Broken Record: Same old Texans

Photo credit: Dan Flores 

Sunday, September 25th, Chicago, IL: The Texans have an abundance of work to do. It is pretty obvious that this will be a very long 2022 season. A 23-20 loss at Soldier Field marked a grueling day for the Texans and Texans fans. Each season seems to be comparable to a broken record.

During a career-high performance from Bears backup running back Khalil Herbert, the Texans managed 281 rushing yards on 40 carries with two touchdowns. Although Bears starting running back David Montgomery suffered ankle and knee injuries in the first quarter, the Bears pulled out a win over the Texans and averaged 7.0 yards per run doing so.

As a result of giving up the third-most rushing yards in a single game in franchise history, the 0-2-1 Texans are currently allowing 202.3 yards on the ground per game. 

Here is additional breakdown of what the Texans gave up this game:

• A 52-yard run by Herbert
• 157 yards on 20 carries for a 7.9 average. 
• A 29-yard scramble from Bears quarterback Justin Fields was missed by defensive ends Jonathan Greenard and Jerry Hughes. 
• A 41-yard run was also made by wide receiver St. Brown.

“We’ve got to stop the run,” said Texans safety Jonathan Owens. "You don’t want somebody just running it down your throat, you know what I mean? We’ve got to tackle better. I’ve got to tackle better. That’s what it comes down to. It sucks. It sucks losing a close one. We’ve got to be better.”

Lovie Smith attributed the defensive breakdowns to poor tackling and gaps that were not maintained. In every level of defense, there were missed tackles. Literally, the Texans couldn't buy a tackle. The Texans struggled at the perimeter, but they were successful up the middle.

After previous matchups against Indianapolis Colts running back Jonathan Taylor and Denver Broncos running backs Javonte Williams and Melvin Gordon, the Texans defense once again struggled against the run.

“Is it a surprise we gave up that many yards? Absolutely,” Smith said. “That’s not how we’ve played. The big chunk plays, one over 50, where they had two plays that were almost 100 yards. You can’t do that. We’re not set up that way".

Lovie continued....

“We don’t play zero coverage. We should have a last line of defense, safety in the middle of the field. So, a lot of things have to happen wrong for them to be able to get some of those plays.’

At the end of the day, the Texans have a bunch of work to do. Understanding that the team is rebuilding, it's these types of games and gameplay that hurt and doesn't scream confidence. When the defense is giving up yardage on a consistent basis, and the offense is not converting the downs, it becomes VERY painful to watch.