Author: /u/techn0crat

Let me reiterate what I’ve been writing, broadcasting and tweeting this week: Romeo Crennel made the correct decision to go for two points to beat the Titans, and everyone who disagrees must not have watched the Texans this season and seen how bad the defense has been. I’m going to explain it again, and then I’m going to run your comments ripping Crennel.

First, the Texans led 36-29 with 1:45 left in the game. Deshaun Watson was playing great. The unbeaten Titans had been unable to stop him since the first quarter. Give me Watson at the 2-yard line to win any day of the week over this defense trying to keep the Titans from scoring a touchdown and a two-point conversion.

Why would anyone who’s watched the Texans trust this defense to stop Ryan Tannehill and Derrick Henry from scoring a touchdown and converting a 2-point play? They went 76 yards in 1:41 to tie the score. Then they went 82 yards to win in overtime?

And you wanted Crennel to trust his defense instead of Watson at the 2? Give me a break. Crennel went for the win and said the next day he would again, and he was absolutely right. Watson or the defense? I’m amazing at how many of you insist you would have trusted the defense.

But we can agree to disagree, and I do respect your opinions.

Please check out the Chronicle’s two television shows this season: “Texas Sports Nation” runs Sunday nights at 11:30 on KPRC (Channel 2). “Texas Sports Nation: In Depth” runs twice a month on AT&T SportsNet Southwest, which also reruns it at different times. Thank you for watching.

As always, thank you for contributing to the Mailbag, reading our stories in the Chronicle’s print editions and online at Texas Sports Nation, where we also have multiple weekly podcasts. As you do every week, please send your comments and questions to john.mcclain@chron.com. Note: questions have been edited for clarity and/or brevity.

Anyway, this Mailbag is all Texans, so let’s get to it.

Q: Why are you giving Romeo a free pass on his 2-point call? I am not buying the fact that our defense cannot stop them. You are a stat man and the Texans had not given up but 7 points in the last 24 minutes, 11 seconds and that came on a freaky 94-yard run by Henry. And who automatically gives them a 2-point conversion? And how many PATs have we missed this year. Yes, they did score in the last 1 minute 46 seconds and they did take the overtime kick and score. Maybe our defense was dejected by the lack of confidence that the new man showed in them. I know they gave up 601 yards but let’s forget that we had held them scoreless for 24:11. If Bill O’Brien (who I am glad that we finally got rid of) had made this call, he would have been criticized severely. We are better off without BOB but there is no way you could possibly justify this in the NFL. Other than the Houston media, no one thought this was a good call. — Ken E.

A: I’m giving him a free pass, Ken, because it was the right decision.

Q: I read some of the disgusting comments about you last week and I am disgusted with the words and the writers. You are a reporter and you do your job. I do not understand the personal attacks. I have read and heard commentary about RAC going for 2 after the last TD. I thought at the time he was making the only choice he could to win the game. I am pretty sure RAC knew his defense would probably not stop the Titans, but a 9-point lead would have probably sealed the deal. Now that team 32 has demonstrated week after week they cannot stop most other offenses, I believe Cal ought to give J.J. an opportunity to play for a contender and perhaps earn a ring. It is sad to see him being stuck with no real chance to win one in Houston. He sure isn’t going to this season. It is beginning to look like the Detroit game could be a Repus Bowl. Not exactly prime time, but the only game in the time slot, so the whole world can see these two teams compete. I can imagine a high scoring affair, maybe 45-44, something similar to the Gamblers’ shootouts back in 1985. — Dennis W.

A: Thanks, Dennis, but I don’t mind criticism. When you dish it out, you have to be able to take it, right? Watt isn’t going anywhere, by the way.

Q: Every other head coach in the NFL would have kicked the extra point and had an eight-point lead, and the Titans would have needed a touchdown and extra point instead of an failed 2 point lead instead of a tie game. I do not know what Crennel was thinking. — Carl K.

A: If you believe that, Carl, I’m guessing you think every other coach in the NFL never watched the Texans’ defense. Like you, obviously! I like to think they’d rather go Watson at the 2 to win than trust perhaps the worst defense in Texans’ history.

Q: Think about it. If Tennessee doesn’t get a TD then you win anyway. But if Tennessee does score, then one team (and one team only) was going to go for 2. If Texans make their 2 the game is over and they win 37-28. If they don’t make it they are up 35-28 and TN would go for a PAT (not a 2). Crennel believed his offense had a better chance of making the 2 than his defense had of stopping a 2. And he was right. Tennessee would have run Derrick Henry and made the 2. So Crennel decided we might as well try to win it now with our offense on the field. — Shaun C.

