Flip page, but don’t flip out
O’Brien tries to keep his team from dwelling on past after a difficult loss
If you’re thinking about burning your tickets to the Texans’ Sunday game against Arizona at NRG Stadium, don’t do it. Show some respect for Andre Johnson, at least.
Johnson, one of the greatest receivers in NFL history, will be the first Texan to be inducted into the team’s Ring of Honor during a halftime ceremony that will culminate a busy weekend of activities surrounding his coronation into the Texans’ history book.
Based on the way the Texans’ offense has played since Deshaun Watson suffered his season-ending knee injury, Johnson’s induction may be the highlight of the afternoon.
The Texans will get no sympathy from Arizona for their quarterback predicament. Because of injuries to Carson Palmer and Drew Stanton, the Cardinals will have Blaine Gabbert as their third starting quarterback this season.
At his weekly news conference Monday morning, Bill O’Brien put a quick end to speculation that Sunday’s game could be billed as a Battle of the Third Quarterbacks. In other words, it won’t be Gabbert vs. T.J. Yates.
Tom Savage, who has engineered two touchdown drives since replacing Watson, will start a third consecutive game.
Part of O’Brien’s job is to get his players to forget about Sunday’s game and focus on the next one. So they should put the 33-7 loss to the Los Angeles Rams behind them fast and turn their attention to the Cardinals.
“It’s definitely hard to move past, especially a loss,” O’Brien said. “It’s a lot easier moving past a win, but with the losses, you’re always looking at the could’ve, should’ve, would’ve part of the game.
“You better turn the page pretty quickly.”
Time to focus
Let’s be honest: If the Texans don’t turn the page fast enough and fail to defeat the Cardinals with Gabbert at quarterback, they may lose the rest of their games. That would mean a 10-game losing streak and a 3-13 record — their worst on both fronts since 2013 when Gary Kubiak was fired.
If Savage doesn’t play better, the Texans will be doomed. Again. He committed four turnovers at Los Angeles, three that set up scoring drives by the Rams.
Savage’s protection was spotty. At times, it was awful. Most of the time, mediocre to average.
“A couple of times, he only had a second to get the ball off,” O’Brien said. “There were a couple times where he didn’t even have a chance to get the ball out.
“If you study the tape, you’ve got to look at all phases of the offense. It starts with coaching. We’ve all got to coach better, starting with me, but it’s never about one guy.”
Even though Savage has struggled in his last two starts, completing 37of-81 (45.7 percent) for 440 yards, two touchdowns and two interceptions, O’Brien’s doesn’t seem to be worried about his confidence.
O’Brien doesn’t plan to try to pump up Savage this week or treat him differently than any other week.
“This is pro football,” he said. “If you have to pump guys up, I mean, you got a problem. It’s about correcting, ball security, reads (and) correcting people around him. It’s not just him.
“I’m not going to come into the quarterback room with two pom-poms and do handstands and try to pump him up and say, ‘You’re the best! You can do it!’ like the little engine that could. “That’s not what I do.” Now there’s an idea that would ease some tension and create some levity — O’Brien wearing a Texans cheerleader outfit at Friday’s practice. That would certainly get his players’ attention.
“I just try to coach him, try to get him to play better,” O’Brien said.
And it always starts with the coaching, according to O’Brien. If you get annoyed with him taking the blame after every defeat, too bad. It’s not going to change. That’s who he is.
Fans and media may not want to hear it, but O’Brien doesn’t give a hoot. He knows the players appreciate it, and it’s what he believes.
“You’re not a coach worth your salt if you blame players,” he said. “That’s not going to get you anywhere, and it’s not going to get the team improved.
“The way I was brought up in coaching is I never played for or worked for a coach who pointed fingers. The thing I’ve always tried to do is look in the mirror.”
Sometimes that reflection must show a coach who looks as if he’s kissed a bulldozer. Sunday’s loss to the Rams was a good example.
The defense was outstanding in the first half, limiting the league’s highest-scoring offense to three field goals. The offense scored one touchdown on Savage’s pass to
Bruce Ellington, who earlier dropped what should have been a touchdown.
Ka’imi Fairbairn missed a 34-yard field goal. And Savage threw an interception at the Rams’ 10 at the end of the first half.
Can you imagine what halftime would have been like in the visitors’ locker room if the Texans had not botched those opportunities — a decisive lead.
Go figure
But since they blew those chances, they trailed 9-7 and came unraveled in the third quarter. Afterward, O’Brien sounded disappointed and befuddled while accepting the blame.
“Coaching is trying to get the most out of your players, trying to get your players to produce at a high level,” he said Monday. “When that’s not getting done, then you have to look in the mirror and think about how you’re teaching it, practicing it, calling it – whatever it is.”
The Texans have a three-game losing streak. They’re 3-6 for the first time in O’Brien’s four seasons.
“These guys are playing hard,” O’Brien said. “I’ve told you time and time again I’m 100 percent behind them. I love coaching them. I just need to figure out a way to do a better job.
“Obviously, at times this year, it’s looked really good. Lately, it has not.”
And, as everyone knows, the problems can be summed up in two words — Deshaun and Watson.