
Texans defense: overall (2), rush (13), pass (3), scoring (15t).
Jets offense: overall (24), rush (30), pass (13), scoring (25).
Jets defense: overall (4), rush (17), pass (2), scoring (11t).
Turnover differential: Texans plus-4; Jets minus-3.
Texans player to watch
RB Joe Mixon. He has carried Houston's offense in the three games since he returned from an injury and could be even more important this week after wide receiver Stefon Diggs tore the ACL in his right knee last Sunday and is out for the season. Mixon ranks third in the NFL by averaging 100.6 yards rushing a game and has had at least 100 yards rushing and a TD run in three straight games.
Jets player to watch
Edge rusher Haason Reddick. After ending his lengthy contract holdout early last week, Reddick made his Jets debut and played 26 snaps on defense with two quarterback pressures while working mostly on third downs. His snaps might increase a bit Thursday and he could help the Jets get after C.J. Stroud, who has been sacked 22 times this season — tied for third most in the NFL.
Key matchup
Jets offensive line vs. Texans' pass rush. New York has had issues this season with injuries, consistency and protecting Aaron Rodgers. The Jets will face a tough test Thursday night against the Texans, whose 27 sacks are third in the NFL. DE Will Anderson Jr. is tied for third in the league with a career-high 7 1/2 sacks, including at least one in his past three games. DE Danielle Hunter has 5 1/2 sacks and DT Tim Settle has four, powering a formidable defensive front for Houston. Hunter leads the league with 51 quarterback pressures and Anderson is fourth with 39, the only teammates in the top 15, according to Next Gen Stats.
Key injuries
Diggs' injury leaves Houston without its top two receivers. Nico Collins, who leads the Texans with 567 yards receiving, is out for at least one more game after being placed on injured reserve with a hamstring injury. ... S Calen Bullock was limited in practice Monday and Tuesday after injuring his shoulder Sunday. … LBs Azeez Al-Shaair (knee) and Henry To’oTo’o (concussion) both missed the Colts game, but could return this week. … S Jimmie Ward could miss a fifth straight game with a groin injury. … LG Jarrett Patterson is in the concussion protocol and is likely out. … RB Dameon Pierce missed practice this week with a groin injury. ... Jets LB C.J. Mosley suffered a stinger in his neck during pregame warmups at New England and was meeting with neck and spine specialists this week. ... RG Alijah Vera-Tucker (ankle), WR Allen Lazard (chest), DL Leki Fotu (knee) and safeties Tony Adams (hamstring) and Ashtyn Davis (concussion) all missed the game vs. the Patriots and their availability for this week was uncertain. ... K Greg Zuerlein was placed on IR. Riley Patterson and Spencer Shrader were signed to the practice squad, and one will be promoted for the game.
Series notes
The Jets have won the past two meetings. ... New York won the first five meetings, including the first game between the franchises in 2003, when LaMont Jordan's late 8-yard touchdown run helped lift the Jets to a 19-14 victory. ... Zach Wilson threw two touchdown passes in the most recent meeting, a 30-6 rout by New York during which Stroud left with a concussion.
Stats and stuff
The AFC South-leading Texans have won four of their past five. ... Stroud is 2-0 with three touchdowns and zero interceptions in two career starts in prime time. He had 285 yards passing last week for his ninth career game with at least that many yards passing, which is tied for second most in the NFL since 2023. ... WR Tank Dell had a touchdown reception last week and has a TD catch in two of his past three games. ... TE Dalton Schultz had a season-high 52 yards receiving against the Colts. He has two TD receptions in each of his past two Thursday night games. ... Hunter has 10½ sacks in eight career Thursday night games. … LB Neville Hewitt, who spent the 2018-21 seasons with the Jets, forced a fumble last week. … Rookie CB Kamari Lassiter had a career-high three passes defended last week. … S Jalen Pitre had his first interception of the season last week. ... S Eric Murray had seven tackles and a season-high three passes defended last week. ... New York is trying to snap a five-game skid. ... Jeff Ulbrich is 0-3 as the Jets’ interim head coach since replacing the fired Robert Saleh on Oct. 8. Ulbrich, also the team's defensive coordinator, said earlier this week he'll continue to call plays on defense. … Rodgers snapped a streak of three consecutive games with an interception. He has seven in eight games, six shy of his single-season career high set in 2008 in his first year as Green Bay’s starting quarterback. ... Rodgers hasn't passed for 300 yards since throwing for 341 against Chicago on Dec. 12, 2021 — a span of 30 regular-season games and 31 overall, including one playoff game. ... WR Garrett Wilson leads the NFL with 84 targets, 11 more than the Giants’ Malik Nabers. Wilson’s 51 receptions are second in the league behind Las Vegas’ Brock Bowers, who has 52. ... WR Davante Adams had four catches for 54 yards, giving him seven receptions for 84 yards in two games since being acquired from the Raiders. ... Second-year WR Xavier Gipson caught his first career TD pass last Sunday. ... TE Tyler Conklin has a TD catch in consecutive games after not having one since catching two TD passes in Week 8 of the 2022 season against New England. ... RB Breece Hall has 316 yards receiving, the most among NFL running backs. ... Edge rusher Will McDonald has eight sacks, second in the NFL to the Giants’ Dexter Lawrence (nine). … The Jets have only six takeaways, ranking among the fewest in the league. Backup CB Brandin Echols has New York's only two interceptions.
Fantasy tip
Houston wide receiver John Metchie is coming off a career-best three-catch game and could see more targets — and perhaps his first NFL touchdown — with both Diggs and Collins out. Might be worth a stash as a potential WR3.
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