Texans working on angles, run fits to fix season-long tackling woes

The Houston Texans are working on their angles and run fits to fix their season-long tackling woes, according to defensive coordinator Romeo Crennel.

An already leaky Houston Texans defense certainly doesn’t aid from tackling.

The Texans sit ninth in the NFL in missed tackles with 98, according to Pro Football Reference. It should come as no surprise that they’ve allowed the NFL’s third-most yards after the catch (1,663).

Heading into a vital three-week stretch where the Texans need to win two games to clinch the playoffs, that’s not going to cut it. Teams will, and have, exploited that. How will they stop that from happening? Defensive coordinator Romeo Crennel has the answer.

“You work on trying to have great angles, good fits, put yourself in position to make a good tackle if you could tackle,” Crennel said on Thursday. “That’s what you have to do.”

According to Crennel, the Texans see positioning as their biggest crux as a tackling defense. Late into the season, it’s going to be tough to fix that.

“Then when it gets to the game, hopefully getting in position and putting yourself in great tackling position, then you can execute the rest of the tackle on gameday,” Crennel said. “Sometimes it works, sometimes it doesn’t.”

Only two other teams with winning records rank within the top-10 of missed tackles, with the other teams being the Buffalo Bills (99) and the Tennesee Titans (97), who will face the Texans on Sunday.

Though their tackling woes have not yet held Houston from possessing a winning record. They sit at 8-5 through 13 games, in turn tying them on top of the AFC South. However, a struggling pass-rush and secondary coupled with a need to take better positioning when stopping ball-carriers could doom the Texans.

The Texans have three weeks. The hope is to learn how to take better angles and run fits must turn into reality. If not, whoever they face will see that as an ideal mismatch worth taking advantage of.

Romeo Crennel knows why the Texans defense is ineffective on third downs

Houston Texans defensive coordinator Romeo Crennel knows why his unit has failed to get off the field on third down.

If third down is the money down in the NFL, then the Houston Texans have been flat broke in 2019.

The Texans defense has the worst third down conversion rate in the NFL with opponents compiling a 48.5% success rate. Houston is the only team in the bottom-10 to have a winning record and a shot at the postseason.

Defensive coordinator Romeo Crennel knows precisely what is wrong with his unit’s ability to get off the field on third downs.

“We’re not making plays,” Crennel told reporters Thursday. “There have been several opportunities to make plays and get off the field and we haven’t been doing it. That’s one of the reasons.”

Now that Crennel knows why his unit has failed on third downs, with three games to go, there is little time to let the problem linger. If the Texans hope to make the playoffs, which starts with getting a win over the Tennessee Titans Sunday at noon CT at Nissan Stadium, then they will have to start making plays immediately.

“If you don’t make plays and get off the field — because we’ve been in position sometimes to make a play that will get us off the field, but we don’t make it,” Crennel said. “We’re a step short or a step slow, they catch and fall forward or run for the first.

“So, we have to try to emphasize being tighter, concentrating on the man when we’re in man coverage, do a good job in the zones when we’re in zone coverage.”

Houston faces an opponent in the Titans that is 19th in the NFL in converting third downs with a 36.8% success rate. However, when adjusting for all of quarterback Ryan Tannehill’s seven-game tenure under center, the Titans are tied with the Green Bay Packers for the eighth-highest third down conversion rate at 43.4%. The Texans will have to get Tennessee closer to their season average if they hope to come out of Nashville 9-5.

Texans LB Zach Cunningham is having a career year ‘flying around’

Houston Texans inside linebacker Zach Cunningham is having a career year, as he’s “flying around” to be the team’s leading tackler.

Zach Cunningham entered the 2017 NFL Draft pool as a probable first-round pick. However, those late April nights did not fall that way for the Vanderbilt product. He slid to the Houston Texans at pick No. 57 in the second round.

Cunningham has outplayed his draft status, reaffirming that he should have been a first-round pick. Now in his third year in the NFL, the 24-year-old is having a career year.

Through 13 games, Cunningham has 114 combined tackles, which leads the AFC and is sixth in the NFL. His 79 solo tackles are second in the league. Both are career highs.

“Zach’s had a good year,” said Texans coach Bill O’Brien on Monday. “He’s been flying around, making a lot of plays in every game. He’s making plays on special teams, making plays on the punt team, very instinctive guy, very athletic, he’s had a really good year.”

