Savage just has to let go — the past, the ball
QB must have short memory, quicker release
Tom Savage endures plenty of harsh external criticism, absorbing a torrent of brutal truth contained within the myriad of observations about his substandard performance.
Yes, there’s plenty of doubt surrounding the Texans’ starting quarterback. Much of that stems from the stark contrast between Savage’s traditional and methodical pocketpasser style in comparison to the dynamic way rookie Deshaun Watson had once transformed the offense into the highest-scoring unit in the NFL prior to his season-ending knee injury.
Savage doesn’t shy away from placing himself under a tough microscope. He’s blunt about his failures, especially on the heels of a four-turnover meltdown during a 33-7 road loss Sunday to the Los Angeles Rams.
It was like a bad Hollywood movie for Savage as he lost two fumbles and was intercepted twice as he completed just 44 percent of his throws.
Savage didn’t buy into a suggestion that his play is trending in the right direction. He’s far from happy with his performance and unwilling to accept any outward notion this is the best he can do.
“At the end of the day, it really doesn’t matter what I say right now or how I view this upcoming week ,” Savage said Wednesday. “The only thing that really matters is just winning, and that’s it. I can sit here and tell you all day that I want to throw 75 percent or I feel like I’m getting better — that doesn’t matter. No one cares about any of that stuff. What matters is winning, and that’s what we’re going to try to do this weekend.”
QB coach still has faith
Savage remains the starter heading into a Sunday home game against the Arizona Cardinals. The Texans have fallen to 3-6 and out of contention in the AFC South Division they won the previous two seasons. They’ve lost both of Savage’s starts since Watson was placed on injured reserve.
Despite Savage’s shortcomings, which are primarily not getting the football out of his hands quickly enough, not being fast enough to elude pass rushers, not being decisive enough or accurate enough with his throws and a lack of ball security, Texans quarterbacks coach Sean Ryan is convinced he’ll play better Sunday.
“I just think the guy works,” Ryan said. “He works very hard; it means a lot to him. At the end of the day, he’s got the arm talent like we’ve talked about in the past and the smarts to get it done. I just feel like that combination gives him a good chance to really fix things and to play better.”
Savage has to upgrade his ball security signifi- cantly to do so. He has fumbled six times, losing five of them.
Savage has a tendency to not throw it soon enough. On Sunday, wide receiver Bruce Ellington, whom Savage later connected with for the Texans’ only touchdown, got hit hard because Savage hung the football in the air too long.
“Sometimes we need to do a better job from the quarterback spot — and I need to do a better job of preaching it and working it in drills,” Ryan said. “So, the ball is out in a little bit quicker time, and I think that that’s part of it.”
As hard on himself as Savage has been, though, he realizes that dwelling on the situation ultimately can be counterproductive.
“The old quote, ‘It’s never as badas it seems and it’s never as good as it seems,’ after a good game,” Savage said. “I think I watched the film and kind of took a deep breath and I was like, ‘You knowwhat? We’ll just move on from this.’ I’m not going to sit here and beat myself up the whole week and think about that game.
“I did some good things, I think I made some good throws. Obviously, you’re never going to win a game with four turnovers, so whatever I have to do to fix that, whether it’s tuck the ball away if I’m getting hit or know when the play’s over.” A mix of good, bad
Savage wants to complete 75 percent of his passes. However, he completed just 46.3 percent of his throws for 502 yards, two touchdowns and two interceptions. He has been sacked a dozen times.
“I just think you needed an honest evaluation of your performance,” Ryan said. “You look at it and you know there’s certainly room for improvement. … At the same time, you can’t lose sight of some of the things that you did well. There were some things that he did well. There were some throws that he made that were pretty impressive throws, especially in that first half. I think it’s important you look at yourself honestly. The things you did poorly, you’re honest about it and you’re ready to workon it.”