A: I’d rather have Watson trying to get two points than Henry trying to get two points against the Texans’ defense, Shaun.

Q: As bad as the Texans played defensively, they were a bad coaching decision away from victory. At 37-28, the Titans need both a TD and a perfect play. If you look at the successful 2-point conversions in the NFL they are predominantly perfect plays. A perfect play is one which clearly exploits a weakness on D and features near-perfect execution. Rarely do you see a 2-point conversion on a razzle-dazzle play. The odds of the Titans getting both a TD and 2-point conversion are so low they make the OT coin flip look great. Even with the missed extra point, the Texans should’ve won this game after Tennessee missed 2 field goals, lost a fumble, and threw an interception. Thanks to those 4 plays, Watson got 4 more opportunities and showed the NFL what he can do with just an opportunistic D. Watson gets an A+ in my book because it’s not his fault. Watson’s rushing yds are coming mostly from abandoning a passing play. They are not designed runs. Imagine if they were. — Juan B.

A: Wow, Juan, based on your lengthy observations every week, I’m stunned you would trust the Texans’ defense for any reason, much less on the road against an unbeaten team the Texans had on the ropes.

Q: You are right that Romeo’s 2-point call was correct and the defense proved it. They had no chance of stopping Derrick Henry. The fact that they are not looking for a pass rusher or nose tackle is incredible. There has to be someone on other practice squads or free agents that can help. Is there any chance that other coaching changes could happen? The defense and special teams are a mess. The offensive line is extremely poor, those guys are bad at running and pass protection. I’m on board with your grades completely. I just wish they could run the ball effectively. That would even help their miserable defense, keeping them off the field so much. Are they really too proud to admit that the David Johnson trade is a bust? Go out and find a tailback ASAP. The second-team player for the Titans looks better than our first team. Johnson has clearly lost his burst. And J.J. clearly needs help on the line, try starting Blacklock. — Ronald J.

A: Come on, Ronald, what do you expect Crennel to say? “We blew the trade?” Nobody would do that. They got Johnson, Ross Blacklock, a fourth-round pick next year and, in a way, Brandin Cooks. Because they got the second-round pick from the Cardinals, they were happy to trade their second-rounder to the Rams for Cooks. I think their biggest need on offense in the offseason will be finding another running back.

Q: Hope you are doing good and you had a chance to vote. I read that voter participation in 2016 only was around 55 percent compared to Norway where it was 79 percent. Despite the loss, I think it was a much more enjoyable game than the previous five. It was exciting and nerve-wracking against a very well-coached Titans team. Too bad that the Texans always have to play from behind and letting Henry victimize them on the ground. What should be the goals for the rest of the season? Playoffs or division title seems unrealistic now, tanking for picks is also not an option so what should the Texans get out of the remaining games? As always thanks for your insightful journalism it makes it a lot easier to follow my favorite team, despite living 4,900 miles away. — Kristian S.

A: Tusen takk, Kristian. We’ve already had a record turnout in Harris County and expect to break every record election day. The Texans’ goal is to win as many games as possible and try to build some momentum for 2019 when they’ll have a new general manager and head coach. Vennligst vaer forsiktig!

Q: No doubt Watson is physically talented but I wonder how focused he is on winning. Does he hate losing more than he loves winning! Winning a big game is nice, but consistently finding a way to win and a disdain for losing is what makes the great ones (Brady, Rodgers, Brees, Wilson) great and separates them from the next tier of QBs. Little things like hitting receivers in stride on the slant, He consistently throws behind receivers, not mugging it up with players from the other team during a game when you getting your ass kicked. A little more focus on the team rather than “me, me, me.” Listen to his last few pressers and count how many times he says me. Not throwing a tantrum when we lose the toss in overtime etc. Maybe something he’ll grow into but in my opinion he’ll never be great without maturing a bit. Hope it happens sooner rather than later. — Steve B.

A: You’re so off-base, Steve. Just to check out how many of his pressers you’ve listened to, well, I’ve listened to all of them since the day he was drafted. So, to check out what you claim, I just looked at his Zoom with us this week, and he said “me” eight times while praising his receivers, Tim Kelly, J.J. Watt, his offensive line and Aaron Rodgers. Watson is as humble as I’ve ever dealt with. There’s nothing phony about him. The only player I saw him talking to during the game was Johnathan Joseph, his friend and former teammate, while there was a stop in play.

