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1st quarter of season defensive summary

G

gtexan02

Working?
As of right now (before the MNF game) the Texans D is ranked
1. 10th overall in yards per game
2. 10th in pass yards per game
3. 15th in rush yards per game

Looking at more accurate metrics, we are ranked
1. 7th in QB rating against
2. 27th in rush yards per attempt
3. 4th in points per game
4. 18th in 3rd down %
5. 8th in turnover differential


What I think it means:
First of all, we have played 1 terrible team (Colts), 1 below average team (Miami), 1 above average team (Steelers), and 1 excellent team (Saints).
Our numbers should be pretty accurate/balanced from this point on because we've played a pretty balanced looking schedule.

Second, our pass defense is much improved over past seasons. The reasons in my mind are better corner and safety play, better pass rush, better use of hands. The last one is particularly important. The texans traditionally give up a very high completion percentage to opposing QBs. With hands in the air, we've given up only 55% completion, good 7th in the NFL.

Our run defense has looked pretty porous. ~5 yards per carry is pretty bad. I was pleasantly surprised to see us shut down Mendenhall, but then worried by how badly the Steeler backups gashed us.
 
gtexan02 said:
As of right now (before the MNF game) the Texans D is ranked
1. 10th overall in yards per game
2. 10th in pass yards per game
3. 15th in rush yards per game

Looking at more accurate metrics, we are ranked
1. 7th in QB rating against
2. 27th in rush yards per attempt
3. 4th in points per game
4. 18th in 3rd down %
5. 8th in turnover differential


What I think it means:
First of all, we have played 1 terrible team (Colts), 1 below average team (Miami), 1 above average team (Steelers), and 1 excellent team (Saints).
Our numbers should be pretty accurate/balanced from this point on because we've played a pretty balanced looking schedule.

Second, our pass defense is much improved over past seasons. The reasons in my mind are better corner and safety play, better pass rush, better use of hands. The last one is particularly important. The texans traditionally give up a very high completion percentage to opposing QBs. With hands in the air, we've given up only 55% completion, good 7th in the NFL.

Our run defense has looked pretty porous. ~5 yards per carry is pretty bad. I was pleasantly surprised to see us shut down Mendenhall, but then worried by how badly the Steeler backups gashed us.
Click to expand...


Last year we were basically a bunch of guys running around chasing the other team as they ran, passed, crawled and spit on us on their way to the endzone. At some point in the future (after we add a little more talent in the secondary) we might be able to just blanket an offense but we are not that defense right now. What we can do is dictate how other teams try to beat us. We have elite pass rushers at 2 positions on the field now (Smith, Williams) and 3 or 4 guys who can generate pressure on any given play. I don't think it is a matter of us being soft against the run so much as it is we have been playing with the lead for most of the season. We are more apt to focus on the pass and try to stop that and have given up a few runs in the process. We have seen that early in games we have been pretty strong against the run and then once we get ahead we start going after the QB. Draws have killed us but other than a fluke or two (sproles td for example) we've really done well in my opnion.

I think our defense will be fine. Lets just pray AJ comes back healthy and everything will be alright.

Mike
 
We're 8th in points scored

We're 5th in points allowed (Titans & Ravens are 1 & 2 just incase you're wondering).
 
I was curious as to where our defense stacked up with the rest of the NFL in the major defensive categories and figured some of you were too. Here is a snapshot of where we stand:

4th in total points allowed
5th in sacks
10th in passes defended
10th in pass yards allowed per game
10th in total yards allowed per game
17th in rush yards allowed per game

Here are a few notables:

**Antonio Smith and Mario Williams are both tied for fourth in the league in sacks at 4 a piece

**Jonathan Joseph is tied for fourth in the league with 5 passes defended

If there a few important categories I left out, please add in as necessary.

I will say that even though we have some work to do (specifically in our rush defense), I am happy, not satisfied, with the turnaround that Wade has done for us and look forward to our next quarter.

