NFL Trade Rumors
Anything can happen in a one-game sample size in the NFL. Even two games can be written off as a fluke or an aberration. But three games is a trend that can’t be ignored — and after the first three games of the 2025 season, there are some concerning trends for a few teams.
Panic is a word teams don’t like to use but for some predicaments, it’s fitting. Here’s a look around the league at a few situations and whether the “p” word is applicable:
A 17-10 loss to the Jaguars in Week 3 left the Texans winless through three weeks. The game was close, just like Houston’s other two losses, but all that matters is that zero in the win column. The common thread in all three losses is the struggles on the offensive side of the ball, and the root of those issues is the overhauled offensive line.
The Texans identified that unit as the top priority to fix this past offseason but through three weeks it looks like they cut some corners on the renovation. The big move was trading away veteran LT Laremy Tunsil who was replaced by second-round OT Aireontae Ersery. Houston also added G Laken Tomlinson, OT Cam Robinson and G Ed Ingram on cheap free agent deals or a minor trade in Ingram’s case, banking on some improvement from recent draft picks like OT Blake Fisher and C Juice Scruggs.
The goal was to create a starting five that was more physical and edgy than what the Texans fielded in 2024, one that could establish a tone that matched Houston’s punishing defense and mash opponents in the run game. To that end, they moved on from former OC Bobby Slowik after the year and hired Rams assistant Nick Caley as the play-caller. Caley spent the last two years on Rams HC Sean McVay’s staff but his roots as a coach are in New England and that’s what Houston’s offense has been reminiscent of to start the year, at least as far as overall architecture.
The results on the field don’t look much like those Patriots teams, as the offense as a whole has not come together. The offensive line is not creating notable movement in the running game, with the Texans ranking just 28th in the league in rushing. That’s putting more pressure on the passing game and that entire phase has not stepped up for the Texans.
The remade offensive line has been punished in pass protection, especially in pure dropback situations which the lack of success on the ground has made more prevalent. It feels like the team isn’t running play action nearly as often, and they’re definitely not using pre-snap motion to create easy looks or to stress the defense. For all his foibles, Slowik was a buzzy coaching name at one point for his ability to create those easy buttons.
Houston is also quietly starting to develop a...
