Tough losses necessitate tough questions. That’s exactly what I asked when I requested instant reactions and opinions on QB C.J. Stroud directly after Houston’s embarrassing loss to the Patriots in the Divisional Round.

What are your instant reactions to the Pats beat down of the Texans? What’s the outlook for Stroud and what needs to be addressed this offseason?

Note: the first four responses were all written before Houston announced they would be picking up C.J. Stroud’s fifth year option

Clayton A.:

After losing 41-28 in 2012 and 36-14 in 2016, the Texans continue the yearly tradition of...

It started innocently enough. Landy Locker asked whether Nick Caley could grow as a play caller and whether he would get an opportunity to do that. DeMeco Ryans gave a seemingly innocuous response that is actually very telling. For much of the season, he gave full throated defenses of Caley as an offensive coordinator. In this go around he simply gave the boilerplate response that all of the coaches would be evaluated and they would come to decisions on them later.

No single person in the building has had more scrutiny than Nick Caley. Those of us here at BRB...

The Day After the Day After…when the raw, immediate emotions from the aftermath of a game diminish into the realm of clarity and the proverbial (or literal) hangover no longer haunts the mind. With that, a review of the Divisional Round Weekend:

Arguably the Worst 2nd Quarter for the Offense this Season: That 2nd Quarter of the Division Round game will haunt everyone associated with the Houston Texans, from the players to coaches to front office and fans. Houston entered that Quarter only trailing 7-3, and it would start so well. They had just recovered a Drake Maye fumble at...

In the aftermath of C.J. Stroud’s worst game as a Texan, the team has decided to head off speculation at the pass and are picking up the fifth year option on his rookie contract. At the very worst, he will be under contract for the next two years. Furthermore, they at least openly admitted that they will talk extension with him this offseason. Obviously, they will talk extension with Will Anderson as well. The pair could be up for the two largest contracts in Houston Texans history.

The report is also being reported at Pro Football Rumors. The negotiations on...

I never thought I would be making a post like this! After the Houston Texans’ heartbreaking first half performance against the New England Patriots in the divisional round yesterday, many across the country and across the internet used halftime to propose one major second-half adjustment: benching QB CJ Stroud for backup Davis Mills. You know things aren’t go well with the starter if this is happening in the middle of a playoff game, but this wasn’t really on overreaction by many; Entering halftime, Stroud had already thrown 4 interceptions, an interception returned for a touchdown, and missed multiple completions because...

Most seasons end in a loss. There are only two ways for that not to happen. Either you win the Super Bowl or you miss the playoffs and win a meaningless game in week 18. Those are your two options. Every other team sees their season end in disappointment and it is the same for the Texans. This one is harder than most, so we will try to stick to the facts and logic, but emotions are what they are.

It was a disastrous game on the offensive end, but we will get to that soon enough. We look at...

It has happened again.

The Houston Texans season ended, as it has in years past, in the divisional round against a team that they have never beaten in the playoffs, the New England Patriots.

The game began poorly after Calen Bullock slipped on the turf, slick with water and snow, allowing a touchdown to put the Patriots up 7-0.

The Texans would respond the way they know best: with a field goal.

The wheels then completely fell off as C.J. Stroud had what can only be called the worst game of his professional career. He threw 20/44 for 212 yards...

So…here we are again. On the road in a divisional round game against a team the Houston Texans have struggled against historically in the playoffs.

We’re all too familiar with this scenario.

But the Texans have something this year that they haven’t in previous years: the most dominant defense in the NFL.

This is not Tom Brady’s Patriots. This is not Bill Belichick’s Patriots. This is a Patriots team that won 14 games against a last place schedule. This is a beatable team. It can happen.

And then all that stands in the way of the Texans first Super Bowl...

Every week, the Battle Red Blog staff get together on Discord and chat during the Texans game, offering conversation and brief analysis of the team as they grind through another game. One expression that has become a mainstay on the chat is “C.H.U.M.,” which is an acronym for “Carlos Hyde Up the Middle.” This acronym came about during the Texans 2019 season, when then head coach/general manager Bill O’Brien seemed determined to jam Texans RB Carlos Hyde straight up the middle of the field nearly every other play on offense, much to the exhaustion of the writers of the Blog....

Houston Texans fans like ourselves have been receiving an avalanche of good news related to the Texans team since, like, November. Unfortunately, today is not one of those days. The Houston Texans released their final injury report before the Divisional Round game against the New England Patriots on Sunday, and WR Nico Collins (concussion) is now officially OUT for the game:

The New England Patriots injury report can be found here.

Nico Collins failed to practice any of the last three days, meaning he was not able to clear steps 4 or 5 of the Return-to-Participation protocol. This comes as...

The Houston Texans have reached the summit of their own success by advancing to the divisional round for the seventh time in franchise history. Will the seventh time be the lucky charm? We spoke with Taylor Kyles from Pats Pulpit about the upcoming tilt between the Texans and Patriots. This will be the third time the two teams clash in the divisional round. A win against the Pats would go a long way in exorcising some demons.

**Battle Red Blog: Drake Maye is obviously the biggest story in New England this season based on his growth from year one to...

The difference between an early exit and a deep playoff run is often a player who wasn’t supposed to be part of the story. On Monday’s Wild Card game against the Pittsburgh Steelers, that player was wide receiver Christian Kirk.

For all intents and purposes, Kirk had an underwhelming year as the veteran presence in a young, home-grown WR room. He was sixth on the team in yards, fifth in receptions, and only recorded one touchdown on the season, most of which were career lows.

His role diminished due to several uncontrollable factors. Rookies Jayden Higgins and Jaylin Noel absorbed...