:gotexans1
 
TheCD said:
Those numbers will surely get better as we don't play the Saints again this season. :kitten:
Click to expand...

I agree, for the most part. But..... the Ravens at times have looked Saintish & the Falcons like to think they're the Saints....

Hasselbeck..... If our defense does keep on getting better, there's no way he'll score 30 on us... but you never know.
 
Great thread and I'm glad you pointed out the opponents we've faced Bad, below avg, above avg and GREAT. Looking at game 5, Oakland has scored well but they've also allowed alot of points.

Here's a couple of stats I've looked at:

1) Even though we're top 10 in yards allowed, we've had the 7th fewest players from scrimmage with 235 total. Less plays "generally" will mean less yards.

2) Time of Possession is 26:50; 3rd best in the league. Our offense is doing a good job of controlling the clock which gives our defense time to rest and come back out fresh. This also can help with point #1 above, limited time/plays for opposing offenses. Less yards, hopefully less points (so far so good).

3) We're giving up an average of 5.5 yards/play which is good for 17th in the league. Not great but that's middle of the pack and all else equal fine by me.

4) 3rd down defense is 18/46 or 39%, good for 15th in the league. Middle of the pack again. If we can improve on this it would be good. Get opposing offenses off the field. Keep that T.O.P. in our favor. Control the clock, control the game.
 
tumblr_lltzgnHi5F1qzib3wo1_400.jpg
 
As a seperate post, I thought I'd post what our opposing schedule's offenses have done in Pts/G. NOTE: For teams we've played, our score has been omitted and the avg. recalculated. Their score against us is then in parentheses for comparison. Remaining schedule's ranking is adjusted for movement:

* Texans: 26.8 ppg - 8th in NFL *

1. Colts: 19.5 ppg - 24th in NFL (7 pts against Texans)
2. Dolphins: 17.2 ppg - 26th in NFL (13 pts against Texans)
3. Saints: 29 ppg - 6th in NFL (40 pts against Texans)
4. Steelers: 18.0 ppg - 27th in NFL (10 pts against Texans)
5. Raiders: 27.8 ppg - 7th in NFL
6. Ravens: 29.8 ppg - 5th in NFL
7. Titans: 22.0 ppg - 18th in NFL
8. Jaguars: 9.8 ppg - 32nd in NFL
9. Browns: 18.5 ppg - 26th in NFL
10. Buccaneers: 20.0 ppg - 23rd in NFL
11. - Bye Week -
12. Jaguars: 9.8 ppg - 32nd in NFL
13. Falcons: 22.5 ppg - 16th in NFL
14. Bengals: 20.0 ppg - 22nd in NFL
15. Panthers: 22.2 ppg - 17th in NFL
16. Colts: 19.5 ppg - 24th in NFL (7 pts against Texans)
17. Titans: 22.0 ppg - 18th in NFL
 
Who would have ever thought we would see the day where our defense gets 5 sacks during the same game an announcer proclaims we have the best offensive line in the league? We've come a long ways from some very bad Texan teams
 
Ole Miss Texan said:
As a seperate post, I thought I'd post what our opposing schedule's offenses have done in Pts/G. NOTE: For teams we've played, our score has been omitted and the avg. recalculated. Their score against us is then in parentheses for comparison. Remaining schedule's ranking is adjusted for movement:

