4. Scottie Phillips is sticking around
Running backs can’t exactly be brought to the ground in training camp, which means their ability to hold on to the football can’t be tested. Similarly, when they reach a crowd at the line of scrimmage or second level, the play is blown dead; they can’t fight through it.
With all of these considerations in place, O’Brien still found a way to praise Phillips, who he said “ran hard” in the scrimmage.
“A lot of it’s not live, but you can see on tape, you can look at their vision, you can look at their cutting ability, you can look at their — you can judge whether they would have broken that tackle or not,” said O’Brien. “He ran hard tonight, Scottie did. That was good to see.”
It is doubtful that Phillips will beat out special teamer Buddy Howell purely on his abilities as a runner. However, the Texans may do what they can to sneak Phillips onto the practice squad.