Battle Red Blog
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 Week 4:
The kids are alright. The narrative of the season for Houston has been the offense, or appalling lack thereof. Averaging 12.7 points/game coming into the matchup doesn’t inspire confidence, and for nearly 3 quarters, that pessimism was well-founded, as Houston only had 6 points on the board. Then after a key conversion (more later), the Texans offense found another gear. On three straight possessions, the Texans scored three straight touchdowns, to include two TDs in the red zone! The first TD came via the air from CJ Stroud to Woody Marks. The next was also off the arm of CJ Stroud, this time to top draft picks Jayden Higgins. The last TD came on Marks’ legs. Three TDs, two rookies. Throw in another solid day in punt returning from Jaylen Noel and some improvement from Tackle Aireontae Ersery, and yeah, for this game, the rookies are doing just fine.
Where the game turned: 2 and 33 at the HOU 18, 4:06 3rd quarter: What is it about the Texans needing to convert ridiculous down and distances to get their offense going? Prior to this point, this game was on pace to be a non-chemical replacement for anesthesia, with Houston holding on to a 6-0 lead. Houston suffered back-to-back significant penalties that took a 1st and 10 (holding, offensive pass interference) to 1st and 30. The subsequent run play resulted in a 3-yard loss. Not a lot of play-calls for converting 2nd and 33. Yet, Stroud takes the snap in shotgun, steps back a couple of paces, and then throws a long pass to a streaking Nico Collins, who is running a simple go route along the sideline against L’Jarius Sneed, who either misread the coverage, thinking there would be safety help, or just got plain beat. 37 yards later, Houston converts, setting the stage for a 20-point 4th quarter. This has shades of the Wild Card game when a Texans’ offense couldn’t get going, but after a bonkers 3rd and 19 conversion late in the 1st half of that game (this after nearly botching a shotgun snap), it seemed to settle Stroud and the offense towards a more productive game. This is a fascinating development, but not a formula for long-term success.
Run.The.Ball: One thing that can help a struggling team, especially a QB under mad duress, is to leverage the running game. That success has been a bit limited. Yet, even in Houston’s losses to Jacksonville and Tampa Bay, you wonder if the team just didn’t try to run the ball enough. Sure, Tampa Bay’s interior defensive line gave the squad some problems, but even on that infamous goal-line stand, Houston only ran the ball once in three plays at the 1. Against the Jags, Houston’s two main backs,...