Cunningham’s seven tackles for loss, 1.5 sacks, two fumble recoveries and two quarterback hits are also career highs. According to Pro Football Focus, he leads the NFL in defensive stops with 54, also a career-high.

Per Pro Football Reference, Cunningham has shown massive improvement in tackling in 2019. His missed tackle rate has shrunk from 13% in 2018 to 8.8% in 2018. He has missed 11 tackles.

No. 41, Cunningham’s number, is a mainstay in the Texans’ defense. He flys around the field and can be seen where the ball is. If he can improve as a coverage player (100.5 passer rating allowed), Houston may be dealing with yet another in-house-made inside linebacker in their front-seven.

Currently, Cunningham has one more year left on his rookie contract. He will be a free agent in 2021, barring a contract extension. Houston has fellow inside linebacker Benardrick McKinney locked up until 2024 on a large extension.

If the Texans see Cunningham as a key cog to their defense, his career-year may translate into a new deal.

Texans have a tough task in play-action happy Titans QB Ryan Tannehill

The Houston Texans will have a tough task on Sunday in limited the play-action-happy Tennessee Titans QB Ryan Tannehill.

The Tennessee Titans aren’t what they once were.

No longer do they have an anemic offense run by former No. 2 pick Marcus Mariota. Instead, Lubbock native Ryan Tannehill is steering the ship of an offense that has scored 30-plus in each of the last four games. His 8-5 Titans will face the 8-5 Houston Texans on Sunday in Nashville.

For the Texans, limiting the Texas A&M product is far from an easy task. Though once considered a backup and stopgap starter in Tennessee, Tannehill is playing the best football of his career in 2019, and some of the best in the league.

In seven starts, Tannehill is 6-1. He has thrown for 1,993 yards, 15 touchdowns, five interceptions and a league-high 118.5 passer rating on a 73.4% completion rate.

“I think that he’s just playing very well,” said Texans coach Bill O’Brien on Wednesday. “He’s a very accurate passer, very calm, good poise and he’s very athletic. He can run, he’s got really good speed, he can escape, he’s doing a lot of things well.”

As O’Brien alludes to, Tannehill is more dual-threat than pocket passer. A former wide receiver in College Station, the 31-year-old has 147 yards and three touchdowns on 34 attempts.

In a sense, Tannehill is a triple-option quarterback. He is thriving in Nashville as a play-action passer.

With running back Derrick Henry running to the tune of 1,243 yards and 13 touchdowns, defenses are stacking the box against Tennessee — 12th highest in the NFL runs against a stacked box rate (23.2%), per PlayerProfiler — which Tannehill has benefited from.

810 of Tannehill’s passing yards come on play-action, per Pro Football Reference. According to PlayerProfiler, he leads the NFL in play-action completion rate (75.8%). That should be alarming for Houston.

The Texans struggle to defend the play-action. That showed in Week 14’s loss to the Denver Broncos. Per Pro Football Focus, via Aaron Reiss of The Athletic, Broncos rookie quarterback Drew Lock went 7 of 8 for 130 yards on play-action against Houston.

Houston cannot afford for their play-action defense to struggle against the Titans. Tannehill and offensive coordinator Arthur Smith will exploit that.

O’Brien won’t understate the importance of practicing for a play-action happy offense, which ranks first in the NFL in that category. First, they need to stop the run, then they need to figure out ball fakes and, finally, put both together.

“I think it’s just working in practice and continuing to kind of make sure we are teaching it the right way, how we want to react, whether it’s zone or man, and then making sure our players do it in practice,” said O’Brien. “Our players doing it in practice is a big deal.”

If the Texans want to win the AFC South, they will have to face Tannehill and the Titans twice in the next three weeks. In doing so, they must solve their play-action demons against a team that finds a strength, offensively, in the same category.

5 takeaways from Seattle’s 28-12 blowout road loss in Los Angeles

Five takeaways from the Seattle Seahawks 28-12 loss to the Los Angeles Rams on the road during Week 14’s “Sunday Night Football” matchup.

The Seattle Seahawks (10-3) suffered one of their worst losses in recent memory to the Los Angeles Rams (8-5) Sunday night and fell back to second place in the NFC West after the San Francisco 49ers’ (11-2) victory over the New Orleans Saints (10-3).

The Seahawks also dropped their first road game of the year, fell back to the No. 5 seed in the NFC and were denied from clinching a playoff spot. Running back Rashaad Penny sprained his ACL and the team as a whole looked terribly unprepared and outmatched. Here are a few additional takeaways from the game.

