Tag: devin singletary

Texans’ DeMeco Ryans, Dolphins’ Mike McDaniel proscribe joint practice scuffles

Houston Texans coach DeMeco Ryans and Miami Dolphins coach Mike McDaniel want quality work from their joint practices, not scuffles and distractions.

HOUSTON — The Miami Dolphins cannot make it to town soon enough for their joint practices this week as the Houston Texans players may be fed up with one another in practice.

For the second consecutive day, tempers flared at Houston Texans training camp. On Sunday, linebacker Christian Harris and running back Devin Singletary had a flare-up that caused teammates to rush quickly to the skirmish and break it up. Monday, it was the offensive and defensive units going at it during 11-on-11 team drills. No punches were thrown, but there was a lot of pushing, shoving, and trash talk going on.

Once again, it was the defensive unit, which had taken on the bravado of their head coach DeMeco Ryans that started the commotion when backup safety M.J. Stewart made hard contact with a running back and continued to try and knock the ball loose even after the play was over. During the altercation, an unidentified defensive player leaped from his feet to jump into the pile of teammates.

“There was a little scuffle today, nothing important,” said Texans coach DeMeco Ryans about the uproar. “It’s football. It’s training camp. It gets a little testy. We’re probably at our wits’ end going against each other, so it will be really good and refreshing to have Miami come in over the next three days.”

The last two days have shown why general manager Nick Caserio vigorously pursued Ryans with the urging from Cal and Hannah McNair. He has brought the renewed energy missing from Texans’ training camp over the last two seasons.

With his former colleague with the San Francisco 49ers, Dolphins coach Mike McDaniel heading into town early for the joint practices and second preseason game on Saturday at NRG Stadium, Ryans conversed with McDaniel to ensure the safety of both teams.

“Mike McDaniel and I had a conversation, and both of us view it the same way,” Ryans said about controlling the environment at the joint practices. “We don’t want to turn it into a shoving match; we just want both of our teams to get better at football. So, we want to practice. We don’t want to lose time on guys wasting time on stuff that doesn’t matter about football when it comes to shoving and fighting.

“We don’t want those things, so in our agreement, if anybody throws a punch, just like what happens in a game, we’re going to play within the rules. If you throw a punch in a game, you’re kicked out. It’s the same thing in practice. Now, if anybody’s throwing punches, we have to get them out of practice, but we just want these practices to be productive. That’s what it’s about and we’ll handle it that way.”

The last time the Texans held joint practices was in 2019 when the Detroit Lions visited Kirby Drive ahead of their second preseason game.

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Texans’ Christian Harris, Devin Singletary clash as iron keeps sharpening iron

Houston Texans LB Christian Harris and RB Devin Singletary scuffled in the latest example of iron sharpening iron in training camp.

HOUSTON — More than the temperature was heated at Houston Texans training camp Sunday at Houston Methodist Training Center.

Linebacker Christian Harris put a strong hit on running back Devin Singletary on the sideline during team drills with fans in attendance. As the two rose to their feet, they exchanged words, and Singletary got into a fighting stance but was quickly pushed away by other offensive players.

“To see scuffling in training camp, I would say: ‘Finally,'” said Texans coach DeMeco Ryans about the minor skirmish. “Sometimes you get tired of hitting the same guy over and over again, right? It’s linebackers and running backs; they’re going to thud up a lot in practice. And of course, we want to be safe, we want to make sure we keep guys up, but also, it’s going to get a little edgy, it’s going to get a little chippy, and that’s how I want to play.

“Offensively, defensively, I want to play with an edge. I want to play with a chip on our shoulder, but also, we still have to play within the rules. So, it’s a part of camp, you see it, it is not the worst thing to happen because it shows that guys truly care about what they’re doing. They want to be really good at it. It’s just two really good competitors going at each other, which I don’t have a problem with.”

Ryans played with that same chip on his shoulder during his tenure in the NFL, and his players are taking on his attitude toward the game.

Tensions have been running high amongst the offensive and defensive side of the ball, with safeties Jalen Pitre and Jimmie Ward leading the way with trash-talking and hard hitting which was evident when tight end Dalton Shultz ran a pass route towards Ward and ended up having to be taken off the field by the training camp as he missed the rest of practice.

