Absolutely no reason for Savage to get pulled. You chose to roll with him...you stick with him. I mean you had a whole offseason to see if Watson had whatever the hell it was you were looking for. You pull Savage after a questionable half where EVEYONE looked sketchy? This was one of the most bone headed Texans games from a coaching standpoint I've watched. Just unbelievable stuff. Think everyone's past this whole "this offense is complex" crap. It looks horrid. It looks like it's always looked. Horrid.
Everybody is complaining about the offensive line when we've known about this for a long time. Texans rarely have ever put any emphasis on oline. Always first round picks for dline. It doesn't matter who you put out there as QB. Until they get an offensive line, the offense is going to suck.
Kubiak was a better coach, our Oline and running game never looked bad under him except maybe that first year but my memory is fuzzy. Think we had Ahman Green? Kubes took a undrafted dude and made him a star...he did this twice, well Terrel Davis was a 6th round pick but pretty close. It's not some strange coincidence here, Kubiak just understands how to coach and run an offense better than BOB. With BOB it could be that Brady and the Patriots made him look better than he actually is.
"We were just looking for a spark John. Nothing against Tom. He was terrific." So much for O'Brien adding energy to the offense Lamar.
I just can't get over them benching savage after one half. The entire offseason and training camp and preseason was a total waste. Obrien is extremely disappointing. At this point I don't see how you can excuse him. He took over a team that quit but that still had talent on both sides of the ball. -every decision he has made regarding the offensive line has made us worse -the scheme has befuddled every quarterback -he has made the qb situation worse every year with his changes -in season and in game he messes with the QBs and messes them up -running game keeps getting worse -doesn't use any of the so called creativity he preaches I just can't even come up with a redeeming quality for him at the point other than that he made a smart decision with his defensive coaching staff
An all too-familiar start for Bill O’Brien and Texans Spoiler Houston, a city in recovery, was ready. America was watching. Texas' state flag was stretched wide by first responders. Then it was swallowed by an end zone-to-end zone symbol of the strength of our country. It was the week after the unbelievable destruction of Hurricane Harvey. The clearest proof yet that this city was returning to normal and ... Oh, the heck with it. You watched the horror. You know exactly how bad it was. Bill O'Brien panicked and benched his starting quarterback again. His team gutted us when it was supposed to inspire and deliver. A rookie who wasn't supposed to play was chased all over the field, drastically speeding up a learning year. And 29-7 Jacksonville on Sunday at NRG Stadium: Easily the worst overall coaching performance of O'Brien's career. The fact that it insulted us all after Harvey stormed Houston — instantly erasing the pent-up goodwill and proud pregame tributes — made Week 1 of 2017 even more painful. The fact that it went down the way it did — zero offense, 10 Jaguars sacks, J.J. Watt disappearing and Tom Savage suddenly shining the pine — is pretty much unbearable if you lived through O'Brien's initial three 9-7 seasons. Yes, Texans fan who takes pride in division banners: It is just one game, there are 15 still to go and O'Brien has dug himself out of deeper holes. But the offense is completely in his hands now. He "parted ways" with longtime friend (and former offensive coordinator) George Godsey during the offseason. Then he doubled down on himself as the Texans' new OC, all while entering a make-or-break season that should end with either a contract extension or another coaching search. "We have to play better offensively in order for us to get to where we need to be in this league. ... I put that on me," said O'Brien, after Brock Osweiler let the Texans' defense down during a divisional round playoff defeat to Tom Brady and Bill Belichick last season. So why in the world was O'Brien saying it all over again Sunday, after the Texans were booed like it was still 2016 (or '15, or '13) and they let a team that went 3-13 last year rip them apart? "I need to do a better job. ... It starts with me," O'Brien said. "I wish we would've played faster. ... That's on me," the fourth-year coach said. OK. We know it was bad, bad, bad