Q: You are wrong about Watson; he is not a winner; just like Moon; looks great on paper, but loses the big games. Watson so far can’t win anything. You misunderstood a statement I made, what I intended. K.C. has the secret by keeping Watson under pressure by rushing 5 or 6 on every down; when the league sees that, Watson’s short reign will be over. Archive this; I’ll remind you of it in a few months. And now he’s decided to become general manager. Give a man $156m and he thinks he owns the team. You’re right, I don’t like cocky. Like everyone else, he was my choice after he dismantled Alabama. Now I’m beginning to believe it was all Swinney; I’m sure you saw the Miami game a few weeks ago. Speaking of Swinney. — Carl R.

A: You’re as off-base about Watson’s personality as Steve B, Carl. I’m guessing you didn’t see him bring the Texans from a 16-point deficit to beat Buffalo in the playoffs. Here are some examples of what Watson’s capable of doing. See if you remember these games: Seattle in 2017, New England and Philadelphia in 2018, New Orleans in 2019 and Tennessee in 2020. Do you know what they have in common? In every game, Watson put the Texans ahead, and the defense blew the game on the last drive. All on the road against top quarterbacks. By the way, Carl, since your snide remark about Watson deciding to be the GM, I’m guessing you missed what I wrote after I checked out what he was talking about. Crennel gathered players around him after practice Wednesday because of all the trade speculation in the media and on social media. He told them to focus on the Packers because the team wants to win and there were no plans to trade anyone. Then Watson went to the media room to do his Zoom with us. His answer about nobody getting traded came straight from Crennel. As Paul Harvey used to say, “Now, you know the rest of the story.”

Q: After five games can you believe that Bill O’Brien wanted David Johnson over DeAndre Hopkins? And can you believe the Texans didn’t make a good enough offer to Carlos Hyde? As far as the defense goes, I’m not sure how the Texans can improve it with limited draft choices and it seems to me the Texans are wasting Deshaun Watson’s talent because I don’t know how long it will take to rebuild the defense and get an adequate running game. I don’t know if they will re-sign Fuller. I don’t expect them to win one to two more games unless the defense changes. Watson can only do so much. As of right now the only team they can beat is Jacksonville and their coach will be fired soon in my opinion. I feel bad for Romeo Crennel and I feel bad for J.J. Watt, Deshaun Watson and many players. Bill O’Brien has destroyed this organization by not re-signing Hyde, DeAndre Hopkins and many defensive players. I do see the Texans playing with more intensity with Romeo. That being said the talent on the defensive side of the ball is terrible. How many games do you think the Texans will win this year? And who do you think they will trade before the trading deadline. — Glen K.

A: Glen, O’Brien didn’t want Johnson over Hopkins. It was a bad trade, but at least be fair as to what the Texans got in return and will get in the next draft. And you’re right about Hyde. They decided before the draft they weren’t going to re-sign him. The offense won’t need much under the new regime, but a running back should be a priority.

Q: I really enjoy your work. The Texan players were able to stand and deliver as a team. They must have excellent leaders among the players. To me unless there is 1 second left in the game field goals inside your opponent’s 20 is for losers. The retooling will be quick and there is a lot of season left. It is going to be fun to watch. — Jack C.

A: Yes, it should be, Jack, because Watson is playing so well, going for a career-best fourth consecutive 300-yard game against the Packers and leading the NFL with an average per attempt of 8.93 yards.

Q: Good list of the players we lost including Kareem Jackson. But I think those were survivable moves. But the knife in the heart of this run defense was failing to sign D.J. Reader and the unexplained release of Angelo Blackson. Now you are left with backup-level starters on the defense and that will never work in this league. Offenses are just too good. — Terry C.

A: That’s the truth, Terry.

Q: Some of the things that have stood out to me following the Texans/Titans struggle are obvious if you watched the game:

First, I’m not going to second-guess RAC for the 2-point conversion call. While it was daring, it was not suicidal. I know Rich Gannon was going bonkers in the booth and was almost apoplectic over it but it was the right call. Second, RAC made several daring calls on fourth down and seemed to be involved in all aspects of the game. Except for the tipped pass, we win the game! After all the bonehead plays, the absence of any attempt in run defense, the bludgeoning by Derrick Henry, we win the game. My comments now are directed to the defensive side of the ball. Why did Zach Cunningham get a new deal? He is the epitome of a whiffer. I know he has been coached in the intricacies of tackling, but he either forgot or just disregards any thought of what is required. Many tackles were missed or whiffed but one stands out to me. Titans had a third down and were iffy on making a first down. Tannehill threw a short pass to this tight end short of the first down marker by 4 yards. Cunningham decided to make a flying leap at his shoulder pads and was simply flung off like a tsetse fly. A first down was made and my head exploded. Mercilus was a no-show as far as I could tell. He did not start and made no impact. This is another bad contract. If Cal wants to create some cap room, I know where he could get rid of two bad contracts and never miss them. From my perspective, J.J. Watt was the only lineman that showed up. From my view, were it not for him, Henry would have gained 300 yards. The rest of the linemen should have stayed home. Obviously, our defense is horrendous. I think we, the team, should use this year to identify the week areas and plan for the draft. It should not be hard. For several years, running backs have been devalued. They have been made to be run by committee and small catch-and-run scatbacks. Our last regime got Arian Foster on the cheap and he was a stud for us. That was an anomaly. I think Derrick Henry has flipped the script. I do believe most teams will be hunting for the big, fast running backs who can also catch. — Joe K.

