Week 1 can be viewed as an outlier in most seasons. The change over from year to year for every team is so drastic, and the new wrinkles not yet put on tape can be difficult to manage in-game.
Sunday, Stroud and the Texans’ offense couldn’t puncture a stingy Rams defense. Houston went just 2-of-9 on third downs, settling for three first-half field goals. In the final two quarters, the Texans managed just 121 total net yards, turned it over twice — including a final possession fumble — and put a goose egg in the score column.
Houston entered banged up, missing receiver Christian Kirk and guard Ed Ingram to open the contest. Then the offensive line dealt with in-game injuries that shuffled the already questionable unit.
“Injuries happen,” Texans head coach DeMeco Ryans said. “Guys go down all the time. Do we not show up? Do we put the ball away and go home? We compete. It doesn’t matter who’s out there. … We don’t complain. We don’t make excuses for that.”
The Texans’ defense kept them in the game, but the offense couldn’t do enough to change the outcome.
“It’s not easy, (but) it’s something, just, what are you going to do, complain about it?” Stroud asked. “Are you going to lay down, or are you going to go play? For me, I just try to go and compete as best I can and show those guys, I don’t care who’s in there. I trust in you. I try to play as hard as I can to show them I’m there for them.”
With a home primetime tilt against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers on tap in Week 2, we’ll see if Sunday’s output was a blip or a sign that even with an offseason of change, the Texans are in for another season of struggles on offense.