I think it's important to maintain perspective. They hired an inexperienced coordinator & implemented a new system. They did not pour resources into a known-deficiency that has a direct impact on Stroud's success (the OL). They did not urgently address Mixon or Dell's injuries not Diggs' departure. And then Stroud missed nearly a quarter of the season. However we feel about Stroud's ability to navigate those circumstances, let's at least all agree that that environment is less than ideal, especially for a young QB. Personally, I'm not inclined to draw too many conclusions from this season. I still see flashes of the '23 Stroud, and I'm optimistic they've figured some - but not all - things around him. I think they can get better this year with an eye on them being *very* good next year. I think it's sad the Texans had such an ill-conceived offseason. And most of the issues I'm seeing with Stroud are rooted in that. I'm not the least bit worried about him.
.... all of it was accurate: Stroud is on on his 2nd *inexperienced* coordinator in 3 years; they lost Diggs, Dell and Mixon and replaced them with... two rookies and Christian Kirk; Collins remains the one above-average weapon (acknowledging Marks and Higgins' potential). And yeah... the OL remains a giant concern, despite it getting better. It's still below average. The defense is good enough, they don't have to win 35-31 shoot-outs, and I think they're coached accordingly. That, too, was an accurate statement. I fully expect Stroud to be hitting his stride by the postseason.
Diggs wasn't much of a loss. Tank was but we don't know if we'll ever get him back. I think Mark's and Chubb have filled in we'll for Mixon. He's probably healthy and just wants money . That's a guess but there's smoke there. we nevrr get the OL rights I'm not holding at hope there. Higgins has been playing a lot better now that he's getting touches. The defense is one of the best in the league. That's not debatable. It's pretty late in the season. Guys do get hot in the playoffs but I don't trust CJ.. I hope I'm wrong
The league is always about the players. How good did Belichick look without Brady. Without Mahomes Reed would go down as a good coach who couldn't get over the hump. And now with Kelce not as good they probably don't make the playoffs.
I don't think not playing because he wants to get paid is the way TO GET PAID. Throwing a season away when already up there in HB years is not a smart move.
Some of it is based on strength of schedule. If these schedules were flipped CJ would be having similar numbers to his rookie season. Texans have played: Good teams - Rams, Jags twice, Seahawks, 49ers, Broncos, Bills, Colts, Chiefs Average to bad teams - Bucs, Titans, Ravens, ‘Patriots have played: Good teams - Bills Average to bad teams - Raiders, Dolphins, Panthers, Saints, Titans, Browns, Steelers, Falcons, Bucs, Jets, Bengals, Giants
It's 100% fair to point out the Pats cupcake schedule, but if a QB can only be a good QB with a last place schedule, they aren't really a good QB.
CJ has proven if given time he is a Top Tier QB. I know you watched the game on Sunday and saw the difference of when he had time in the 1st half VS when he didn't have time in the 2nd half. The throws he made in that game sets him apart from Mills and half of the league alone
People said the same things last yr about Jayden Daniels. I take what a QB does his Rookie yr with a grain of salt. CJ had a great Rookie yr and followed that up with an avg yr due to circumstances, Mixon missed games, Nico missed games, Tank missed games and Diggs missed games. All that plus the fact that the OL was horrible last yr, as was the OC. This yr, they have a new OC, whonis equally incompetent, an avg OL and one or two weapons. So when you LOOK at everything in its totality....HOW DO YOU EXPECT FOR THIS OFFENSE TO BE GREAT?
I don't know if I agree with that - Stroud began regressing after Diggs got hurt. But the point isn't necessarily that Diggs was good/bad; the point is that they didn't replace him with someone that was at least as good, and certainly not better. Exactly. He was good and we don't know when we're getting him back... and the Texans replaced him with... Christian Kirk, who is not good. I really despise the rhetoric I'm about to employ - but your comment leaves me no other choice: do you actually watch the games? On no planet have Chubb and Marks filled in well for Mixon, and as proof, check their red zone success with Mixon and without. It is not much of a stretch to suggest this is a 9-, 10-, possibly 11-win team with a healthy Joe Mixon, who found the end zone regularly last year with relatively the same piss-poor blocking. Right.... They never get the OL right - but you don't trust.... CJ? It takes a fairly sizeable jump to not correlate these two things.
It's difficult to say. He got hurt and they didn't want to give him a contract. Kirk is definitely not a suitable replacement for Tank. I don't think he'll be back at full strength. He's a great route runner so maybe he can still fit in the nickel I watch every game and attend them as well. I've watched the Texans since David Carr. Not sure If I agree on that. Marks has done what he can. He's not the receiver that Mixon is but he runs hard. We're getting the most we can out of Chubb. He's torn both his knees up. I don't trust CJ. It's simply an opinion. I didn't want him coming out of Ohio State. I was pissed they took him until they traded back up for Will
Maye is also playing for one of the better offensive coordinators in football. You're vastly understating this discrepancy. Here's a snapshot of defensive opponents by DVOA: Houston: 2 - Sea 4 - LA 5 - Jax 5 - Jax 6- Den 13 - Ind 14 - TB 16 - KC 17 - Buf 22 - Bal 25 - 49ers 27 - Ten 27 - Ten That's 7/13 games against above-average defenses (15, or higher). New England: 3 - Cle 11 - NO 14 - TB 17 - Buf 18 - Atl 20 - Pit 21 - LV 23 - Mia 26 - Car 27 - Ten 28 - NYJ 29 - NYG 32 - Cin Ten of New England's 13 games (77%) have come against below-average defenses (17, and below); eight against defenses ranked 20, or lower, including five against bottom seven defenses. Their second-toughest defense (#11 NO) would've been the Texans' fifth toughest-defense. The Patriots have played an historically easy schedule. Any one glossing Drake Maye - especially at the expense of Stroud - and just ignoring this is either willfully or painfully ignorant.
It's not really difficult to say at all: the Texans do not, right now, have a WR - other than Nico - better than Stefon Diggs. Higgins has the potential to be better - but that's not the point. They lost Diggs and did not adequately replace him. I don't understand what you mean here - offenses don't run nickels... And if you're referring to Christian Kirk as "a great route runner," I've seen zero evidence to support that. I don't really care how hard they're trying - Marks + Chubb are not better than Joe Mixon. Joe Mixon scored 11 rushing TDs last year; Marks + Chubb have combined for 5. The Texans red zone success rate has plummeted from ~51% to 39%, almost exclusively because of Mixon's absence. Mixon consistently created chicken salad out of chicken **** last year. Chubb can no longer do that; Marks has merely shown flashes (and rarely around the goal line). Again, this is very simple: they lost Mixon, Diggs and Dell, and did not upgrade those three positions. It seems weird to be holding a three-year old grudge considering he's subsequently won OROY, two division titles and two playoff games. Why still be mad at the 2023 draft?
True if everything is perfect for CJ he's got the ability to be good. But even though everything isn't optimal and he's unable to raise the level of his teams play, he still should be able to get the checks at the LOS right and run the 2 minute drill better than he's run it this year. These are things that he can control and should be better at doing after three years in the NFL.
He needs a good TE and a great RB...along with an OC who knows how to use it effectively. Just skills player ofc...OL needs to improve.
