Texans post-bye schedule might not be so soft after all

Keke Coutee could make an impact if healthy. Andy Lyons/Getty Images

With the Texans getting back to work I figured the three headlines should be a look at the progress the next three opponents made. It looks a little bit more difficult than this time last week.

Washington Controls NFC East

Despite being outgained 501-286 Washington defeated the Buccaneers 16-3. Tampa Bay owns the dubious honor of having the most yards ever when only scoring three points. I can't say it was because Washington was really good though. Three of the four Buccaneers turnovers were deep in Washington territory with the other one leading to an easy field goal for the Redkskins. They're now 6-3 and own a sizable lead in the NFC East.

Washington has been dealing with a ton of injuries and the weak Tampa Bay defense didn't do a lot to challenge an offensive line that has plenty of backups now starting. Alex Smith was only sacked three times but managed just 178 yards passing. Adrian Peterson and the other backs got going along with Smith to rush for over 100 yards. This offense isn't dangerous by any means. They average 20 points a game and have scored over 24 points just once. Washington hasn't scored more than 20 in a month.

This is a game if the Texans offense gels coming out of the bye, they should handle Washington easily. They're not capable of coming back from a big deficit and aren't talented enough to win a shootout. If the Texans play their typical close game and make it ugly Washington has more than enough on defense to win the game. The Redskins are in the middle of one of the more unique runs in NFL history. There has yet to be a lead change in any of Washington's games.

Titans and Vrabel down Patriots

Tennessee worked the New England Patriots on their way to a 34-10 shellacking of the defending AFC champions. Tom Brady never got going. James White was bottled up. Rob Gronkowski was hurt. The Titans leaned on former Patriots back Dion Lewis early and he and a seemingly healthy Marcus Mariota helped the Titans score on their first three drives. Running back Derrick Henry and wideout Corey Davis each had huge days against an unusually leaky Patriots defense. It was one of the most shocking results of the NFL season.

The Titans are much better than the version the Texans saw, and lost to, early in the season. They're healthier on the offensive line and Mariota has put together three impressive games managing the offense and leaning on a suddenly solid rushing attack. Mike Vrabel is feeling himself and coaching up a team short on talent and becoming a headache. He called a trick play the Patriots failed to execute and joked after the game he wanted to see if they could do it better than New England.

When Tennessee heads to Houston it will be Monday Night Football. Tennessee is undefeated in the AFC South but will take on the Colts next week before the contest with the Texans. That matchup is a toss-up with the Colts dismantling of the Jaguars on Sunday. The Monday Night Football game could very well be a determining factor in who wins the AFC South.

That's why he was picked first

Three touchdown passes and a 151.3 quarterback rating by Baker Mayfield helped the Browns break the Falcons win streak. While Mayfield was feeling it through the air nobody was feeling it quite like Nick Chubb. He rushed for 176 yards in the victory with a 92-yard scamper really putting things out of reach for Atlanta. Cleveland forced a fumble coming out of halftime and quickly turned it into points.

This Cleveland team is now one win away from matching the win total of the three previous seasons combined. They have plenty of talented players on defense and now their offense seems to be grooving with Hue Jackson and Todd Haley being shown the door. This is something to monitor for Texans fans in the coming weeks. Cleveland has a bye and road trip to their fellow Ohio mates Cincinnati before they come to Texas. It seems likely Baker Mayfield's swagger will be alive and well as he returns to his home state in three weeks.

Did the bye week get the Texans healthy?

There are plenty of eyes on the injury report this week as the Texans finished up the Denver game with lots of key players ailing heading into their break. Cornerback Aaron Colvin had returned to practice after an ankle injury in week four sidelined him. Practicing before the bye should mean he is set to return either for this game or almost certainly the Tennessee game. Johnathan Joseph was a limited participant before he missed the Denver game and seemed optimistic he would be ready after the break. Andre Hal was close to getting back after playing in his lone game before a shoulder injury sidelined him. I would expect those three defensive backs to play in Washington and Tennessee at the very latest.

Zach Cunningham was out with a knee injury and didn't practice at all before the game in Denver. His injury is a bit more of a question so his status will need to be monitored this week ahead of Washington, though they could use him. Keke Coutee is the player which interests me the most coming back from the bye week. Coutee could really help open up this offense and take some of the pressure off Demaryius Thomas as he still picks up the intricacies of the offense. Coutee's been dealing with a hamstring injury that has only had him play in four games including preseason. He was present for the first four games of the Texans current winning streak. It would be close to a month since he last played if Coutee plays this weekend.

O'Brien's post-bye balling

Bill O'Brien in his career has a 16-17 record after his team's bye week. On the surface, that isn't great. But let's take a closer look. Last season was a disaster after the break in the schedule. Deshaun Watson led the Texans to a near-win in Seattle in the last ever game played by the Seahawks Legion of Boom. Then, disaster struck. Watson tore his ACL, Tom Savage took over, and the team went into the tank winning just one game the rest of the year. Now, let's take out last year's 1-9 record after the bye.

