2019 Texans Training Camp / Preseason

1. The offensive line is obviously the big question. And the Texans are really happy with what they’ve gotten from left tackle Matt Kalil thus far. Health is still a question. But his play has allowed the team to keep rookies Tytus Howard and Max Sharping working at guard.

2. Even with Tyrann Mathieu gone, safety looks to remain a strength. Free-agent additions Tashaun Gipson and Jahleel Addae have fit in well, and should give defensive coordinator Romeo Crennel some flexibility.

3. The Texans expect to be better at receiver around DeAndre Hopkins. Keke Coutee is the kind of slot that Bill O’Brien’s been looking for, and Will Fuller has looked good—although Fuller conceded to me post-practice that he’s still working his way back from his ACL injury.

4. The team’s also deeper and better at tight end than it has been, after spending a bunch of draft capital there. Jordan Thomas is nicked up now, but should have a significant role. And I’d bet the staff finds a way to get very talented, very raw rookie Kahale Warring involved.

5. The other trouble spot, outside of the offensive line, is at corner. My sense is the Texans wouldn’t mind making a move there. The problem is there are more teams out there that need corners than there are teams willing to consider dealing good ones.

 

Spoiler

 

https://www.si.com/nfl/2019/08/05/t...nts-patrick-mahomes-chiefs-tom-brady-patriots

AFTER THE SHAKEUP, THE TEXANS TAKE SHAPE

HOUSTON—Both here and in New Orleans, the teams had these new units they call CRZs (Cool Recovery Zones). They look like trailers. And inside, the temperature is kept at about 34 degrees. The science behind the units says that, by going inside for three minutes, players can lower their body temperature by a few degrees. So in between drills at camp, to combat the overbearing humidity, you’ll see Texans position groups filter in and out of there.

Why am I telling you this? I saw it as another example of Houston trying to modernize its operation, which has been a process of two years or so, with owner Cal McNair putting his fingerprints on the franchise his late father founded. Another example came in the change of the last 18 months, with two GMs gone, coach Bill O’Brien firmly entrenched as the face of the football operation, and McNair’s presence in the building felt on a larger scale.

With that in mind, here are three things I took away from a steamy morning there:

• O’Brien likes the reshuffled structure. Really, the tumult that led to GM Brian Gaine’s dismissal has leveled off the top of football ops, and created silos headed by director of player personnel Matt Bazirgan, college scouting director James Liipfert, cap czar Chris Olsen, EVP of team development Jack Easterby, and O’Brien himself.

“We have a flat organization structure, where basically you have guys like Chris Olsen, Matt Bazirgan, James Liipfert as scouting department heads, we all work together, we all meet together,” O’Brien said, as he came off the practice field. “There’s a lot of communication in the building, it’s going really well. So it’s a structure where we all report to the team—we’re doing what’s best for the team.

“I’d say there are several of us that report to Cal McNair, a lot of great communication in the building, we meet every day, talking about everything ranging from the roster to medical to video to equipment to everything in between. It’s a unique way of doing things. I coach the team. Chris Olsen’s in charge of salary cap, contracts, talking with agents. We have Geoff Kaplan in charge of our training room, Timmy Brog in charge of video. Everyone is just kind of doing their job within their department.”

As the coach, of course, O’Brien sets the vision, and my sense is he likes that part of it. But I certainly wouldn’t rule out Nick Caserio landing here in 2020, depending on how 2019 goes. As we wrote in June, Caserio and O’Brien are very close. Maybe that happens. Maybe it doesn’t.”

• Deshaun Watson is ready for the next step. The Texans QB told me after practice that, as it’s been, he’s routinely had two play calls at his disposal coming out of the huddle in games, and a read to figure out which way he should go. The plan for 2019 is to build on that, and to do so pretty extensively coming off his first full, healthy offseason as a pro.

“I can just have a lot more information on my plate, whenever I need it,” he said. “The past couple years, it was more calling the plays. Or they’d give me two plays, for different looks.

Now I can have five, six different plays in my head, and make sure we get in the right one. Biggest focus is really just taking that leadership role as a quarterback, and mastering my craft with my knowledge of the offense, knowledge of the defense and being able to get us in the right plays.”

O’Brien, meanwhile, has focused on the obvious with his young quarterback—“Everyone knows we have to do a better job of protecting him, and sometimes he has to do a better job of getting the ball out. I think having a full offseason is great for him. I’m excited for him.”

To that end, the team is cautiously optimistic on left tackle Matt Kalil’s camp performance. Health is always a question with him, but his emergence has allowed the team to work rookies Tytus Howard and Max Sharping at guard, for now.

• There’s a sense of urgency among the older guys. J.J. Watt is 30. Whitney Mercilus is 29. Even DeAndre Hopkins has a lot of mileage on his body for a 27-year-old. So while the Texans are young in some spots, the core that’s propelled the team to three playoff berths in the last four years isn’t getting any younger. And while they may a few more cracks at it, they all know it won’t last forever.

Which is why when I asked Hopkins if he feels a certain sense of urgency after knocking on the door so much, he didn’t hesitate.

“We can’t sugarcoat it—we know we have some veterans on this team that aren’t going to be here forever, and we’ve got some veterans in their prime,” Hopkins said. “And us being close to it, I think we got a taste of what we want. I’d be lying to say that the urgency isn’t there. That’s the way we practice. That’s the way we prepare.”