A: Cunningham was a terrific player, Joe, one of the best inside linebackers in the league, before this season. He’s not playing well for some reason, and everyone can see it. No way they give up on him. Thanks for your observations.

Q: The whole controversy over the 2-point conversion was because we missed an extra-point kick earlier. One thing good about this season is that we won’t have to have the schedule that comes with winning the division. Tennessee will find out that the crown is heavy. — Joe T.

A: Good point, Joe. The schedule eases up after the Green Bay game. It’ll be interesting to see if the Texans can rally and become respectable behind Watson.

Q: Finally, Watson realizes the power of big men and tight ends. TEs can score over 5-10 defenders all day long. Now, score first and win. Defense is simple — get the biggest inside lineman on God’s earth and stuff the middle. Let J.J. and Blacklock attack. Implement a middle linebacker 6-4, 260, quick as a cat and pay him to read the QB. Fill the middle. Play angry with direction. Play intelligent with purpose. Find the best safety and draft minimum is 6-2, 210 with incredible desire to work. — Stephen G.

A: Stephen, Watson loves to throw to Darren Fells, who’s 6-7, 270. He’s an inviting target who’s stepped up with Jordan Akins out.

Texas Sports Nation

When the Texans drafted outside linebacker Jon Greenard in the third round out of Florida, they had high hopes for him as a hybrid edge rusher.

What Greenard did in the Southeastern Conference, providing relentless pressure with 9 1/2 sacks, 15 1/2 tackles for loss, one interception and three forced fumbles, hasn’t translated into any production as an NFL rookie.

Greenard has played just seven defensive snaps in three games for two percent of the defensive playing time. He has zero tackles. The former Gators standout primarily contributes on special teams.

Despite the slow start that was exacerbated by an ankle injury that sidelined him during training camp, the Texans aren’t giving up hopes of Greenard contributing at some point this season.

“I think Jon Greenard has a skillset that can help us,” Texans defensive coordinator Anthony Weaver said. “He put himself behind the eight-ball a little bit in camp by his injury. That caused him to lose a bunch of reps.

“To his credit, just like Ross (Blacklock), he is a ball guy. He cares and he goes out there and tries to get better. At some point, he will be out there and he will try to contribute and help our defense, and I expect him to do a good job.”

This is from Houston Chronicle:

Texans’ Romeo Crennel: ‘I’m not looking to trade anybody’

Texans interim coach Romeo Crennel wanted to deliver a clear message to the players this week, holding a conversation to quell trade rumors surrounding the roster.

When asked if he believes the team will be active heading into the Nov. 3 trade deadline, Crennel said: “The question becomes: Who do you want to trade? Who do you trade? I’m not going to call any names or any positions, but who do you want to trade? I’m not looking to trade anybody. I want to try to win with the guys we’ve got. We’ve got a pretty good team. We’ve got some talent on the team, so basically, if we can go forward and win a game, then I think attitudes are going to change and people are going to be more positive and then the second half of the season we’ve got a chance to do something. That’s where my focus is.”

Crennel wants the players to focus on doing their jobs and trying to win as many games as possible after a disappointing start.

At 1-5 with coach and general manager Bill O’Brien fired and Crennel taking over, the Texans are in flux as an organization.

“This year has been a really difficult year, the pandemic, the coaching change, the trade deadline, you’ve got trade rumors,” Crennel said. “All of these guys have got telephones, they can read the rumors and listen to the rumors and all of that, so I wanted to get those guys to understand that we’re trying to win a football game and rumors are rumors, there’s no validity to the rumors.

“I broached the subject with them because we’ve got a big game coming up and I don’t want them thinking about, ‘Am I getting traded? Am I not getting traded? What’s going on? I put it out there and told them that we’re trying to win a game and we want to be as successful as we can. Right now, under my tenure, we’re a 1-1 football team, could have very easily been 2-0, so I want to build on that.”

Cleat marks, grass stains, clouds of dust and embarrassing moments have defined the Texans’ shoddy run defense.

No one in the NFL has been as vulnerable against the run as the Texans.