Wheels fell off offensively after the opening drive

The Seahawks managed a field goal on their opening drive and did not score offensively again until the fourth quarter when they kicked another field goal. They were held without an offensive touchdown for the first time all season. Russell Wilson and his cohorts never established a rhythm and often found themselves punting away. Wilson was under duress from the Rams’ ferocious pass rush and his receivers could not consistently get open and had a few drops as well. Penny’s injury may have played a factor in the results, but the Seahawks offense could not capitalize on the opportunities given to them. They will have to return to form to compete in the postseason and fast.

Almost no pass rush whatsoever

The Seahawks’ pass rush reverted to their inept form that was on display for most of the season before Week 10. The defense landed no sacks on Jared Goff, and this contributed significantly to the hefty production of the Rams’ offense. There were a few moments of pressure, but not nearly enough to even keep Seattle in the game, let alone win it. The Rams offensive line kept their signal-caller clean and he made plays when he needed to. The same cannot be said for Seattle’s pass rush. Speaking of the defense…

Defense gave up three touchdowns in the first half

This is not a recipe for success. The secondary was routinely gashed for big gains by the Rams’ receivers and looked thoroughly outmatched for the majority of the game, but this was especially evident in the first half. All three of the Rams’ first-half TDs came from sustained, high-yardage drives and the third one came right before halftime. The Rams received the second-half kickoff and largely controlled the game from there thanks to the sizable lead they built up.

Quandre Diggs was the lone bright spot on defense

Diggs had two interceptions of Goff, the first being a pick-six when Seattle was down 21-3. Jason Myers missed the extra point, but this play had the potential to be a massive shift in momentum for the Seahawks. Unfortunately, the offense could not take advantage of the big picks from Diggs and the rest of the defense certainly did not help matters. This was a solid game from the veteran safety and it could provide something for him to build on even more.

This was one of the ugliest Seahawks losses of the Pete Carroll era

Seattle could not establish a run game, sack the quarterback or consistently cover the Rams’ offensive weapons. Pete Carroll prides his reputation on his teams being able to execute in these situations and Seattle was poor in all categories tonight. Not even Wilson could provide many heroics, and this team just looked wholly unprepared for one of the most important games of the season. It is not uncommon for Carroll’s teams to lose, but they rarely get blown out. It is even rarer to see them get blown out on primetime in December. They did Sunday night against a division rival, and they must recover from it and defeat the Panthers (5-8) on the road next week.

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Texans Wire countdown to Broncos: 10 factors to watch

The Houston Texans and the Denver Broncos face off for a Week 14 encounter that is key for Houston, who seeks their eighth winning season ever.

WHEN: 12:00 p.m. CT

WHERE: NRG Stadium

FORECAST: Partly cloudy, 72 degrees, 6 mph winds (indoors)

FOLLOW: @therealmarklane, @averydduncan

LISTEN: Sports Radio 610 [KILT-AM] and 100.3 The Bull [KLOL]

WATCH: CBS (Kevin Harland & Rich Gannon)

Red: Baltimore at Buffalo

Blue: Denver at Houston

Green: Indianapolis at Tampa Bay

Yellow: Miami at NY Jets

Brown: Cincinnati at Cleveland

Source: 506 Sports

10: carlos hyde’s rank for rushing yards per game

The 29-year-old running back produces 71.1 rushing yards per game, good for the 10th-most in the NFL among running backs. Technically, he would be 11th because Ravens quarterback Lamar Jackson is at the 10th spot. Nonetheless, Hyde has had two games with 100-plus rushing yards, tying his total from 2016, which was also his best season with 988. Hyde is currently at 853.

9: noah fant’s drop percentage

The rookie first-round pick from Iowa has dropped 9.1% of his targets, tied for the 10th-most in the NFL. What it means is he is a key part of their passing game. What it also means is that he is a rookie adjusting to the pro game and the execution is not quite consistent. However, Fant burned Cleveland for three catches for 115 yards and a touchdown on Nov. 3. The talent is there. The capability is there. The Texans have to squelch it early.

8: Texans’ rank for opposing passer rating

Opposing quarterbacks have compiled a 99.5 passer rating against the Texans’ defense, the eighth-highest overall. Last week, Broncos rookie quarterback Drew Lock had an 84.5 rating in his first career start. The Texans defense will have to keep the second-rounder from Missouri off balance and disguise looks to keep him away from that near-triple digit mark.

