Tag: Charles Omenihu

WATCH: Texans DE Charles Omenihu has stellar performance against Cowboys

Former Longhorn Charles Omenihu is poised for a breakout season after his impressive performance against the Dallas Cowboys on Saturday.

Former Texas defensive end Charles Omenihu is poised for a breakout season after his impressive performance against the Dallas Cowboys on Saturday. Continue reading “WATCH: Texans DE Charles Omenihu has stellar performance against Cowboys”

WATCH: Texans DE Charles Omenihu sacks Cowboys QB Cooper Rush

Houston Texans defensive end Charles Omenihu managed to get two sacks against the Dallas Cowboys in NFL preseason Week 2.

Houston Texans defensive end Charles Omenihu is entering the 2021 season as the consensus pick for a player on the verge of a career year. And against the Dallas Cowboys on Saturday, the University of Texas prodigy is showcasing the reason why.

With 1:26 left in the first quarter, Omenihu recorded his first sack on Cowboys’ quarterback Cooper Rush, which led to a three-and-out for Dallas. Omenihu would record another sack on Rush, this time, to open the second quarter.

The Texans and Cowboys have been in a defensive war throughout the first half of preseason game No. 2. At the time of this writing, the Texans and Cowboys remain tied at seven to seven late in the second quarter.

DE Charles Omenihu likes the Texans’ new defensive scheme

Houston Texans defensive end Charles Omenihu likes the new defensive scheme as it allows him to generate pressure from multiple looks.

Houston Texans defensive end Charles Omenihu likes the new defensive scheme the team will be running in 2021.

In an interview with Deepi Sidhu from HoustonTexans.com, the former 2019 fifth-round pick from Texas talked about the intricacies of his job in Houston’s new Tampa 2 scheme under new defensive coordinator Lovie Smith. The Texans originally ran a 3-4 defense from 2011-20.

“It’s obviously a different scheme, different terminology, different way of looking at how you play D-line in a sense, but for me, I kind of played in a scheme like this in college,” Omenihu said. “So, it’s not too crazy.”

Some of Omenihu’s job is going to be the same as it was under former defensive coordinator Anthony Weaver in 2020.

Said Omenihu: “Just where I’m positioned playing over the tight ends and tackles in the run game, and then rushing inside at three-tech, which I did last year. So, it’s a little change. It’s good. I like it; definitely D-line friendly scheme that tells guys to go get it, go after it.”

Omenihu provided Houston with 30 combined tackles, seven tackles for loss, 21 quarterback hits, 7.0 sacks, four pass breakups, and two forced fumbles through 29 games in a 3-4 scheme. The new scheme will reveal how effective Omenihu can be with a philosophy that turns the defensive linemen loose.

5 takeaways from Texans training camp Day 11

The Houston Texans held their 10th practice on the 11th day of training camp, which was an evening scrimmage. Here are five takeaways.

HOUSTON — The Houston Texans held their 10th training camp practice on the 11th day of camp at Houston Methodist Training Center.

The Texans practice was different from the previous nine, as Houston held a team scrimmage Saturday night in front of a full house of fans.

David Culley wasn’t pleased by what he witnessed. The first-year head coach did not believe the Texans played well given the number of pre-snap penalties the offense committed.

“I did not get out of it from what I wanted,” Culley said. “I wanted us to be mistake-free from the standpoint of pre-snap penalties — and that did not happen. We had fewer than what we had been having, but one is too many. Our goal is to not be that kind of football team. And tonight, it killed us three times on three drives. We can’t play football that way, and we won’t play football that way.”

Here are five observations from the Texans’ practice.

Schools, former players react to Texas potentially joining the SEC

Texas ex Charles Omenihu is certainly a fan of the move.

It’s been quite the week for college football fans. Continue reading “Schools, former players react to Texas potentially joining the SEC”

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Houston Texans OTAs: Defensive line grinds during first day of media availability

The Houston Texans defensive line put in work during the first day of media availability at organized team activities.

The Houston Texans held their first media availability of organized team activities on Thursday.

The media access allowed for the opportunity to observe the Texans’ defensive line, which is undergoing a transition as the AFC South club moves from a 3-4 defense to a Tampa-2 scheme with a 4-3 front.

The new scheme means the Texans will have to evaluate their edge defenders from the 3-4 scheme, which Houston ran from 2011-20, and determine who can be effective playing as a down lineman.

The Texans practiced outside at their training facilities in NRG Park. The players were in their new practice attire working under partly cloudy skies an 80 degrees.

Defensive coordinator Lovie Smith, one of the mavens at running the Tampa-2 scheme, was hard at work getting defenders to play with proper technique in the trenches.

It is no surprise that Charles Omenihu would continue to play as a down lineman.

However, Jacob Martin, who played outside linebacker the past two seasons, saw some work coming out of a three-point stance.

Jordan Jenkins, Houston’s free agent linebacker they signed from the New York Jets in free agency, took reps as a down lineman.

The coaching staff continued to have defensive players run through the drills, including some “tough sledding.”

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Texans executive vice president of football operations Jack Easterby was at practice.

Easterby even got to visit with Culley during the linebacker drills.

Fifth-round linebacker Garret Wallow got to show his stuff going against a veteran in Hardy Nickerson.

Credit the Houston media for having sharp enough memories and great facial recognition to put names on numbers, as apparently that wasn’t an easy feat Thursday.

It is only May. The Texans are a work in progress, but so is everyone else as all 32 NFL teams work through way through their offseason programs.