* Texans: 26.8 ppg - 8th in NFL *

1. Colts: 19.5 ppg - 24th in NFL (7 pts against Texans)
2. Dolphins: 17.2 ppg - 26th in NFL (13 pts against Texans)
3. Saints: 29 ppg - 6th in NFL (40 pts against Texans)
4. Steelers: 18.0 ppg - 27th in NFL (10 pts against Texans)
5. Raiders: 27.8 ppg - 7th in NFL
6. Ravens: 29.8 ppg - 5th in NFL
7. Titans: 22.0 ppg - 18th in NFL
8. Jaguars: 9.8 ppg - 32nd in NFL
9. Browns: 18.5 ppg - 26th in NFL
10. Buccaneers: 20.0 ppg - 23rd in NFL
11. - Bye Week -
12. Jaguars: 9.8 ppg - 32nd in NFL
13. Falcons: 22.5 ppg - 16th in NFL
14. Bengals: 20.0 ppg - 22nd in NFL
15. Panthers: 22.2 ppg - 17th in NFL
16. Colts: 19.5 ppg - 24th in NFL (7 pts against Texans)
17. Titans: 22.0 ppg - 18th in NFL
Click to expand...

After week 7, we don't play a top 10 offense. That's very reassuring. I had no idea the Jags were that bad. Looks like the Titans and Falcons will be the only tough games down the stretch. Maybe the Panthers too, but they don't seem to have much of a run game.

Edit: 1 other thing that is important is that the Ravens defense has scored 4 TDs, which are being attributed to their PPG in those stats.
 
In all seriousnessosity, Cody is a stop gap/backup guy forced into playing time. Mitchell isn't the interior pass rusher Wade made him to be either. Both are just good effort guys who try to help the other players tug on the rope. Until they get a solid (preferably big and fat) run stopper at the nose the rush average won't go down. Good news is with Ryans, Cushing, Manning and Quin playing up the middle there isn't a lot of room for would be breakout runs. So it's kind of a "as long as the pass D is good we can live with the runs" deal.
 
TimeKiller said:
In all seriousnessosity, Cody is a stop gap/backup guy forced into playing time. Mitchell isn't the interior pass rusher Wade made him to be either. Both are just good effort guys who try to help the other players tug on the rope. Until they get a solid (preferably big and fat) run stopper at the nose the rush average won't go down. Good news is with Ryans, Cushing, Manning and Quin playing up the middle there isn't a lot of room for would be breakout runs. So it's kind of a "as long as the pass D is good we can live with the runs" deal.
Click to expand...

I seriously doubt Wade is satisfied with where this team is defensively, especially when it comes to the run defense.

But Rome wasn't built in a day & Phillips has had a total of what, 8 weeks?

I can't wait to see them play in November.
 
thunderkyss said:
I seriously doubt Wade is satisfied with where this team is defensively, especially when it comes to the run defense.

But Rome wasn't built in a day & Phillips has had a total of what, 8 weeks?

I can't wait to see them play in November.
Click to expand...

Hmmm... I don't know. Personally, I can't wait to see them play in January and February.
 
thunderkyss said:
I seriously doubt Wade is satisfied with where this team is defensively, especially when it comes to the run defense.

But Rome wasn't built in a day & Phillips has had a total of what, 8 weeks?

I can't wait to see them play in November.
Click to expand...

For sure, the group still has some gellin' to do. But acquiring new skills is probably not among the changes we can expect in the coming months...Neither DT is a run stopping guy OR a solid pass rusher. They're just high effort fellas.
 
the Texans are 4th in scoring defense. That's all that
matters.

I don't care if they give up 1,000 yds/game passing or
rushing or whatever.

If they continue to only give up 17.5 points per game
they are going to win a LOT of games

TJ
 
The defense is better than I hoped given there were no OTAs and they had to try to pick it all up in camp. I think Wade is adding new looks all the time and the defense is only going to get better.

This unit believes in itself, which is huge.
 
If you take away Saints game they are only allowing 10 ppg.
If you take away only the 4th quarter of the Saints game, they are averaging only 13 ppg.

I know you can't do that but looking at the rest of the schedule we should end up with a top5 defense, barring injuries.
 
speedfreek said:
the Texans are 4th in scoring defense. That's all that
matters.

I don't care if they give up 1,000 yds/game passing or
rushing or whatever.

If they continue to only give up 17.5 points per game
they are going to win a LOT of games

TJ
Click to expand...

I'd imagine we'd be first if we didn't have 2 Td's called back by penalties!
 
