Battle Red Blog
The stages of suck moves on to week ten with another subject of focus. With most things, the fanbase is likely in the questioning stage with DeMeco Ryans. No one is ready to pull the plug, but there is some serious side eye going on. One of the hallmarks of Ryans’ first two seasons was a sparkling record in one score games. Every win seemed to be close and they almost always found a way to pull out the close ones. The Texans are now 0-5 in one score games on the season. So, that brings the obvious question for today.
Is this bad luck, regression to the mean, or are there systemic issues with the way DeMeco Ryans runs his team?
Clayton A: DeMeco Ryans and Nick Caserio whiffed on the offensive teardown and reconstruction. Literally, a competent offensive operation has them sitting 6-2 right now. The Texans right now own the 3rd worst (29th) TD rate via the run with 3 TDs, the 9th worst rate (23rd) TD rate via the pass with 11 TDs, and their 42.11% red zone touchdown rate is the 2nd worst in the NFL (31st).
Systemically, the personnel leaves a lot to be desired. However, it’s hard to gauge how ineffective they truly are when you’re seemingly made one of the worst OC decisions this side of Nathaniel Hackett and/or Adam Gase. The point of firing Slowik was to get better, not regress to the bottom of the league. If this continues, not only will both Nicks be in trouble, but DeMeco’s seat could get warmer if it’s perceived that he can’t put a competitive staff together with a rookie QB contract and a Super Bowl caliber defense.
L4blitzer: Probably a combination of factors. Given the fortune that Houston had in 2023, it probably figured to start reverting back to the mean, which is did in the later stages of last season. Now, we probably have swung far down to the negative, being 0-5 in one score games. Biggest factor, which is not going to be a shock to anyone, is the offensive struggles. Sure, the defense surrendered two walk-off drives at home this year, but especially this past week, the offense did them no favors. Then again, most of the games under Ryans’ regime tend to come down to the wire, usually with the Most Interesting Defense in the World called upon to hold off a threat. Especially if a team is strong on one side of the ball but far weaker on the other, you will get these kinds of scenarios. Can it be fixed? You don’t fix “luck”, but if the offense could execute better in the Red Zone opportunities, it might go a long way towards reversing the downward trend on one-score contests.
Kenneth L.: Honestly its a ton of ineptitude in critical moments. Lack of confidence in execution. No grit on offense. Houston is the only team in the NFL without a TD inside the two yard line....
