STOOTS ON TEXANS
Houston Texans training camp: 11 observations you need to know about from Day 5
Aug 3, 2022, 1:28 pm
Brandin Cooks looks unstoppable.Composite image by Jack Brame.
Houston Texans sign top receiver to contract extension
The Houston Texans had a competitive practice that saw Davis Mills make some mistakes and immediately bounce back. Here are 11 observations.
1. Brandin Cooks can’t be covered. He only lost one rep today, his first one, and then he dominated the rest of the day. I don’t want to exaggerate when I say he had close to 10 touchdowns today. Cooks hauled in one play at the front of the end zone where Steven Nelson was all over him. As the two went to the ground, Cooks hauled in a catch and kept control for a score. Nobody can cover Cooks at Texans camp. Draft him on your fantasy team.
2. Davis Mills doesn’t rely solely on Cooks though. He spreads the ball around. Multiple players had nice catches from Mills today, including the tight ends and wideouts down the depth charts.
3. Davis Mills finally threw an interception. Two actually. Neither felt like his fault, but he threw them. He’s the quarterback. The first was a GREAT play by the defensive back. The second was a risky pass that was tipped by one linebacker and ended up in Blake Cashman’s hands.
4. There wasn’t much worse from Mills other than those two interceptions. He’s been praised for his poise and ability to bounce back and sure enough, he found the end zone plenty after those interceptions.
5. Derek Stingley intercepted Davis Mills for the first time. It was the first interception of camp for Mills and Stingley's first interception as well. It was an amazing play where Stingley almost knew the route and ran it before the wideout. He came down with the ball with ease. He continues to showcase why he was highly touted and highly drafted.
6. Wide receiver Chris Moore has made some nice plays. He is a factor to make the roster with the uncertainty in the wide receiver room. Moore hauled in a nice play in 1-on-1 work against Desmond King. Moore also had a huge grab during a less-than-two-minute drill.
7. Left tackle Laremy Tunsil is a joy to watch compete against the various pass rushers. My favorite reps are Tunsil against Jerry Hughes, although Jonathan Greenard is quickly climbing the ranks in giving Tunsil fits. The offensive and defensive linemen have mentioned multiple times how much they want to help each other grow.
8. Speaking of offensive linemen, Kenyon Green left practice and I didn’t see him return. This created an opportunity for Max Scharping to play some at guard next to Larmey Tunsil. Center Justin Britt and defensive end Mario Addison had veteran days off. Wideout Phillip Dorsett has yet to have a full practice.
9. Ross Blacklock had a phenomenal two-play series. Blacklock bullied an offensive lineman and blew up a run play. On the very next play, he did it again for another tackle for a loss. There is room for Ross Blacklock if he is playing that way.
10. Blake Cashman had two interceptions today. The linebacker acquired by the Texans via trade with the Jets has had a nice camp. He was brought up unprompted by Lovie Smith on Tuesday when talking about the linebackers on the team. Really, it feels like almost every linebacker has had some nice play at one point through five practices. Neville Hewitt once nicknamed “the tackling machine” forced a fumble earlier this week.
11. Another day, another tight end praise observation. This is a two-man room, but those two men are taking care of business! Brevin Jordan darted across the field in a 7-on-7 drill and wheeled up the sideline for a touchdown. In team drills, Pharaoh Brown took his turn impressing. He leaped and hauled in a Davis Mills pass, getting down for a score. The defense was furious the score was allowed, but Brown got down.
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Rockets stumble as Grizzlies snatch victory in controversial finish
Jan 31, 2025, 12:11 pm
Thursday night's one point loss at Memphis aside, what a run the Houston Rockets have been enjoying. Within a two week stretch the Rockets beat the last two NBA Champions (winning on the road in Denver and Boston), and twice beat the Cleveland Cavaliers who have the best record in the league this season and against all other teams are 39-7. Yes, the Nuggets were without Nikola Jokic in their loss to the Rockets but don’t nitpick. Entering February with a 32-15 record exceeds even optimistic preseason hopes. The preseason betting line for the Rockets' season win total was 43, give or take a game. They are on pace to win 55.
