Return to health in secondary comes at an opportune time
Difficult stretch of Ravens, Colts, Patriots will be waiting for one-time starting DBs
Bill O’Brien would rather give you his social security number than disclose even a morsel of information about the Texans’ injury situation, but he admitted Tuesday the injured players could return for the next game at Baltimore.
The secondary has been hit harder than any area of the team.
When the players return Monday after their five-day vacation, they could have back safety Tashaun Gipson (back, wrist), cornerback Bradley Roby (hamstring) and cornerback Lonnie Johnson Jr. (concussion).
When the Texans play the Ravens and have to defend multi-talented quarterback Lamar Jackson, defensive coordinator Romeo Crennel could be playing with a full deck because his secondary may be healthier than any time since the victory over Atlanta on Oct. 6.
“They're trending in the right direction,” O’Brien said. “One of the keys to the second half of the season will be health. (Injured) guys have to get treatment this week (and) come back as healthy as they possibly can.”
The starting defensive backs have combined to miss eight games, and they’ve left five more early. Roby has missed three games, Gipson and Johnathan Joseph two apiece and Johnson one.
“Any time you get good players back and you can put them on the field, it gives you more versatility,” Crennel said. “You can do a few more thing with them, and that’ll help us.”
The Texans will need every
available defensive player against a Ravens offense that’s No. 2 in the NFL with 427 yards a game. They lead the league in rushing, averaging 204.9 yards. That means the defensive backs will have to contend with the pass and run, and Jackson presents the kind of dual threat they haven’t faced.
“That would be great for us to have everybody back,” safety Justin Reid said. “You always want your best guys on the field at all times. To get the injured guys back would improve us and help us get ready to play Baltimore.”
Jackson has 637 yards rushing, more than four teams — Cincinnati (476), Miami (510), New York Jets (530) and Atlanta (548). Those four teams with the fewest yards rushing are a combined 3-29.
“He’s a dynamic athlete,” Crennel said. “Looks like he’s a dynamic leader as well, and so it's going to be a great challenge for us.”
If the defensive backs are healthy against the Ravens, the secondary will be fortified with Joseph, Roby, Johnson and Gareon Conley as the top four cornerbacks with Reid, Gipson and Jahleel Addae at safety.
“The more you can have, the better it always is in this league, especially later in the season,” Joseph said. “Depth is a big issue. We’ve had guys step up and contribute. A lot of teams don’t have guys like that.”
So far, the secondary has been able to weather the storm of injuries. They’re 3-1 since injuries began to take a toll among the defensive backs. The only defeat during that stretch was at Indianapolis.
Defensive backs asked to come off the bench and step into more prominent roles like Addae, Conley, cornerback Keion Crossen and cornerback Cornell Armstrong have helped the Texans produce a 6-3 record and return to first place in the AFC South over the Colts.
The defensive backs made some of their biggest plays in the fourth quarter of the 26-3 victory over Jacksonville in London. Joseph knocked down a third-down pass. On the next play, Conley broke up a fourth-down pass at the Texans’ 5-yard line. Later, Addae and Reid had interceptions that helped secure the victory.
“I think they did great holding Jacksonville to three points and getting all those turnovers (four),” Roby said. “That’s really going to help us. We’re going to get to a game late in the season where somebody goes down, and it’s not a case of putting a guy in a game and hoping he does well. Now we know certain guys can play in different spots.
“To have as many experienced guys as possible is good. The season’s all about peaking at the right time. It’s going to be big for our defense, especially without J.J. (Watt) now.”
Watt’s season-ending surgery to repair a torn pectoral muscle made Crennel’s job more difficult. But Crennel is one of the NFL’s all-time great defensive coordinators who oversees the game plan and makes the calls, so he gets most of the credit when the defense plays well. And deservedly so. The contributions of secondary coach Anthony Midget can’t be overlooked.
Injuries have forced Midget to coach a lot of defensive backs and get them prepared for games.
“The guys have stepped up,” Midget said. “RAC (Crennel) is always harping on these guys about the next-man-up mentality, and we've been tested with that. We can't dwell on (injuries).
“Guys that have played are gaining valuable experience. To have that depth, I think it's going to help us in the long run.”
Beginning with the Ravens, the Texans are going to need all the help they can get. Coming out of their open date, they face the toughest stretch of the season with games at Baltimore and at home against Indianapolis and New England. Games against the Colts and Patriots are in prime time. Those three teams have a combined record of 19-6.