Red-zone woes continue to haunt offense
Touchdowns have become rare when inside the 20-yard line
Texans quarterback Brock Osweiler lined up in the shotgun formation on Sunday, scanning the field and searching in vain for precious space in tight passing windows against the San Diego Chargers.
It was ultimately the anatomy of another redzone failure for the Texans’ offense.
Although Osweiler located big tight end C.J. Fiedorowicz, his pass was 2 yards shy of the first-down marker. So, the Texans wound up settling for a 19yard Nick Novak field goal during an eventual 21-13 defeat.
It was a familiar story for the Texans. They rank 30th in red-zone offense. The Texans went 1-for-2 in the red zone against the Chargers.
Worn-out script
“We’ve got to be better in the red zone,” Texans coach Bill O’Brien said. “We got down there a few times. We can execute better down there. We can design better plays down there. We all have to a better job in the red zone, there’s no doubt about that.”
The Texans have scored just 13 red-zone touchdowns for a 43.3 percent success rate out of 30 scoring opportunities inside opponents’ 20-yard line.
One of the reasons the Texans have struggled in the red zone is their inability to run the football effectively in close quarters.
During the thirdquarter failure against the Chargers, the Texans had a first-and-goal at the Chargers’ 6-yard line when running back Lamar Miller was stuffed for a 3-yard loss on first down. Then, wide receiver Braxton Miller lined up in the wildcat in the shotgun and ran it up the middle to gain just 1 yard.
It put Osweiler in a difficult situation, where the Chargers had the clear advantage.
“It’s probably not getting third-and-goal from up around the 10,” Texans offensive coordinator George Godsey said when asked how the offense can get better in the red zone.
“Try to get third-and-manageable throughout the course of the field, and it’s the same thing in the red area. Looking back at quite a few possessions, whether it’s a negative play in the running game or in the passing game or a penalty, those are the plays.
“Just like throughout the course of the field, that’s the way we talk to our group. You have a drive for 10 plays, and then it takes one bad play on that eleventh play that pretty much makes you, either puts you in a situation where you got to kick a field goal instead of score touchdowns.”
It’s becoming an area of frustration for the Texans.
They’re rarely able to simply pound the football into the end zone on the ground.
And Osweiler has displayed a lack of a deft touch on fade passes directed to Pro Bowl wide receiver DeAndre Hopkins.
Finding the issue
“Execution, man,” Texans offensive tackle Duane Brown said. “That’s all I can say. I’m not a coach. I don’t really have a theory on what works and what doesn’t, we just have to execute, whether it’s a run or pass.
“That’s been the main thing. It’s not easy once you get down there. The field’s shorter, the defenses don’t have as much room to cover, so we know it’s harder to score in those positions, but we have to.”
The Texans rank 29th in scoring offense. They’ve scored just 18 total touchdowns this season, including 12 touchdown passes and six touchdown runs.
Why can’t the Texans score more points?
“We have the firepower to, we have the players to,” Brown said. “I feel like we should. Can’t really put my finger on why that’s not the case, but I feel like we definitely have the talent to do it.”
“We’ve been against tough defenses with our schedule, but I definitely think we have the talent to put up more points. We need to. We got to stop putting so much pressure on our defense. Whatever it is, we have to correct it.”