The Houston Texans produced 193 yards of total offense, and it was a throwback to pro football from 30 years ago with the way the offense slowly moved throughout their possessions.
However, the Texans’ final drive of the first half revealed how the offense should have been playing throughout the game. En route to rookie quarterback Davis Mills throwing a 1-yard touchdown to receiver Anthony Miller, the Texans sailed 64 yards in seven plays with just 1:12 in time of possession.
According to receiver Brandin Cooks, the Texans don’t necessarily have to play their two-minute offense to be effective.
“At the end of the day, we do well playing fast and when we had that success at the end of that half, obviously the biggest thing is just tempo in general,” said Cooks. “From a receiver standpoint, got to get out of the huddle faster so we can dissect what’s going on at the line. We got to get better at that even when we’re not, I guess, in two-minute situations and that’s more so us players having the tempo, getting out the huddle and getting ready to go.”
Cooks caught nine passes for 112 yards, the first time in his eight-year career that he has recorded 100-yard receiving games in two of the first three games to start the season.
“We have to take that same mentality even when it’s not two minutes, like I just said, to have that tempo, to have that sense of urgency, we just got to have that all game long,” said Cooks.
The Texans will have a chance to play with more urgency coming out of the huddle when they take on the Buffalo Bills on Oct. 3 at Highmark Stadium. Houston will need to generate momentum as they take on the AFC East champions in their home venue.