Across the NFL, only two teams ended the 2021 season with worse records than the Houston Texans. While they struggled on both sides of the ball, their efforts to reinforce their offense may already pay dividends in the upcoming season. Although there are still many familiar faces, the team also drafted a number of promising rookies to key positions.
Quarterback
There are still high expectations for Davis Mills at QB. Even though he finished the 2021 season with a mediocre QBR of 88.8, his stats are actually close to par with his record at Stanford. There his completion percentage was 65.5% for an average of 7.9 yards per attempt. In his first season with the Texans his completion percentage was 66.8% for an average of 6.8 yards per attempt. If he can use his performance last year as a baseline to improve from, he could one day end up as one of the most elite QBs in the league.
The Texans aren’t being complacent with Mills as their only option at QB however, and brought in several backup QBs in case of injury or other issues. After all, Mills became their starter last season after Tyrod Taylor injured his hamstring in a game against the Browns. In the NFL, having another player ready to step up is always a bonus.
Running Back
The Houston Texans have also been busy rebuilding their RB corps this offseason. They acquired Marlon Mack from free agency to be their first string over Rex Burkhead. Mack suffered a tear in his Achilles tendon in week 1 of the 2020 season, and was then stuck on the bench for the 2021 season as Jonathan Taylor and Nyheim Hines posted exceptional numbers. If he can return close to his pre-injury production, he should be a valuable performer.
Dameon Pierce is another young Texans player with a lot of potential. He appeared in every game, all four years during his time at the University of Florida. In his freshman year, Pierce was a reserve running back and a key member of the special teams unit. After that, he became a key contributor to the run game itself. We can expect him to get a lot of opportunities to prove himself this year, as he’s lined up behind two RBs who have yet to earn tenured starting spots.
Wide Receiver
Perhaps no other position on the Houston Texans has seen as much change as the WR. While they got a lot of attention from drafting John Metchie III from Alabama, as of now he’s still dealing with an ACL injury. However, the Texans also picked up a number of other young receivers who have good potential.
Johnny Johnson III put up excellent numbers while at Oregon, racking up 139 receptions for 15 touchdowns and an average of 13.9 yards per catch. Connor Wedington had some on and off years at Stanford, but still showed signs of improving in his junior and senior years. And while Drew Estella’s college career was very brief, he still managed to impress scouts with his 367 yards on 30 receptions while at Baylor.
The Houston Texans may not have a superstar wide receiver (not yet anyway). But they have stacked their WR position very well as a whole. If they swap out those players regularly during games, they can help prevent injuries and give their rookies some valuable experience.
Offensive Line
Often overlooked and always under-appreciated, a team’s offense lives and dies by its linemen. The Texans’ offensive line struggled terribly in the 2021 season. Injuries and a heavy focus on pass blocking largely deprived the team of the ability to run the ball down the field. The Texans were 32nd in run-block win rate, and many analysts rated their offensive line in the worst 5 overall.
With these positions, the Texans seem mostly to be holding onto what worked with pass blocking. Center Justin Britt and Tackles Laremy Tunsil and Tytus Howard are due to return as starters this year. But the team is clearly aware of their issues protecting the run.
In the first round of the 2022 NFL Draft, the Texans selected Kenyon Green from Texas A&M. While Green has had some issues with pass blocking, it was precisely because of his dominance blocking for the run game that the Texans wanted him. They already have linemen who can defend the pass, and hopefully they and Green can learn from each other.
Still Rebuilding!
None of this means that the Houston Texans are out of the rebuilding phase yet. Many of their key players are young and need time to develop and prove themselves. If they take off running this year, that’s great, but it’s not common and shouldn’t be expected. But at the very least we may see a significant improvement over last season.
