Trust in Roberts high despite two fumbles
Texans coach David Culley said he has “the utmost confidence” in return specialist Andre Roberts, who has fumbled twice on punt returns in his last two games.
Roberts, a 12-year NFL veteran and former AllPro, was signed to a twoyear contract with the expectation to give the Texans a considerable boost in the return game. So far, the 33-year-old has been a liability.
Roberts fumbled a punt against the Panthers in the second quarter, and, when he stretched out on the ground to recover the ball, the Texans lost three yards on the return. It was his second fumble on a punt return in five days. Roberts muffed a punt in the first half against Cleveland, which resulted in a Browns touchdown in Houston’s 31-21 loss.
“That’s unlike him,” Culley said. “He’s never had a history of doing that. Obviously, that’s not acceptable for us to do that, and he understands that. As I said last night, I have the utmost confidence in him, and hopefully he comes out of that.”
Roberts has muffed at least one punt in every season since 2016. He mishandled a punt in consecutive games while playing for the Bills last season, recovering one against the Steelers and losing the next against the Broncos on a turnover that produced a touchdown.
Roberts has had more success on kickoffs with the Texans. He’s returned seven kickoffs for 158 yards, which leads the NFL, and his 22.6 yards per kickoff return ranks 11th in the league.
The Texans have not yet considered making a switch at punt returner, although Roberts has totaled 13 yards on five punt returns. Desmond King returned one punt for 27 yards against the Browns, but took over return duties to relieve Roberts’ workload when he replaced injured receiver Nico Collins.
“Listen, it’s Andre Roberts,” Texans special teams coordinator Frank Ross said Tuesday. “Everybody knows this guy puts in the work. Has done it time and time again. No secret to myself, to him or to anybody that we’ll play. Nobody wants to get that right more than him. We’ve got to correct it.”
Reid and Fairbairn are questionable
Culley said it is “a little early” to say whether starting safety Justin Reid will return from his knee injury in time for the Texans’ Oct. 3 game at Buffalo.
Reid was the defense’s most productive player before he twice exited against Cleveland with the injury, which sidelined the fourth-year NFL veteran during the Texans’ 24-9 loss against the Panthers on Thursday night.
Reid leads the team with
two interceptions and forced a fumble against the Browns. Lonnie Johnson started in Reid’s place against the Panthers, and quarterback Sam Darnold threw for 304 yards against a Texans secondary that was also missing starting cornerback Terrance Mitchell, who suffered a concussion in Cleveland and remains in recovery protocol.
Culley said the Texans are still monitoring whether kicker Ka’imi Fairbairn will be fully recovered from a pulled muscle when his time on the injured reserve expires Wednesday.
Fairbairn was placed on the IR Sept. 8 after he pulled the muscle during warmups before the preseason finale against the
Buccaneers. The Texans subsequently signed Joey Slye, who pushed a 41-yard field goal wide left against the Browns and missed a point-after attempt against the Panthers.
“We’re just going to see when we go back out on Wednesday where (Fairbairn is) at,” Culley said. “And if he’s ready to go, we’ll go with him.”
Phillips elevated for special teams
Although the Texans had all five of their running backs available for the first time on Thursday, Culley said Scottie Phillips was activated purely for special teams reasons.
The Texans run game totaled just 42 yards against Carolina’s topranked defense, and its running back trio ( Mark Ingram, David Johnson, Phillip Lindsay) was constantly battered by a Panthers front that often busted into the backfield or clogged the line of scrimmage.
Phillips, who impressed against mostly reserve defenses in the preseason, was not a consideration to bolster the run game.
“That had nothing to do with it,” Culley said. “It was strictly a special teams deal because of some other people we had hurt that had been special teams players for us. Scottie had been one of those guys in the preseason that had did a good job on that. Because of the roster spots, it worked out that he was the best fit for us in moving it. But it had nothing to do with the running backs.”
Receiver Miller scores in debut
Wide receiver Anthony Miller made his Texans debut, playing for the first time after suffering a shoulder dislocation against the Packers in the Aug. 14 preseason opener.
Miller caught four passes for 20 yards against Carolina, and, just before halftime, the slot receiver caught a 1-yard touchdown pass that would’ve tied the game at 7 at the break had kicker Joey Slye not missed the ensuing pointafter attempt.
Miller was activated for Thursday night’s game after injuries to starter Nico Collins and slot receiver Danny Amendola. Collins, a third-round rookie, could be sidelined up to four weeks with a shoulder injury, and Amendola could miss two to three weeks with a hamstring injury.
“Well, we knew he’s a playmaker,” Culley said. “He’s a tough kid. Normally, when you throw the ball to him, he’s going to make a play. We were glad to see him actually get that touchdown. He did a nice job on the play, on the route. It was just good to have him back because he brings a little toughness to us and kind of what we’re all about, especially in our run game. ”