for the main man. But who's your starting quarterback in four days at Cincinnati on national TV? "I don't know," O'Brien said. Say what??? I'm having flashbacks to Ryan Fitzpatrick being benched for Ryan Mallett midway through 2014 in the search of a spark. We went back in time to Week 1 of 2015, when O'Brien insisted on "Hard Knocks" that he didn't employ a short leash, then discarded Brian Hoyer for Mallett before the Texans even completed their first game. I'm going to walk out on a pretty strong limb when I say this: Super Bowl winners don't normally bench their starters in Week 1, and they definitely don't change quarterbacks every single year. It's an admittedly informal number, but I'm going to estimate that 80 percent of Texans season-ticket holders would prefer the team's starting QB to be a first-round pick who beat Nick Saban for a national championship. But here's the thing with starting Deshaun Watson in four days: He was supposed to sit, watch and learn all season. How in the heck is a potential franchise QB supposed to soak up the awesome wonder of the NFL when he's running around for his life every drive, trying to overcome a paper-thin offensive line that allowed a franchise-record 10 sacks in one game? Maybe Watson will one day be the true answer you've waited so long for. Sunday, he barely completed 50 percent of his passes (12-of-23), only threw for 102 yards, fumbled once, threw one interception and had another bad pick luckily erased by a Jaguars flag. This is the foundation the Texans want to suddenly start building their future on? They're not rebuilding. They didn't go 3-13 last season. And if they don't make the playoffs in 2017, there's no reason Bob McNair should hand O'Brien another contract. Sunday was just one game. But it makes you question everything. What exactly were the Texans doing all summer instead of, you know, fixing a broken offense that tied for 28th in the league in average scoring last season. Did general manager Rick "Teflon" Smith really think that this team's already questionable offensive line would magically strengthen itself? Or that playing financial hardball with three-time Pro Bowl left tackle Duane Brown – under contract, but quietly holding out – was really the smartest way to protect Savage and Watson, and take the franchise's elusive next step in 2017? And maybe it wasn't all happy harmony in the training-camp mountains of West Virginia. Osweiler isn't around to blame for this. If the Texans truly believed Watson was ready, he would've taken the first snap of Week 1 and as many preseason first-team reps as possible. Switching QBs for the umpteenth time – Cleveland has nothing on Houston in the O'Brien era – rewarded the Texans with seven points, five sacks and a whopping 151 yards in the second half. That doesn't even beat the Browns. The Texans are better than this (I think). They have 15 games left to redeem themselves. But on the day that post-Harvey Houston was ready for another inspiring lift, O'Brien's team was as lifeless as it's ever been. "That's on me" and "I don't know" don't cut it this year. If those tired words keep coming, the Texans should be searching for a new coach in 2018.
https://www.profootballfocus.com/news/pro-refocused-jacksonville-jaguars-29-houston-texans-7 QB BLAKE BORTLES, 72,2 OVERALL GRADE The biggest perceived issue for this Jaguars team coming into the year was the quarterback situation. Bortles was seemingly demoted in the preseason, before being promoted back to starter soon after. Many figured he’d struggle against an elite Texans defense. While Bortles was decidedly average in this game, that’s far better than many people expected. He spread the ball around, and on throws more than 10 yards downfield he was 4-of-8 for 62 yards. He was also victimized by his receivers at times as they dropped three of his passes, all of which would’ve been for first downs. EDGE CALAIS CAMPBELL, 85.0 OVERALL GRADE Campbell had a great day rushing the passer. Calais finished with 5 sacks and a hit and hurry. Campbell notched 4 of his sacks and his hurry rushing from the left side of the offensive formation. Campbell was one of many Jaguar defensive lineman who had a great day rushing the passer as Yannick Ngakoue also had a fabulous day as well. The Jaguars strip sack and fumble return late in the second quarter basically clinched the game in Jacksonville’s favor. HOUSTON TEXANS TOP 5 GRADES: LB Zach Cunningham, 82.7 overall grade TE C.J. Fiedorowicz, 81.2 overall grade S Marcus Gilchrist, 79.8 overall grade DI Brandon