Bill O’Brien’s intention in construction the Houston Texans’ 2020 roster is to provide layers of productive players. However, the reality of achieving that objective may have difficulty manifesting.
According to Mark Schofield of the Touchdown Wire, the defending AFC South champions were listed as one of the 11 teams in the NFL that has a thin roster.
Even if you are a Texans fan, and believe that this roster can get back into the playoffs (a complete possibility given the presence of players such as Deshaun Watson and J.J. Watt) you must concede that depth is an issue. They have issues on defense, outside of a few players such as Watt, Whitney Mercilus, Zach Cunningham and Justin Reid, and that’s in the starting lineup. Offensively, there are still questions about protecting Watson, and the additions of Randall Cobb and Brandin Cooks will give Watson some weapons, but Will Fuller’s availability remains a concern. Finally, not to poison the well too much but behind Watson? A.J. McCarron, Alex McGough and Nick Tiano. Honestly, McCarron, McGough and Tiano sounds like a fictitious law firm from an episode of “Boston Legal,” which does give me a chance to drop this quick video:
Either Schofield’s assessment is completely wrong, or O’Brien, now with general manager powers to go along with his coaching duties, has a ways to go in adding “DTS” players: dependable, tough, and smart.
The Texans have one of the building blocks for a successful team already locked up in the offensive line. For the first time in the Watson era, the Texans will return the same starting five offensive linemen from a season ago. In addition to dropping Watson’s sacks from 62 to 44, the offensive line also paved the way for Carlos Hyde, who didn’t arrive in Houston until Week 1, to have his first 1,000-yard rushing season of his career.
Houston still has to navigate their way through finding a successor to Brad Seely as the club’s special teams coordinator. Indications are that special teams assistant Tracy Smith will take on the mantle.
