The 2021 Houston Texans lacked an identity. Heck, the 2022 squad is hardly definable.
Who are their superstar players? Nobody, save for punter Cam Johnston, who was a Pro Bowl alternate. How many jerseys can Laremy Tunsil exactly sell?
Davis Mills may have had a nice five-game finish to the 2021 season, but the third-rounder from Stanford isn’t assured the starting quarterback job. He will have to earn it.
Where can the Texans build in 2022?
Enter the defensive line. The Texans have three core youngsters who are helping provide an identity in defensive tackles Ross Blacklock, Roy Lopez, and defensive end Jonathan Greenard.
Lopez met with reporters Feb. 17 to talk about his upcoming appearance as the grand marshal for Fiesta Gras in Galveston, Texas, and mentioned that the trio will be staying in Houston in the offseason.
“We’re excited to see, and I’m looking forward to keeping growing with Ross [Blacklock], J.G. [Greenard], and everybody every single day,” Lopez said. “My plans for the offseason are going to be here in Houston. I train out here in Houston. I’m at the facility every single day. That’s where Ross is at. That’s where Jon Greenard is at. We’ll be here. When we say we’re growing together, we truly mean it. We’re excited for each other, not only ourselves, but we’re excited to keep going.”
Greenard notched 8.0 sacks last year, the most by a Texans defender since 2019 when outside linebacker Whitney Mercilus led the team with 7.5. Blacklock, a former 2020 second-round pick, had 2.0 sacks, a forced fumble, and two pass breakups through 14 games.
Lopez took the biggest step relative to his starting point. The sixth-round rookie from Arizona tallied 31 combined tackles, 1.0 sack, five tackles for loss, two quarterback hits, and a fumble recovery through 16 games, 15 of which he started.
The 6-2, 318-pound defensive tackle is optimistic the team can build upon its cohesion in 2022 under new coach Lovie Smith, who was promoted after his first year as defensive coordinator.
Said Lopez: “I think probably the most exciting thing is just keep growing as a team, as a defensive line, and as a defense. Just keep day by day just keep stacking and getting better every single day. Just being able to grow with this defensive line.
“We’ll see here in a couple weeks what we mold into, a couple of months here what our team molds into, and all the guys they bring in and bring back.”