Dunn, 79.0 overall grade DI D.J. Reader, 78.2 overall grade PERFORMANCES OF NOTE: TE C.J. FIEDOROWICZ, 81.2 OVERALL GRADE Fiedorowicz was a weapon for the Texans offense in the 24 snaps he played. He caught all 4 passes deemed catchable that were thrown his way. Fiedorowicz averaged 4.60 yards per route run, doing most of his work in the middle of the field. QB DESHAUN WATSON, 31.7 OVERALL GRADED Watson was 12 of 23 passing and averaged 4.43 yards per attempted pass. He faced pressure on 10 of his 29 dropbacks and was sacked 4 times. He also finished 1 of 4 for 12 yards and an interception while under pressure. Watson was able to keep drives alive with his legs but also had several miscommunications with his wide receivers and struggled with accuracy. Watson did complete 4 of his 5 pass attempts using play action and had a touchdown as well. Houston may employ more play action as Watson grows in the offense. DI J.J. WATT, 78.1 OVERALL GRADE While this grade is very atypical for Watt throughout his career, it’s not bad for a player playing healthy for arguably the first time since the 2016 Wild Card round. Watt looked good in the run game, often standing his man up at the line of scrimmage and working his way to the hole to disrupt the play. His run stop at 10:02 of the first quarter was vintage Watt, shedding his block almost instantly and making the play. Where he struggled was rushing the passer. Watt recorded a hit and a hurry, but both were clean up plays. He had a hard time turning the corner on the edge and often found himself pushed back through the top of the pocket. While he’s clearly not back to his world-class level of play yet, this was an important step for Watt’s comeback. LB ZACH CUNNINGHAM, 82.1 OVERALL GRADE Considering how good this Texans defense was last year, it’s quite a surprise that their highest graded defender in this game was rookie Zach Cunningham. But make no mistake, Cunningham was impressive. Despite playing limited snaps (28 of 64), Cunningham finished with three solo run stops, and a run stop percentage of 18.8 percent. He also had a batted pass when rushing the quarterback. Cunningham’s strong play in this game may have earned himself a bit more playing time going forward.
Is anyone here really surprised by any of this? The Texans are the most blue blooded organization in all of pro sports, they don't care and the fans don't care either.
Let's see, 2020 comes around, O'Brien is gone, Savage is gone, Watson is mediocre, Duane is done, Watt is declining...OH AND RICK SMITH IS STILL HERE. Saved you the suspense of watching all that mess. Go root for another team because we got an empty suit using his gut and invoking God, firmly entrenched in the GM hole.
[Charles Robinson/Yahoo] Bill O'Brien's inability to stick with a QB is wrecking his rep and Texans https://www.si.com/nfl/2017/09/10/derek-carr-mvp-raiders-titans-baltimore-ravens-bengald-texans-problems REGRETS Everyone on the Houston Texans and Everything They Did. Bill O’Brien’s offense is difficult to run, and impossible when you’re this bad up front. And, even with Duane Brown (the left tackle did not play as he holds out), they’re really bad up front. The headlines will be the quarterbacks. Both were truly bad, which was to be expected (Savage because of his underwhelming talent, Watson because you’d have to possess some kind of warlock-type, black-magic powers to be able to go from running Clemson’s offense to running Bill O’Brien’s isolation- and option-heavy attack. And then, the defense was bad against a simplistic Jaguars attack. It was as disappointing a day as you could have imagined. MOMENTS WE’LL TELL OUR GRANDKIDS ABOUT Kevin Johnson missed tackle: If you’re looking for volunteers to tackle Leonard Fournette, I am not going to raise my hand. But sheesh, watching Johnson go low and whiff by four feet. If you were directing a football film and wanted a realistic shot of a running back evading a tackler, you would have made everyone do it again. WHAT WE’LL BE TALKING ABOUT THIS WEEK Bill O’Brien’s leash: Ideally, they would have treaded water with Tom Savage for most if not all of the year, then turned it over to Deshaun Watson. Now, they’re almost forced to play the rookie because at least he can move. But it’s time to ask: Does O’Brien have to trash this playbook? It’s too much to groom a new QB this quickly; the offense is just too complex. And on top of that, the offensive line is atrocious so they can’t run the ball. The system is broken and the personnel stinks. I’m not sure what they can do.
