We are several days removed from the Houston Texans disappointing victory over the woeful Las Vegas Raiders. They hit the 10-win mark but limp into an important matchup against the Los Angeles Chargers.
After the Raiders game, I asked the other writers of Battle Red Blog to express their frustrations with the team. And vent they did.
Provide your immediate reaction to the Texans nail biting win against the really bad Raiders. The offense looked bad and the defense started to show crack due to injuries up front. What frustrated you the most against the Raiders and who do you point the finger at?
Mike Bullock:
What frustrated me most?
Nick Caley.
Who do we point the finger at?
Nick Caley.
The offense looked borderline inept time and again today. Max Crosby coming untouched into the backfield multiple times. No receivers open multiple times. This was likey the worst defense the Texans will face before next season and Caley only managed to put up 1 touchdown? The next time Houston loses, if Caley isn’t promoted to unemployed within an hour of the end of the game, Cal should fire himself for gross negligence. Defensively it made me wonder just how much Al-Shair means to this unit. His on-field “quarterbacking” of the defense was clearly missed today. Hopefully he gets healthy and the team shakes off this clunker of a game fast.
Clayton Anderson:
I was most frustrated by how the Raiders’ defense was able to completely neutralize the Texans’ offensive game plan. Credit to Maxx Crosby and the defensive line for smothering the run and annihilating Houston’s offensive line, but there didn’t seem to be much urgency by Caley/Stroud to complete the easier passes to keep the offense on the field more. Too many tosses for negative yards, and 4+ 3-and-outs against a 2-12 Raiders team is unacceptable.
The run defense was exposed today. Henry To’oTo’o was caught again in coverage on a long touchdown reception to a running back. All in all, this was a notch below “a win is a win”. This felt like a disastrous regression for the offense, one that completely resets your expectations for what they can accomplish this season.
Kenneth L.:
Going to throw my own thoughts in here early too. What’s most frustrating is the playing to the level of competition. We should have put them away much like we did the Cardinals where it was close-ish, but the offense couldn’t get going. I thought Caley tried multiple different things ONCE and then completely abandoned them for the simple playbook he maintains.
Stroud’s footwork looked like it was back to its old inconsistencies. He’s had issues all season when under pressure. He throws jump passes, passes without a good base, and inconsistent drop backs. I also thought he could have run the ball several times and chose not to.
L4Blitzer:
This was a game that Houston should have closed out with little to no stress. Las Vegas has been even worse than Arizona, and the Texans squashed the Cards. Then, we had whatever that was at NRG on Sunday. An offense that couldn’t be bothered to get going until late in the game. An offensive line that when they weren’t getting injured, couldn’t hold off one of the worst units in the game, even factoring Maxx Crosby. Oh, and the defense made Ashton Jeanty think he was back at Boise State, playing against some suck Mountain West team. Probably isn’t helping that Houston is using players way, way down on the depth chart at DT. If not for Stingley, Fairbairn and some late offensive heroics, Houston takes one of the worst loses in recent memory.
Yet, Houston did manage to win the game. The Jeanty run in the 4th quarter was bad, but Houston was up 9 at that point, and Houston made sure that the Raiders didn’t get the ball back again. How often has Houston lost a game like this in the past? Instead, Houston found a way to do just enough to get the much-needed W. Good teams aren’t always good, but they are good when needed. Now, if they play that bad against the Chargers and the Colts, we are having a different conversation.
Vallretired:
I think the biggest frustration is that you knew your starting tailback was out. So why are we still running the same offense? This is beyond Nick Caley at this point. Ryan’s is determined to score only 20 points and only 20 points. With Azeez Al Shaiir out it was predictable they would struggle some defensively. Again, you’re trying to run the same thing you would before without any adjustments.
Patrick.H:
This was one of the most annoying Texans wins I’ve seen in a minute. The offense looked lackadaisical and I started seriously wondering if something was wrong with Stroud through most of the game. Plus, the defense had me wondering if they had a problem with covering tight ends. Between McBride last week and Bowers this week, it looks like they just can’t stop them from gashing an otherwise stellar defense. Granted, Al-Shaair, Settle, and Edwards were out and they’re a big part of what keeps the defense going, but it’s the start of a trend I don’t like.
There have been better Texans teams and there have been worse Texans teams. But this might be the most Jekyll-and-Hyde Texans team we’ve ever seen. Furthermore, I believe Nick Caley should be fired immediately.
VBallRetired:
(Caley) won’t be. The problem is you can’t hire an OC that will craft an offense around their talent. They’re playing smashmouth football if it hairlips the governor. The only hope is they can add a couple of lineman and a better back and actually lean into that. A different OC likely runs the same conservative shit Caley is.
Kenneth L.:
I also don’t think Caley will be fired – it’s his first time calling plays. It would also be Stroud’s third OC in as many years.
Patrick.H.:
I don’t expect it to happen, I’m just saying I’m done with him.
Kenneth L.:
BUT I would kill if Brian Daboll could coach C.J. Stroud.
Patrick.H.:
Offensive Coordinator/Asst. Head Coach Brian Daboll? Sign me up.
VBallRetired:
I dunno. He likes running quarterbacks.
The problem I see is that if you win just one more game then they can convince themselves they are good and moving in the right direction.