Like I said from the beginning;

As long as this team is between 10-17 in total defense, we'll be more than fine.

But if this keeps going, we can even be higher than that! That's amazing.
 
TimeKiller said:
Until they get a solid (preferably big and fat) run stopper at the nose the rush average won't go down.
Click to expand...

Except that's not how Wade rolls. I'm sure I'm not the only one who's said it, but he likes his NTs athletic and a little on the, ummm...slimmer side.

But I mean, hey, Wade might get a nudge from Kubiak to head in that direction and/or the FO. Hell, there might be a big ol' NT in the draft that's 350+ and sprints like lightning.

But that's not today. So I worry.
 
The two biggest stats is #4 in ppg and +24.2 in passer rating differential. If we can stay among the top in those, we could very well be SB bound.
 
One of the biggest things is that the D is not giving up the big play...

Touchdowns of 3, 12, 30, 27, 16, and 13 yards.
 
1st half stats are as follows, with comparison to 1st quarter

As of right now (before the MNF game) the Texans D is ranked
1. 10th overall in yards per game
2. 10th in pass yards per game
3. 15th in rush yards per game
Click to expand...
Now
1. 3rd in overall yards per game
2. 5th in pass yards per game
3. 6th in rush yards per game

Looking at more accurate metrics, we are ranked
1. 7th in QB rating against
2. 27th in rush yards per attempt
3. 4th in points per game
4. 18th in 3rd down %
5. 8th in turnover differential
Click to expand...
1. 3rd in QB rating against
2. 17th in rush yards per attempt
3. 5th in points per game
4. 4th in 3rd down %
5. 5th in turnover differential

What I think it means:
First of all, we have played 1 terrible team (Colts), 1 below average team (Miami), 1 above average team (Steelers), and 1 excellent team (Saints).
Our numbers should be pretty accurate/balanced from this point on because we've played a pretty balanced looking schedule.

Second, our pass defense is much improved over past seasons. The reasons in my mind are better corner and safety play, better pass rush, better use of hands. The last one is particularly important. The texans traditionally give up a very high completion percentage to opposing QBs. With hands in the air, we've given up only 55% completion, good 7th in the NFL.

Our run defense has looked pretty porous. ~5 yards per carry is pretty bad. I was pleasantly surprised to see us shut down Mendenhall, but then worried by how badly the Steeler backups gashed us.
Click to expand...


What do I think it means now? I think we have a legitimate top 10 defensive team. The numbers have gotten even better than through the first quarter and in the 2nd quarter we played Oakland, Ravens, Titans, Jaguars

No elite QBs certainly, but Hassleback was rated as one of the best performers this year by ESPNs new QB metric and was terrible against us. Raiders, Ravens and Jags all have excellent run games.

Just thought that Id give an update
 
Thanks for the recap.
Are those numbers 1st qtr vs 2nd qtr
or
1st qtr vs overall 1st half?
....


So the run D is doing better even against better running team.
Should we have big concerns about our NTs?
 
76Texan said:
Thanks for the recap.
Are those numbers 1st qtr vs 2nd qtr
or
1st qtr vs overall 1st half?
....


So the run D is doing better even against better running team.
Should we have big concerns about our NTs?
Click to expand...

Yeah, 1st quarter vs. 1st half means that our defense has been playing lights out the 2nd quarter.

I guess I'll have to admit I was totally and completely wrong in my fears about the NT spot.
 
The Pencil Neck said:
Yeah, 1st quarter vs. 1st half means that our defense has been playing lights out the 2nd quarter.

I guess I'll have to admit I was totally and completely wrong in my fears about the NT spot.
Click to expand...

You can thank Phillips for the improved run stopping. It looks like he saw the weakness and adjusted for it by calling more run blitzes. We blitz ~56% of the time and a lot of them appear designed to stop the run 1st and get to the qb 2nd. All in all, our D is rockin and I love it.
 
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