7: deshaun watson’s interceptions

The Pro Bowler has chucked seven picks this season, and it is one of the only ways Denver has a chance to beat the Texans at NRG Stadium. The Broncos defense has some inside information with defensive back Kareem Jackson, a former Texans 2010 first-round pick, now in the fold. Can his information be enough to help get an edge on Watson?

6: texans’ rank for sacks

The Houston defense has generated 25 sacks this season, tied with the Los Angeles Chargers for the sixth-fewest in the NFL. The only other team in the bottom-10 of this category are the Seattle Seahawks, who are fourth on the list. To affect a rookie quarterback, the pass rush will have to ramp it up.

5: Houston’s rank for missed tackles

The Texans have missed 96 tackles through 12 games, the fifth-most in the league. Houston needs to make sure they don’t get burned by this deficiency as they attempt to corral running backs Royce Freeman and Phillip Lindsay, who, if get going, would be great friends for a rookie quarterback making his first career road start.

4: denver’s yards per carry

The real number is 4.2, but rounding makes one go down; therefore, four. Even though the Broncos don’t have an impressive figure compared to the rest of the league, they still have running backs capable of activating their run game. It should be a more challenging proposition with starting guard Ron Leary out for the game.

3: denver’s rank for third down conversions

The Broncos are third-worst in the NFL at third down conversions at 29.5%. If Houston can get Denver to third down, it should bode well for getting them off the field. The Texans’ defense gives up the third-most yards per drive in the NFL at 35.6. Having better play on first and second down will be key.

2: courtland sutton’s 100-yard receiving games

The second-year wideout from SMU has not had big games this season, and it could be due to the quarterback play. Last week against the Chargers, Sutton caught four passes for 74 yards and two touchdowns. The talent is there, and the size is assuredly there at 6-4, 216 pounds. Sutton is a big target and can post up any one of the Texans’ corners. Houston will need to use its pass rush to affect the timing and get rookie quarterback Drew Lock off target.

1: wins needed to post a winning record

The Texans have to beat the Broncos to get nine wins on the season. If they do that, it secures their eighth winning season in franchise history. Coach Bill O’Brien will extend his lead for the most by a single coach in team history with five. It would be a great way to start the final quarter of the season and help provide a boost as they seek to initiate their last AFC South series of the season against the Tennessee Titans.

Texans 100: Facts and Figures for Broncos, No. 76-100

The facts finish up with a look at the Houston Texans and Denver Broncos defenses, as well as receivers DeAndre Hopkins and Courtland Sutton.

The final quarter of facts conclude with a look at the NFL on CBS broadcast team as well as a few defensive figures for the Houston Texans and Denver Broncos, who both meet Sunday at noon CT at NRG Stadium for Week 14.

Facts and Figures for Broncos, No. 1-25

Facts and Figures for Broncos, No. 26-50

Facts and Figures for Broncos, No. 51-75

broadcast facts

76. CBS will broadcast their sixth game in the series. Here the breakdown by network:

CBS: 5

ESPN: 1

NFL Network: 1

77. The Texans are 93-124 all-time on CBS.

78. The Broncos are 161-119 all-time on CBS.

79. This week’s play-by-play crew is Kevin Harlan and Rich Gannon, making them the eighth different team to call a game in the series.

80. The Texans are 14-22 when Harlan calls their games.

81. Houston is 15-15 when Gannon calls their games.

82. This is the second early afternoon game in the series. All of them have been at NRG Stadium.

Pages: 12

Whitney Mercilus is excited to see ex-Texans DB Kareem Jackson

Houston Texans outside linebacker Whitney Mercilus is excited to see his former teammate, Kareem Jackson, against the Denver Broncos on Sunday.

The 8-4 Houston Texans’ priority for Sunday is beating the 4-8 Denver Broncos. However, the matchup won’t be just about winning, it will be a reunion.

Broncos safety Kareem Jackson will return to his old stomping grounds of NRG Stadium. Before signing with Denver in the offseason, he played, and started, for the Texans for nine seasons after they made him a first-round choice in 2010.

Texans outside linebacker Whitney Mercilus is excited to see his old teammate on Sunday.

“He was enthusiastic about his job, everything,” said Mercilus on Friday. “He was the same guy every day, coming through the building, and just one of the coolest dudes you would ever meet. I’ll say when he left we definitely felt that, and so it’d be great to see him.”