“That energy, it becomes contagious,” linebacker Blake Cashman said after Sunday’s practice. “I think today the defense was feeding off of that, and you can just see the intensity, guys flying around, maybe hitting a little harder, and that’s what you want in a defense.

“We want to be very tenacious and a ball-hawking defense because that’s what’s going to win us games. So, it’s great that the guys brought a little juice today because it’s going to make us a better football team.”

The Texans will have that same mentality when they participate in joint practices on consecutive days this week with the Miami Dolphins before facing them in their second preseason game on Saturday at NRG Stadium.

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1 thing we want to see from each of the Bills top skill position players

1 thing we want to see from each of the #Bills top skill position players (via @TejasVemparala):

On paper, the Buffalo Bills offense is one of the best in the league. But to win the Super Bowl, the Buffalo will need to be the best. If the Bills want to win the Super Bowl in 2023, here is one thing we want to see from each of their top skill-position players:

4 Bills position battles to watch in training camp

4 #Bills position battles to watch in training camp:

The Buffalo Bills are looking to get stronger in areas that proved to be thin in their roster last season and have begun to do just that through the NFL Draft and free agency.

With the talent that GM Brandon Beane has brought in, the team has a number of positions at which there will be competition throughout their 2023 campaign.

There are several in particular that will be under the microscope in greater focus in training camp due to how the performance in those groups will impact the starting positions and position rotations.

With that, here are four Bills position battles to watch in training camp:

Winners, losers following the Bills’ 2023 offseason moves

Winners, losers following the #Bills’ 2023 offseason moves:

The Buffalo Bills offseason has seen its fair share of changes, including those to the coaching staff and roster.

As GM Brandon Beane looks to reshape and add to position groups to improve the team, there are personnel on and off the field who have either benefited or not from the changes.

Following the 2023 NFL offseason, here is a list of “winners” and “losers” in the Buffalo Bills’ organization…

Texans’ Devin Singletary says respect is key in RB competition

Houston Texans running back Devin Singletary says that in order to have a healthy competition, the basis has to be rooted in respect.

Devin Singletary still believes he can be an offense’s lead running back.

The former Buffalo Bills 2019 third-rounder led the AFC East champions with 819 yards last season. In each of Singletary’s four seasons in Buffalo, he led the Bills in rushing yards.

With the Houston Texans signing Singletary, the move appears puzzling given Dameon Pierce generated 939 yards through 13 games as a rookie.

The Texans added Singletary to complement their former fourth-rounder. While that may be Houston’s intentions, Singletary still believes he can lead an offense and will compete as such in training camp.

Nevertheless the former Florida Atlantic product knows that Pierce is not an adversary, but a partner.

Singletary laid out how running backs are able to compete against one another yet form a bond.

“For one, it’s respect,” Singletary told reporters June 14 at mandatory minicamp. “We respect each other for sure. Two is — and this offense hasn’t been showing that — more than one guy can eat. You know what I’m saying? More than one guy can eat.”

When Singletary sees Pierce having a big game, the reaction is to lean into the enthusiasm, not shy away simply because it secures Pierce’s spot atop the depth chart.

“The biggest thing for us is we’re going to be feeding off of each other’s energy,” Singletary said. “Of course, it’s a game, it’s competition. You’ve always got to compete, but it’s going to be a healthy competition. Making each other better, pushing yourself to each other’s best — getting the best out of each other. So, I think that’s going to be big.”

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Texans RB Devin Singletary says QB C.J. Stroud is a ‘bright young man’

Houston Texans running back Devin Singletary says the rookie quarterback, C.J. Stroud, is a sharp signal-caller.

Perhaps the most difficult job in all of sports is the quarterback position in American gridiron football, and Houston Texans signal-caller C.J. Stroud is in a particularly precarious situation as a rookie entering the 2023 season.

The Ohio State product will be tasked with lifting the fledgling Texans back to relevance after years of disappointment earned Houston the right to select him with the second-overall pick in April’s draft.