O'Brien coached three different starting quarterbacks (Ryan Mallett, Ryan Fitzpatrick, and Case Keenum) to a 5-2 record in 2014, his first year on the job. O'Brien again coached three different starting quarterbacks (T.J. Yates, Brian Hoyer, and Brandon Weeden) to a winning record, this time a 6-2 mark. 2016 wasn't as impressive with just a 4-4 mark. A three-game losing streak happened after a win over the Jaguars but O'Brien steered them out of a tailspin. The Texans won three of their final four games, including two AFC South games to earn the tiebreaker win over Tennessee before the season finale.

It's trending the wrong way, sure, but if O'Brien captures some of his early success after the bye, the Texans will be sitting pretty heading into the playoffs.

I bet the Texans get Keke Coutee back this weekend and it leads to a noticeable change in the offense. Coutee has been impressive in short stints and he has had a few near huge plays this season. He was so close to being a regular contributor before the injury robbed him of the chance. He's the only true slot presence on the team. With the rushing attack seeming to be back on track, and Thomas hopefully better in tune with the offense, Coutee is poised to really show what he's capable of in the NFL.

Listen Live

The Longhorns host Georgia on Saturday night. Photo by Alex Slitz/Getty Images.

By any measure, from the official statistics to the informal eye test, top-ranked Texas' defense has been dominant.

The Longhorns rank No. 1 in total defense and scoring defense. They are top 10 in first downs allowed, tackles for loss and passing yards. Much of that is built against opponents starting former walk-on quarterbacks ( Michigan ) and freshmen ( Mississippi State and Oklahoma.)

But the level of quarterback play Texas will face, in both talent and experience, is about to get much better over the second half of the season.

Texas hosts No. 5 Georgia on Saturday night in the first matchup of top five teams in Austin since 2006, before playing the next week at Vanderbilt. Bulldogs senior Carson Beck was a preseason first team Associated Press All-America pick, and standout Vanderbilt transfer Diego Pavia has carried the Commodores to a surprising 4-2 start, including a historic win over then-No. 1 Alabama.

Quite simply, Texas hasn't defended this caliber of quarterback all season.

Beck is a player on the doorstep of the NFL, Texas coach Steve Sarkisian said.

“There's nothing in the throw game (Beck) can't do,” Sarkisian said. “He's played enough football now, too. It's kind of hard to confuse guys when they've played that much football.”

Texas (6-0, 2-0 SEC) has allowed just one team to pass for more than 200 yards this season. Beck passed for 459 yards, three touchdowns and two interceptions last week in a 41-31 win over Mississippi State. His 36 completions set a Georgia record.

Even when Beck struggled early in Georgia's loss to Alabama, he rallied the Bulldogs to a late fourth-quarter lead. He finished with 439 yards in the loss where Georgia's rally ended with an Alabama interception in the end zone in the final minute.

Sarkisian recruited Beck when the Texas coach was an assistant at Alabama. Beck had initially committed to the Crimson Tide before switching to Georgia.

Beck is 18-2 in his career as a starter, and 6-2 against top 20 opponents.

The Bulldogs (5-1, 3-1) will need another exceptional game from him Saturday. A second SEC loss could threaten any chance of playing for the SEC championship, and raise the alarms on the College Football Playoff as well.

Texas has all but overwhelmed opposing quarterbacks so far.

In last week's 34-3 thrashing of rival Oklahoma, the Longhorns sacked Sooners freshman quarterback Michael Hawkins Jr. five times, and held him to 27 yards on 20 carries. Texas allowed just 225 total yards.

Hawkins was the first Sooners freshman to start at quarterback against the Longhorns in the 120-year history of the rivalry and was quickly swallowed up by a relentless pass rush.

By the numbers, the Longhorns program is on pace for a historic season. Sarkisian has said his favorite stat is points allowed, which is not many.

Texas has surrendered only three touchdowns all season. Opponents have snatched four turnovers inside Texas territory, but none have produced points.

That ability to snuff momentum can drain an opponent, Sarkisian said.

“We're so composed as a defense,” Texas safety Michael Taaffe said. “We're so confident, that no matter what happens, everything is going to be alright.”

The only time Texas has trailed this season was a 3-0 early deficit against Oklahoma. Several Longhorns starters were still on the field when the Sooners' final drive stalled at the Texas 6-yard-line as the game ended.

The stars emerging for the Longhorns have been second-year linebacker Anthony Hill Jr. and freshman edge rusher Colin Simmons.

Hill leads the team in total tackles (42), sacks (4 1/2) and tackles for loss (8 1/2). His sideline-to-sideline speed and move this season from the edge to the middle of the Texas defense has drawn comparisons to former Longhorns All-American Derrick Johnson 20 years ago.

Simmons has four sacks and 7 1/2 tackles for losses, second on the team in both categories.

“Size, speed,” Georgia coach Kirby Smart said in summing up the Texas defense.

“They’re the complete package on defense," Smart said. "The consistency you watch them play with, it reminds me of some of our best teams here.”By any measure, from the official statistics to the informal eye test, top-ranked Texas' defense has been dominant.