Texans still with ‘below average’ grade for 2019 NFL draft class two years later

Two years later, Pro Football Focus is still unforgiving when it comes to their grades of the Houston Texans’ 2019 NFL draft class.

The last time the Houston Texans had a first-round and a second-round pick in the same draft was in 2019.

With two seasons worth of playing time to look at, a proper grade — rather than the day-after grades more instantaneous than general manager Nick Caserio’s use of the word “right” — would be welcomed.

According to Michael Renner of Pro Football Focus, the Texans had a below average grade immediately after the 2019 NFL draft. Two years later, PFF is standing by their analysis that the Texans’ 2019 class was below average.

We viewed the Texans’ first two selections of tackle Tytus Howard and cornerback Lonnie Johnson Jr. as massive reaches at the time. They haven’t proven much better in retrospect, as Howard earned a 62.1 grade last year and Johnson had to be moved to safety after a 30.0 grade as a rookie.

The evaluation of Howard is a bit skewed and subject to revisionist history. At the time, Howard was a “reach” because he was selected after the Philadelphia Eagles drafted Andre Dillard. Rumors abounded that the Texans actually wanted Dillard and panicked when Philadelphia selected him. Erego, that’s how the Texans ended up with Howard.

However, Renner only mentions Howard’s 62.1 grade in 2020 without context. Never mind Howard’s 59.4 PFF grade as a rookie was good enough to land him on CBS Sports’ all-breakout team or that the Pro Football Writers of America named him to their all-rookie team, and that he did so playing in just eight games as he battled an MCL injury.

The Texans nailed the Howard pick.

The rest of the draft class may leave more to be desired. Johnson’s yoyo-ing between cornerback and safety may have stunted his development, and second-round guard Max Scharping took a step back in 2020. Third-round tight end Kahale Warring has been more myth than man, and seventh-round fullback Cullen Gillaspia was cut at the end of the 2020 season. Sixth-round cornerback Xavier Crawford did not even make it through his rookie season with the club.

Fifth-round defensive end Charles Omenihu gets overlooked. The former Texas Longhorn has provided Houston with 7.0 sacks, 30 combined tackles, seven tackles for loss, 21 quarterback hits, four pass breakups, and two forced fumbles through 29 games, five of which he has started.

Houston may not have scored a passing grade for their 2019 draft class, but they did find some gems that have proven to be quality players over the past two years.

Texans DE Charles Omenihu says Jack Easterby has been good to him

Houston Texans defensive end Charles Omenihu says that executive vice president of football operations Jack Easterby has been good to him.

Charles Omenihu has no problems with Jack Easterby.

The former 2019 fifth-round defensive end from Texas took time to answer questions Monday while helping distribute 1,000 meals to residents in Houston’s Third Ward at Pleasant Hill Missionary Baptist Church.

“All of the decisions are really not up to me,” Omenihu said of the executive president of football operations. “So, my opinion really doesn’t change anything. All I know is Jack has been good to me. Jack has always been somebody that talked to me on the side and continue to give me a lot of support in my time with the Houston Texans. I can’t thank him enough for that. So, anything else beyond that is really I wouldn’t know and out of my control.”

Omenihu has known nothing but Easterby’s presence in the organization, first coming in as an executive vice president of team development in April of 2019. The 6-5, 280-pound defensive end was selected at the end of that month’s draft.

Texans DE Charles Omenihu is excited to meet new general manager Nick Caserio

Houston Texans defensive end Charles Omenihu is excited to meet the team’s new general manager, Nick Caserio.

For the third time in as many seasons, Charles Omenihu is going to have a new general manager.

The former 2019 Houston Texans fifth-round pick spent time with Aaron Wilson of the Houston Chronicle and expressed what he is looking forward to in new general manager Nick Caserio.

“It shows he knows how to win,” Omenihu said of Caserio’s six Super Bowl wins with the New England Patriots, where he was the director of player personnel. “He’s been around it. So,  and he’s no stranger to it. So, I mean, bringing that structure and order from a winning program or organization is what we need. I think he’s going to be good. I’m excited to meet him and talk to him, pick his brain — just someone who’s won six Super Bowls. He’s got a lot of knowledge.”

Omenihu was at the Pleasant Hill Missionary Baptist Church in the Fifth Ward Monday as he was helping distribute 1,000 meals to residents in the community.

The 6-5, 280-pound defensive end provided 17 combined tackles, five tackles for loss, 4.0 sacks, 16 quarterback hits, and two pass breakups for Houston through 15 games, five of which he started.

One of the areas Caserio will be looking to upgrade is edge defense, and one of the building blocks could be Omenihu, who will be entering his third year of his four-year contract with the Texans.

WATCH: Texans DE Charles Omenihu sacks Titans QB Ryan Tannehill to trigger turnover on downs

Houston Texans defensive end Charles Omenihu sacked Tennessee Titans quarterback Ryan Tannehill to turn the ball over on downs.

Houston Texans defensive end Charles Omenihu just shows up.

On a fourth-and-11 from the Texans’ 37-yard line, Omenihu managed to sack Tennessee Titans quarterback Ryan Tannehill. The sack is Omenihu’s fourth full sack of the season, an improvement over 3.0 in 2019.

Houston managed to score a touchdown on the ensuing drive with quarterback Deshaun Watson throwing a 7-yard touchdown pass to tight end Pharaoh Brown. It would not have been possible without Omenihu’s big sack against the Titans.

The Texans will have to make decisions across the roster as a new general manager and coach will be hired, and Omenihu is making a strong case to be a part of those plans.