The building was electric. The crowd was screaming. And for most of the day the Texans put up the offensive numbers we were craving in the off season.
We'll be evaluating this one all week with 'what if's' and 'how did that happen?' but the fact is that these were two AFC contenders going toe-to-toe. The Texans just came up short. Now, it's back to the lab to up their game for next week.
My biggest takeaways
- The addition of David Montgomery plus the changes on the offensive line made for a promising ground game that's going to pay dividends this season. It wasn't a juggernaut today but running for 124 yards as a team was certainly a nice start.
- C.J. Stroud spread the ball around nicely, finding 11 different receivers for 274 yards. As this unit performs more together, execution and scoring will only improve. As it was, the offense went four for five in the Red Zone scoring touchdowns. They were 30th in this department last season.
- Seeing Jadeveon Clowney making plays was like getting one of those memory posts popping up in my Facebook feed. I almost do a double take every time I see number 90 out there.
- This is hardly breaking news, but turnovers kill. Last season, the Texans were second best in the NFL in protecting the ball. They turned it over twice Sunday and didn't get any back. That's not the recipe they want. In last season's matchup with Buffalo they were not nearly as prolific offensively yet they didn't turn it over.
- Somehow the defense was off its game. Al Pacino does that great speech in Any Given Sunday when he says something like '…Just a step too fast or too slow and you don't get there.' The SWARM magic flashed from time to time but not nearly enough. Giving up two 90+ yard drives is NOT Texans football, and the defensive players will be the first to tell you that.
- Kai Kroeger and Ka'imi Fairbairn had good days. Fairbairn's 58-yard bomb was on the money to get the lead. Kroeger and his punt cover guys pinned two inside the five. This will bode well for future games.
It's a bummer to lose but this league waits for no one. I always point out that win or lose, you have to go right back to getting better or the next game is going to be a vicious hangover. The Texans are poised for a big week of prep for Cincinnati to make sure that doesn't happen.
