HOUSTON HAS A PROBLEM
Brock a bust the size of Texas
Brock Osweiler has been so bad this season that he’s ruining a perfectly good sports cliché.
Apparently, winning isn’t everything, people. Since going from Peyton Manning’s Super Bowl understudy and heir apparent to the Houston Texans’ ill-advised $72-million investment, all Osweiler has done is provide a whole lot of sleepless nights for both the fan base and head coach Bill O’Brien.
Oh, and he had also led them to first place in the fantastically mediocre AFC South.
In doing so, however, the 6-foot-8 quarterback had been more awful than even average, and everyone’s been wondering for weeks what the Texans would do at the most important position on the football field in the future.
That came to a head Sunday when O’Brien finally gave Osweiler the yank in favour of 2014 fourthround pick Tom Savage, sending into motion a comeback that saw the Texans erase a 20-8 secondhalf deficit against the lowly Jacksonville Jaguars to win 21-20 and keep their hands on a share of first.
Mercifully, Osweiler was benched after tossing two interceptions on back-to-back throws in the second quarter — his TD-to-interception ratio in Houston now sits at 14 good throws versus 16 glaring mistakes — but Savage entered and a level of Texans quarterback competence rarely seen this season followed.
“And the fans here in Houston go nuts,” the play-by-play man, overstating nothing, relayed when Osweiler took a seat.
Savage proceeded to complete 23-of-36 passes for 260 yards — Osweiler had surpassed 260 just twice in 13 starts — and, most importantly, did not turn the football over in the 21-20 win that left the Texans at 8-6 with two games to go.
Things are already looking up, but only because they couldn’t go any further down.
The Texans passing offence was the third-worst outfit in football coming into Week 15, while the defence was top 10 and the running game was top five.
It doesn’t take a genius to surmise Osweiler, who makes way too many mistakes in his pre-snap reads, is the reason the Texans are barely scraping by in arguably the worst division in football.
Likely part of the reason O’Brien didn’t make the move sooner is the fact Savage and third-stringer Brandon Weeden aren’t exactly seen as legitimate upgrades.
Savage, however, provides the element of mystery that comes along with carrying a clipboard on the sideline. Even in the midst of a division battle against the Tennessee Titans (8-6) and Indianapolis Colts (7-7), Texans fans will gladly take the mystery that is Savage over the reality that is Osweiler, and the franchise should do the same.
Complicating matters is the fact Osweiler was guaranteed $37 million on the four-year deal he signed in March. “We don’t make decisions based on how much a guy gets paid,” O’Brien told reporters after the game Sunday. “We make decisions on what’s the best way to win a game. That was the decision we made today and I thought today it worked out OK.”
JOBS ON THE LINE
Osweiler wasn’t the only guy losing his job in Houston on Sunday, as the Jaguars fired head coach Gus Bradley less than two hours after allowing the Savage comeback.
He won’t be the last coach canned, either.
Typical of this time of year, a number of sideline sultans were in the headlines Sunday, as the season beings to winds down for 24 of 32 NFL teams.
ESPN’s Adam Schefter reported the Buffalo Bills are likely to fire Rex Ryan at season’s end — that’s no surprise — while the NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport says the Indianapolis Colts tandem of head coach Chuck Pagano and GM Ryan Grigson is likely safe, same as Philadelphia Eagles first-year head coach Doug Pederson.
One interesting rumour is the New Orleans Saints, likely on the verge of a rebuild, being willing to trade head coach Sean Payton and his high-priced contract.
Expect the Los Angeles Rams, to make a phone call.
TUCKING AWAY PLAYOFF SPOTS
In the span of about 15 minutes late Sunday afternoon, two teams with a historical playoff connection provided themselves with some playoff clarity.
The New England Patriots (12-2) nailed down what seems like their 20th AFC East crown in a row — it’s eight straight, actually — and a first-round bye thanks to their impressive 16-3 road victory over the Denver Broncos, exorcising some demons from their Mile High playoff exit last January.
A few minutes later, the Oakland Raiders clinched their first playoff berth since 2002 with a 19-16 win over the San Diego Chargers.
The Raiders (11-3) also regain sole possession of top spot in the AFC West, thanks to the Kansas City Chiefs (10-4) losing to the Titans on a last-second Ryan Succop 53-yard boot.