Texans QB C.J. Stroud Demands Urgency After Rams Beatdown
Immediately following the Houston Texans' 14-9 loss to the Los Angeles Rams on Sunday, quarterback C.J. Stroud didn’t hold back when describing his team’s preparation leading up to the Week 1 tilt.
“We didn’t deserve to win that game, because we didn’t do the right things.” Stroud told the media.“When you come out in the NFL, lollygagging and going through the motions, that kind of happens. I think we’ll be all right, but I think it’s a good wake-up call for us.”
Houston mustered just 265 yards of offense and was two-of-nine on third-down attempts in the loss. The unit also turned the ball over twice – including a fumble by running back Dare Qgunbowale late in the fourth quarter – and was flagged for seven of the team’s 11 penalties.
“We can’t shoot ourselves in the foot consistently and expect to win. And that starts with me, with a lot of different things. I got to get rid of the ball better and use my legs maybe a little more.”
Stroud finished 19-of-27 for 188 yards through the air with an interception and rushed for 32 yards on five carries. He was also sacked three times on Sunday.
DeMeco Ryans responds to potentially controversial comments by C.J. Stroud
Tuesday, ahead of their Week 2 matchup against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, Texans head coach DeMeco Ryans was asked about Stroud’s ‘lollygagging’ comment and essentially shrugged it off.
“It’s never an entire group,” Ryans said. “That’s the one thing about it. So, there are individuals that have their moments throughout the week. And the lollygagging, it’s a term everybody wants to use now. For me, it’s just our tempo in and out of the huddle.
We've got to get in and out of the huddle quicker, so we can get to the line of scrimmage, so we can operate and make sure we've got checks, and things you have to make at the line of scrimmage.
Well, to make those checks in a proper manner, we've got to get out with some urgency. The urgency piece from everybody has to pick up from the offensive side of the ball. Once the urgency picks up, we'll be able to operate cleaner when it comes to pre-snap and post-snap."
Houston’s offense has an extra-long week to prepare for its Week 2 contest. The Texans return home to face the Buccaneers on Monday Night Football. Tampa Bay is coming off a dramatic 23-20 road win over the Atlanta Falcons.
Texans Planning Bigger Role for Nick Chubb
Expect to see some more Nick Chubb in the Houston Texans' offense after a solid Week 1 showing.
Following Houston's season opener loss vs. the LA Rams, 9-14, Texans head coach DeMeco Ryans was still impressed by what he saw from Chubb in his debut since signing in June. In all, Chubb finished with 13 carries for 60 yards on the ground, averaging 4.6 yards a carry and leading the way in touches throughout the running back room.
And moving forward into the year, Ryans says he wants to lean on Chubb a bit more in the backfield.
"I think Chubb ran the ball really well," Ryans said in an interview with Texans Radio. "We tried to mix it up with the backs– got Woody some touches, Dameon [Pierce]– we're going to try to lean in with Chubb a little bit more."
"He deserves it. He’s shown that he continues to get better as the game went on. You saw him running stronger, finishing plays in a physical manner. So, we've got to get him going a little bit more, and I think he can really help us."
Chubb has seemingly made a super strong impression in the Texans' building since arriving on his one-year, $5 million deal in the offseason, and without Joe Mixon in the fold as he deals with a foot injury that has placed him on the Injured Reserve for at least the first four weeks of the year, the door has opened for Chubb to have some major responsibility in this scoring unit.
Chubb sits in the Texans' running back room alongside veteran Dameon Pierce, rookie Woody Marks, and team captain Dare Ogunbowale to share the workload with– certainly a group that faced a fair share of questions before the season, of just how the responsibilities would be divided in the backfield.
But, as Chubb continues to prove he's healthy from last season and the most productive guy in the room, Ryans clearly wants to get the ball in his hands in the run game while they deal with Mixon's absence– however long that may be– and bank on his physicality and consistent improvements to be a driving force in their work on the ground.
Chubb has reportedly been consistent and hard-working for the Texans dating back to training camp, has clear respect in the locker room from teammates and the coaching staff, and of course, has a proven track record in the league of being one of the better runners of the football in recent history while at his peak production.
That doesn't mean you won't see guys like Pierce, Marks, and Ogunbowale get some occasional reps their way as well, but if Ryans' comments prove true, we could very well be looking at the start of Chubb being a real bellcow in Houston.