In the 2022-23 season the Rockets completed a three-year run as an on-court laughingstock with a 22-60 record. That tied for the second worst record in the NBA, following seasons of 20-62 and 17-55 which each were the worst record in the league. It was an embarrassing stretch for a proud franchise. The Rockets had just three losing seasons total in the 36 seasons prior to their recent three years in the toilet. Following the ‘22-’23 slog, the Rockets’ cross their fingers really hard hope was to win the draft lottery where the unquestioned grand prize was Victor Wembanyama. Alas, the Rockets drew only the fourth pick on lottery night. “Wemby” hasn’t disappointed the San Antonio Spurs at all, and in this his second season he stands a strong chance of winning the Defensive Player of the Year Award.Prevailing sentiment had point guard “Scoot” Henderson as the second-best prospect in the ‘23 draft. The Charlotte Hornets took forward Brandon Miller at number two because they already had LaMelo Ball at point guard. The Portland Trail Blazers then took Henderson at three. Would the Rockets have taken him at number two or three? We don’t know with certainty. Other than for laughs they have no reason to admit they'd have selected "Scoot," any more than Nick Caserio would have to admit the Texans’ would have drafted Bryce Young over C.J. Stroud if they had picked first not second in the 2023 NFL draft. What we do know is the Rockets picked Amen Thompson fourth. Amen to that.
Thompson individually best mirrors the Rockets’ rapid rise from mediocre last season (41-41) to legitimate contender. Thompson was the fourth pick in his draft class, after the Rockets took Jabari Smith third the year before, with Jalen Green the second overall pick the year before that. It was Smith’s broken hand in early January that spurred head coach Ime Udoka to insert Thompson into the starting lineup. I’m guessing neither Thompson nor Smith know the story of Wally Pipp (or perhaps Lou Gehrig either), but how can Udoka put Smith back in the starting lineup? The race is on for which in hindsight will be general manager Rafael Stone’s greater move, taking Thompson at four or swinging the post-draft trade that netted 2021 number 16 selection Alperen Sengun. Sengun Thursday night was named an All-Star game reserve for the first time. One can envision Thompson joining Sengun on an All-Star squad as soon as next season. Credit to Jalen Green for some improvement this season, but the idea that he has made a huge leap and should have made the All-Star game is silly. Green has stretches where hot shooting combines with his explosiveness to make him look like a star, but that is not his body of work. Green’s shooting percentages remain below average from the floor overall and from behind the three-point line.
The Rockets are second in the Western Conference while getting essentially nothing from the third pick in last June’s draft, guard Reed Sheppard. He’s just 20 years old and there is no reason for a pure shooter to lose that skill before he can legally buy a beer, so bust talk is way premature. But Sheppard looked like a poor man’s Bryce Drew (that’s not a compliment) in his early season opportunities, overmatched physically with the game way too fast for him.
When you draft in the top four for four consecutive years, you’re supposed to assemble some stout talent. In consecutive drafts the Seattle Supersonics/Oklahoma City Thunder picked Kevin Durant (at number two), Russell Westbrook (at number four), and James Harden (at number three). Success is no given however even with a raft of high lottery picks. The Minnesota Timberwolves in successive drafts selected third, fifth and sixth the same year, fourth, and second. Their “haul” was O.J. Mayo, Ricky Rubio/Jonny Flynn, Wesley Johnson, and Derrick Williams. Yikes.
The current iteration of the Thunder is obviously the best team in the Western Conference, but until OKC breaks through and wins a conference title, it’s not unreasonable to think OKC can be had in a best-of-seven. That the Rockets make the list of teams who wouldn’t require a miracle to topple the Thunder is a phenomenal development.
Still counting down to the start of spring training, but we have taken no offseason from discussing the Astros. Join Brandon Strange, Josh Jordan, and me for a New Stone Cold ‘Stros podcast which drops each Monday, with an additional episode now on Thursday. Click here to catch!
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