Official Texans @ Bengals Game Thread, 11/16/2015

[Nconroe]

Originally Posted by WMH

I was happy with 2 things:

I wanted to stay up and watch the 4th quarter.
The D played as I thought they would this year.

Hope both trends continue for the last 7 games.

My next wish is to see the Oline play up to my expectations.

[WMH]

Originally Posted by Nconroe

My next wish is to see the Oline play up to my expectations.

That's a pretty good one. Also think the RB's are making them look crappier than they are. One thing that made Foster special was his vision and ability to see the cutback lanes. Don't think our current guys do that with much consistency. When a RB runs straight into a pile, easy to blame OL for lack of a hole. When a RB bounces thru a cutback, easy to give too much credit to the OL.

[nunusguy]

Originally Posted by WMH

That's a pretty good one. Also think the RB's are making them look crappier than they are. One thing that made Foster special was his vision and ability to see the cutback lanes. Don't think our current guys do that with much consistency. When a RB runs straight into a pile, easy to blame OL for lack of a hole. When a RB bounces thru a cutback, easy to give too much credit to the OL.

Maybe Blue is a better blocker on blitz pickup than Grimes or Polk because I can't think of another reason why he gets more snaps than they do ? Polk and Grimes both hit the hole with more authority and quickness than Blue.
As far as the OLine, I'm anxious to see if Su'a-Filo can show some improvement this weekend vs the Jets over Monday nights game when he took every offensive snap at LG. He screwed up on some plays, but he had some solid plays when he looked like an NFL offensive lineman.

[popanot]

I don't know why Blue gets any snaps at all. He's done nothing to merit starting and getting the majority of the snaps. He hits the hole weaker than Steve Urkel. I'd probably be OK with Polk/Grimes as the main guys for now, but I'm surprised the Texans haven't worked out someone like Dri Archer to try to infuse some speed into the offensive backfield. Not saying he, or someone like him, is the complete answer, but some speed from time to time would be nice.

I know I just mentioned adding speed, but I'd like to see Strong get on the field some. Other than Hopkins, we are getting nothing from the other guys (speed, catches, production, etc, etc) so why not add some height and maybe someone who can go up and get a pass or two? Sooner or later teams are going to shut down Hopkins, then what? Try something different whether it's only 10-15 snaps a game.

[Arky]

Originally Posted by popanot

I don't know why Blue gets any snaps at all. He's done nothing to merit starting and getting the majority of the snaps. He hits the hole weaker than Steve Urkel. I'd probably be OK with Polk/Grimes as the main guys for now, but I'm surprised the Texans haven't worked out someone like Dri Archer to try to infuse some speed into the offensive backfield. Not saying he, or someone like him, is the complete answer, but some speed from time to time would be nice.

I know I just mentioned adding speed, but I'd like to see Strong get on the field some. Other than Hopkins, we are getting nothing from the other guys (speed, catches, production, etc, etc) so why not add some height and maybe someone who can go up and get a pass or two? Sooner or later teams are going to shut down Hopkins, then what? Try something different whether it's only 10-15 snaps a game.

I think Blue is best when he manages to find a hole and get a head of steam going - it just doesn't happen often enough due to mostly his poor vision and OL problems. Arian was so good at spotting a logjam and bouncing outside or diving into a "minihole" to salvage something out of the run. I agree Polk and Grimes are better suited for the current state of affairs.....

One other thing that has been on my mind lately is how much our QB's, all three who've seen action, go "Hop-hunting". Hopkins is currently #1 in the NFL with 124 targets. That's almost 14 targets/game.... He's good and deserves his share of looks but goodness, spread the ball around a little.... Griffin and Fido had 8 targets (5 catches) in the Cincinnati game so, maybe they're trying......

I am/was a fan of the Kubiakian rollout - having the QB sprint out left or right of the pocket to get clear passing lanes.... For a smallish guy like Hoyer who has good legs, wish they would do this a few more times per game..... As long as the DE is sealed, it's a great way to beat pressure....

[popanot]

Originally Posted by Arky

I am/was a fan of the Kubiakian rollout - having the QB sprint out left or right of the pocket to get clear passing lanes.... For a smallish guy like Hoyer who has good legs, wish they would do this a few more times per game..... As long as the DE is sealed, it's a great way to beat pressure....

Totally agree with this. During the game and after seeing Hoyer get crushed in the pocket multiple times, I was barking to myself "How about trying a freaking rollout or two??!!". Those Kubiak misdirection boots and TE screens over the middle used to just kill overly aggressive defenses. I'm not sure why OB doesn't run more of that stuff considering the injuries and overall lack of talent at the skill positions we currently have on O.

[barrett]

It's funny to see people pining for Kubiak's offense.

Hopefully we aren't all wishing Ryan Fitzpatrick was our QB this Sunday.

[WMH]

Good thoughts on pass pro. Didn't really think about that, but I'd guess that's a factor.

Definitely agree on the speed factor. As gimmicky as it sounds, I wouldn't hate the idea of throwing Charles James back there on a sweep or two.

[HPF Bob]

I noticed when the Texans had a hail mary situation before the half that Strong was not out there. I hope he was on the inactive list, otherwise that was dumb not sending him out there. The Bengals have a lot of fast corners so perhaps O'Brien wanted fast receivers to run against them.

I noticed a lot more Kubiak-style play calls once Yates got into the game - bootlegs and rollouts. Remember Yates ran the WCO in college and much of his pro career was in WCO offenses. Any Texans with 2+ years experience would already know what he was going to run.

I'm curious who is taking first-team snaps during this short practice week.