Daunting as this duty might be, veteran running back Devin Singletary saw serious potential in Stroud at the Texans’ minicamp back in June, making it clear to the media that the rookie passer is poised for success in his first season at the NFL level.

“Man, he’s bright. He’s a bright, young man,” Singletary told reporters on June 14. “He’s coming along well. It’s a lot as a young quarterback, coming in and learning a new offense – coming in here with grown men, coming from college and coming here with grown men… You’re looked at as a leader out the gate. But he’s handling it well. He’s a very humble guy and always comes in to work – definitely.”

Delivering Houston a winning season as a rookie will prove to necessitate a Herculean effort on Stroud’s part, but with the raw talent and support he possesses within the Texans organization, it seems that anything is possible.

Singletary’s faith in Stroud as a viable first-year signal caller is a good sign that the up-and-coming quarterback should be able to find his groove early in the 2023 campaign, even if he has to overcome adversity in his first games under center.

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Texans RB Devin Singletary continues grind during lull before training camp

Houston Texans running back Devin Singletary is using the breaktime before training camp to continue the grind.

The Houston Texans will have been off for 42 days by the time training camp opens July 26 at Houston Methodist Training Center.

While players and coaches enjoy the long layoff between offseason workouts and the six-month grind of the regular season, new Texans running back Devin Singletary finds ways to utilize the break to get ready for the season.

“Me personally, I take a couple days off, a few days off and then get right back to the grind,” Singletary told reporters June 14 after mandatory minicamp. “My mindset is: it’s not really time to chill. We’re on a mission and I understand that. I want to be a big part of that mission. So, I’m going to take a few days off and then get right back to it.”

Singletary signed a one-year contract worth a maximum of $3.75 million. The former Buffalo Bills 2019 third-rounder sees himself as a complement to second-year running back Dameon Pierce.

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Ranking the RBs in the AFC South entering 2023

The AFC South boasts some strong RBs. How should they be ranked?

The AFC South arguably has the best group of running backs in comparison to the rest of the divisions across the NFL.

Two running backs fall in most analysts’ top five list among all backs in the league, and it also features a pair of young players that will be looking to build off their strong 2022 performances.

MORE: Ranking the QBs in the AFC South

So how do they rank among all four teams in the division? I would like to preface that the only backs included on this list are the top two on each team’s depth chart on Ourlads.

Let’s take a look at how they fall:

Texans RB Devin Singletary says Dameon Pierce is more than a ‘bruiser’

New Houston Texans running back Devin Singletary says that second-year Dameon Pierce is more than just a “bruiser” in the backfield.

Dameon Pierce has a reputation for being a bruiser.

Through 13 games of Pierce’s rookie season, the Houston Texans’ fourth-rounder picked up the NFL’s “Angriest Run of the Year” at the 2022 NFL Honors in February. Punishing running backs are picking up those type of runs, not elusive runners.

However, new Texans running back Devin Singletary believes that Pierce has more diversity to his running style than meets the eye.

“Yeah, a lot of guys like to look at Dameon as a bruiser, but I feel like he’s more than that,” Singletary told reporters June 14 after mandatory minicamp. “Make guys miss, he definitely can catch out of the backfield.”

The Texans signed Singletary to a one-year, $3.75 million deal in free agency to provide an effective complement to Pierce. The former Buffalo Bills 2019 third-rounder is willing to play towards that perception of being the shiftier running back.

“For me and him, I feel like some would say I’m shifty or whatever, that’s my game, but I feel like I can do it all as well,” said Singletary. “So, with that being said, it’s just us feeding off of each other’s energy.”

Singletary generated 672 carries for 3,151 yards and 16 touchdowns in his 61 games for Buffalo.

In Houston, Singletary believes partnering with Pierce and learning how to read one another’s cues will help improve the Texans’ rushing attack.

Said Singletary: “I feel like that’s what it’s going to come down to throughout the season, us feeding off each other’s energy, picking each other’s brains, finding ways to get better, and I think that’s the biggest thing.”

Pierce finished with 220 carries for 939 yards and four touchdowns. The former Florida product had the third-most rushing yards of any rookie last season.

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