ClutchPoints
The Houston Texans have made it to the postseason. That’s a sentence that most NFL fans wouldn’t have expected to say at the start of the year, yet here we are. Despite a dreadful start to the season, Houston managed to string together a mid-season winning streak to claw their way back into the playoffs. Now as a Wild Card team, the Texans are looking to win their first Super Bowl in franchise history.
However, every team has its flaws. For the Texans, they have one fatal flaw that threatens to kill any hope of a Super Bowl win. Let’s look at what the biggest issue for Houston is as they head into the postseason.
At this point, it’s a known fact that the Texans’ defense is arguably the best unit in football. Most defenses have one or two good players on one group of the defense. For Houston, though, they have an abundance of talent on all three levels of the defense. From their ferocious pass-rush led by Danielle Hunter and Will Anderson Jr, to their linebacker group with the likes of Azeez Al-Shaair, and their cornerback room headlined by Derek Stingley Jr, the Texans’ defense has carried them all the way to the postseason.
Note the use of the word “carried”, though. The reason why the Texans aren’t high on many team’s playoff lists is their offense. Houston’s offense has been lackluster all season due to a myriad of reasons. CJ Stroud hasn’t played well, and their run game has not been able to get off the ground this season. These two issues, though, can be attributed to one reason: their offensive line.
The Texans’ offensive line was already one of the worst units last season, ranking in the bottom of most metrics. Despite that, Houston let star left tackle Laremy Tunsil go this past offseason. While Tunsil struggled with penalties all season long, the left tackle was still the lone bright spot on an offensive line marred by holes.
Perhaps the Texans hoped that one of their players would step up, or that their offseason acquisitions would become a game-changer on that end. Turns out, finding good offensive linemen isn’t easy.
The Texans have allowed the eighth-highest pressure rate allowed at 35.2%. Houston’s revamped offensive line hasn’t held up well under duress this season, leading to Stroud getting pressured more in the pocket. While it’s not the sole reason for Stroud’s struggles this season, it’s certainly been a major contributor to his issues.
The other problem with the offensive line is that they aren’t doing their running backs any favors. Yes, Joe Mixon hasn’t played a game this season. Still, good teams are able to eke out good running back seasons by the strength of their offensive line. The Texans’ offensive line hasn’t helped its running backs at all, with RBs getting 1.1 yards before first contact.
ESPN’s offensive line metrics back up these statistics. The...