Though Mercilus felt Jackson’s departure to the Rocky Mountains, there was nothing weird about it. “It’s the nature of the league,” as he concluded.

Why Texans DC Romeo Crennel’s defense so good against rookie quarterbacks?

Under defensive coordinator Romeo Crennel, the Houston Texans are 11-1 against rookie quarterbacks. What gives Crennel’s defenses the edge?

Since the arrival of defensive coordinator Romeo Crennel in 2014, the Houston Texans have had little issues with rookie quarterbacks.

Under Crennel, the Texans are 11-1 against rookie quarterbacks, with their lone loss coming against the New England Patriots in Week 3 of 2016 when Jacoby Brissett filled in for a suspended Tom Brady in a 27-0 shutout on Thursday night.

Why, under Crennel, are the Texans so good against rookie quarterbacks? The defensive coordinator doesn’t know, however, he does cite their lack of experience into his defense’s ability to force mistakes.

“I don’t know really what that means other than maybe they’re rookies and I’m more experienced,” said Crennel on Thursday. “But I do not play one down against a rookie quarterback. I’m never on the field. It’s my guys who have got to do the job. Rookies, they’re rookies, just like these rookies I’ve got on my team. They’re rookies and they make rookie mistakes until they get experience, until they learn.”

On Sunday, against the 4-8 Denver Broncos, the Texans will face another rookie shot-caller in Drew Lock. Last week, in a win over the Los Angeles Chargers, Lock received his first NFL playing time. Crennel isn’t sleeping on him, however.

“Well, he’s pretty accurate and a lot of times it depends on the weapons that they around them,” said Crennel on Lock. “If they got good weapons around them, then that makes them better. So, he’s got some weapons that he can use and he can go to. So, if we can take those weapons away, then it would be better for us.”

Lock performed well in his first NFL snaps, going 18 of 28 passing for 134 yards, two touchdowns, an interception and an 84.5 passer rating. While the Missouri product was testing the waters, the Texans were beating the NFL’s most experienced quarterback, Tom Brady.

Crennel will look to make his record against rookie quarterbacks 12-1 on Sunday when the Texans host the Broncos at 12 p.m. CT at NRG Stadium.

Jadeveon Clowney wanted to play 2019 with the Texans

Seattle Seahawks edge defender Jadeveon Clowney told NFL.com on Monday night that he originally intended to play 2019 with the Houston Texans.

Seattle Seahawks edge defender Jadeveon Clowney provided more insight as to what his original plans were for the 2019 season.

After the NFC West club’s 37-30 win over the Minnesota Vikings on Monday Night Football, Clowney told Michael Silver of NFL.com that he intended to play the 2019 season with the Houston Texans, not be traded away or even ask for more money.

“People say, ‘He was trying to leave.’ That’s a lie. I didn’t ask them to trade me. I didn’t even ask them to pay me any more. I just wanted to play one last year with my teammates. But hey, it’s part of the business. It was a business move, and I got the short end of the stick at the time. Now? It looks like I got the big end of the stick.”

The Seahawks are 10-2 on the season and the No. 2 seed in the NFC, ensuring they will get a first-round bye.

According to Clowney, Texans coach Bill O’Brien called him numerous times over the offseason, and Clowney explained each time that he would come in and sign his franchise tag but not until the advent of the regular season. The three-time Pro Bowler, who also missed the club’s offseason workouts, wasn’t going to risk his health in training camp or preseason when he wasn’t under contract.

“I love Houston, and I love my dudes, but I wasn’t under contract, so I wasn’t going to take the risk,” said Clowney.

In August, according to Clowney, O’Brien called in Clowney to team facilities to talk about a potential sign-and-trade. O’Brien was selling Clowney on the notion of playing for the Miami Dolphins.

Said Clowney: “They said, ‘It’ll be good for you and good for us.’ I’m like, ‘Good for me? They’re gonna tank the season for a damn quarterback! Find me a team that can win, and I’ll sign the damn tender.’

On Aug. 31, the Texans found Clowney that team in the Seahawks.

If Clowney would have stayed in Houston, he would given them security on the outside as they would have a marquee edge defender with J.J. Watt done for the season with a torn pectoral. However, the Texans are in a great place themselves with an 8-4 record, first place in the AFC South, and coming off of a 28-22 win over the New England Patriots on Sunday Night Football.