Battle Red Blog
Talent is on the line, execution isn’t.
When you face the New York Jets, authors of the infamous Butt-Fumble play, it’s hard for your offensive line to overcome the specter of that historic mishap. Unfortunately, Chris Strausser, Houston Texans offensive line coach, helped his unit do just that.
When head coach DeMeco Ryans announced Strausser was joining the staff in early 2023, a fair bit of head scratching came with it.
Exactly why the Texans offensive line is playing so poorly right now remains a mystery, but the results of said poor play was on display for all to see last Thursday night.
Most fans sit and blame the players. And, there’s a lot of blame to go around. But the x-factors are also on display. Lack of follow through, disregard for protecting the franchise quarterback, mid-play confusion, giving up on plays, far too many pre-snap penalties.
These are cultural and leadership issues, not performance problems.
General manager Nick Caserio has done a better than average job assembling talent, but Strausser has done a worse than average job a handful of guys into a cohesive unit.
Sure you can blame quarterback C.J. Stroud, or offensive coordinator Bobby Slowik for these struggles, but when it comes down to it a great coach will get players performing above their talent level and a not-so-great coach will do the opposite.
ESPN
The interior offensive line alone is responsible for over 18 sacks this season...
Even though finding quality offensive line players at the trade deadline isn’t an easy thing, pulling the plug on the offensive line coach just might provide better results.
Mighty Matt Weston is likely rolling in his grave right now watching this horrible o-line play and dude is alive and well.
Can the Texans snap out of their offensive funk? In the past three games, the Texans’ offense has averaged only 19 points per game, contributing to a 1-2 record during that stretch. The pass blocking is at the root of their inability to score, as quarterback C.J. Stroud has been sacked 14 times since Week 7. If Houston can’t fix this problem, a team that had Super Bowl aspirations will come up well short of that goal.