The 1-5 AFC South franchise has the worst-ranked run defense in the league, surrendering 177.5 yards on the ground per game. The Texans allowed powerhouse Titans running back Derrick Henry to run for 212 yards against them Sunday, including a 94-yard touchdown run and the game-winning score in overtime.

One of the primary reasons they’ve been so poor at this pivotal aspect of the game: horrendous tackling.

The Texans have already missed 62 tackles, according to Pro Football Focus data.

The tackling issue has spread throughout every level of the defense.

That includes a team-high 10 missed tackles by inside linebacker Zach Cunningham, seven apiece for corner Vernon Hargreaves and injured inside linebacker Benardrick McKinney, six apiece for safety Justin Reid and outside linebacker Whitney Mercilus, five by defensive end J.J. Watt, and four apiece for Eric Murray and corner Bradley Roby.

How does Watt deal with the frustration of a disappointing season?

“Hitting people,” said Watt, a three-time NFL Defensive Player of the Year.

At the start of the season, Texans defensive players attributed the tackling problem to not hitting during training camp, not having preseason games, and having a virtual offseason during the coronavirus pandemic.

Of course, practicing tackling can be problematic because of the increased risk of injuries. There are drills that simulate tackling, but bringing someone to the ground at full force greatly adds to the likelihood of someone getting hurt.

“We’re several games into the season, but all of those things that they said still apply,” Texans interim coach Romeo Crennel said. “You’re not tackling much, because you don’t tackle at practice. The times you get to tackle in the game when it’s real, bad habits kind of carry over. We have to try to eliminate those bad habits, which we’ll try to do at practice. Without taking guys to the ground, you really can’t practice tackling.

“We’re not going to take them to the ground because if you lose a guy in practice and don’t have the guy for the game, what’s the benefit of it? It’s a thin line that we walk to try to get it done. I think one of the things that can help us the most is everybody winning their gap when we’re gapped out on defense and then hustle and effort to the ball.”

Other NFL teams haven’t experienced issues to this scale at getting ball carriers down like the Texans.

“All 32 teams are dealing with the same issue there,” Watt said. “All 32 teams had the same offseason. All 32 don’t tackle in practice during the week because they don’t want to get their guys hurt, which obviously makes sense. Everybody’s dealing with the same set of circumstances, so it just comes down to actually making it happen.”

The Texans have surrendered 1,065 rushing yards, 270 more than the previous high of 795 they allowed through six games in 2005.

What’s the answer?

“I mean, I don’t think it’s anything groundbreaking besides playing in our gaps and tackling,” Watt said. “That’s it. I don’t think there’s any magic potion we need to sprinkle on it. We need to do our jobs, and we need to tackle.”

The job doesn’t get easier Sunday against the Green Bay Packers. They’re ranked seventh in the NFL in rushing offense, averaging 139.4 yards per game, and feature running back Aaron Jones.

“They’re very skilled,” Watt said. “Obviously, Aaron Rodgers is an incredible quarterback. He’s been doing it for a long time at an extremely high level. Their running backs are very good. They obviously have great running backs, so what you have to do is play sound football.

“We have to make sure that we do what we’re supposed to. We have to do our job. We have to play our gaps. We have to tackle. Sometimes it sounds simple and basic, but sometimes you just have to do the simple and basic things good.”

Of course, if the Texans crowd the line of scrimmage to try to slow down the Packers’ running backs, that leaves them susceptible to Rodgers striking deep.

“We can kind of load up the box, OK?” Crennel said. “And then when you load up the box, then Aaron likes that, because then he knows that he has one-on-one coverage down the field. That’s one where you pick your poisons.

“So what we have to do is we have to mix it up. Not show him the same thing all the time, show him some different looks. Then when we show the different look, hopefully they don’t have a play called that matches that look. If that’s the case, we have to rally and hustle to the football and try to get the guy on the ground before he gets in the end zone.”

One of the biggest issues the Texans have is a tendency to get out of their assigned gaps. When that happens and a player fails to make the tackle, it creates a huge hole for running backs to bust through.

The frustration level keeps growing. In particular, Watt is getting angrier about the mounting losses and suspect defensive performances. He’s determined to turn things around.

“Our guys are working,” Watt said. “We’re watching film. It’s not a question of effort with our guys.

“One of my favorite quotes is, ‘You never get today back.’ If you don’t utilize today, if you don’t get better today, if you don’t find a way to move yourself forward closer toward your goal today, you wasted it, and it’s gone. Somebody else, your competitor, may be getting better, and you’re making the gap that much wider.”

aaron.wilson@chron.com twitter.com/aaronwilson_nfl