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Texans vs Colts AAR

T

TheRealJoker V2

Veteran
After action report. Post your thoughts here:

What went well:

1) Running game emerged. Joe Mixon was able to run at will against the Colts which opens up a lot of possibilities for this team.

2) Offense was efficient. They were able to move the ball well majority of drives and have their way with the Colts defense.

3) The stars were clutch. You pay them to win the game in “gotta have it” situations. Every time CJ needed to make a clutch throw he did. And Diggs/Nico held up their end of the bargain.

4) Fairbairn. Three 50 + yard FGs. Top 5 kicker in the league!

What didn’t go well:

1) Secondary breakdowns. Can’t allow that many busted coverage plays. Particularly from a vet like Ward. I’d rather just play Bullock all game and live with his growing pains if Ward is gonna have the same breakdowns.

2) Pass rush. Colts neutralized the pass rush. Sure they have a really good OL but this is supposed to be an elite pass rush. I know Anderson is not 100% but I expected more from Hunter. He got to Richardson a couple times but man he needs to be a game wrecker and finish.

3) Special teams punt team. Can’t allow a blocked punt. Uncharacteristic of a Frank Ross unit!

4) Coaching miscues. End of half communication breakdown ruining chance of FG attempt. Have to do a better job in that chaotic situation and be ready to spike it. Also the decision to go for two early. Could have bit us in the rear with that one point being the difference.
 
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I was absolutely & completely wrong about our OL. All preseason I've been saying they're going to make it difficult for Mixon to average 4.1 ypc... But they did a fine, fine job.

I guess it helps knowing you don't need to hold a block forever & being rewarded for those 2nd level blocks.

& I was mad... Still mad Akers was a healthy scratch, but I do want to see more Pierce in real game situations.
 
thunderkyss said:
I was absolutely & completely wrong about our OL. All preseason I've been saying they're going to make it difficult for Mixon to average 4.1 ypc... But they did a fine, fine job.

I guess it helps knowing you don't need to hold a block forever & being rewarded for those 2nd level blocks.

& I was mad... Still mad Akers was a healthy scratch, but I do want to see more Pierce in real game situations.
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OL did great in the run blocking today. They were able to move the pile and Mixon didn’t need a large hole to reward them.

Pierce looked solid for the short amount of time he was in the game. Hopefully that’s a confidence builder for him.
 
Correct me if I'm wrong, but the team really didn't seem totally in sync. Made some plays, but never really seemed to be working well. Also, I thought that the Colts secondary to be suspect?? They ran with and had our guys pretty well covered most of the game, but we kept losing their receivers for big plays. We played the run much better and Taylor never chewed us up like he usually does. AR5 is a real load when he is running, but not so much passing.
 
edo783 said:
Correct me if I'm wrong, but the team really didn't seem totally in sync. Made some plays, but never really seemed to be working well. Also, I thought that the Colts secondary to be suspect?? They ran with and had our guys pretty well covered most of the game, but we kept losing their receivers for big plays. We played the run much better and Taylor never chewed us up like he usually does. AR5 is a real load when he is running, but not so much passing.
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Week 1 there will be some inherent sloppiness. I didn’t really account for that in the AAR, just thought it was assumed. I expect both teams to tighten up sooner than later. They are both well coached teams. The sloppiness or more a product of today’s NFL with the CBA preventing more strenuous offseason training.
 
edo783 said:
Correct me if I'm wrong, but the team really didn't seem totally in sync. Made some plays, but never really seemed to be working well. Also, I thought that the Colts secondary to be suspect?? They ran with and had our guys pretty well covered most of the game, but we kept losing their receivers for big plays. We played the run much better and Taylor never chewed us up like he usually does. AR5 is a real load when he is running, but not so much passing.
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Might be because of playing only 12 snaps in preseason. Now days these 1st couple of real games are the preseason games.
 
cland said:
Unorthodox (running game way up, Stoud was not quite as accurate as usual) but amazing game, and everyone came out healthy.
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I gave Tunsil/Howard more credit than I should’ve protecting the edges in this game. They are shaking off the rust post offseason surgeries. It may take another game or two but I expect Tunsil to be back to normal.

As for Howard, I think i’d rather have Fisher starting and growing now than wait to see if Howard will get it together post injury.

Stroud made plays when he had to and stayed healthy though!
 
A lot of work to be done coaching up this D, they are a quality player short at LB, Lassiter didn’t get the snaps he needed in pre-season, and the deep coverage needs work.

DeMeco is a great coach so I expect to see big improvements over the coming weeks.
 
welsh texan said:
A lot of work to be done coaching up this D, they are a quality player short at LB, Lassiter didn’t get the snaps he needed in pre-season, and the deep coverage needs work.

DeMeco is a great coach so I expect to see big improvements over the coming weeks.
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I thought Lassiter did good except on that double move.
 
thunderkyss said:
I thought Lassiter did good except on that double move.
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Yep, he did good, but the coverages as a whole were disjointed and we were very vulnerable deep. AR missed on a few throws and hit on a few. I was trying to pinpoint what the issue was? Seemed each of the starting DBs had a bad play or 2 against their name today.
 
My reaction?

images


Now, let's beat Da Bears.
 
TheRealJoker V2 said:
Pass rush. Colts neutralized the pass rush.
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I have been very critical of Richardson. And I still don't think he will become a winning QB. But his threat to pickup chunks plays when escaping the pass rush is real. Can't just go balls out on the pass rush or Richardson can slip a tackle and go 20+. The guy next week is somewhat similar. Blitzing and stunting is risky business. You have to stay in the lanes with these guys, and that's going to give them time to throw. Which I'm OK with if the freaking secondary doesn't let guys get behind them.
 
Collins keeps getting better and better. If it continues, he should be considered to be one of the top 3 or 5 WR's in the league by the end of the season.

If the Texans run game remains this effective throughout the season, who can beat them? Especially when CJ heats up.

My biggest concern coming into this game was the Colts gaining an edge in TOP. It was the Texans that dominated the clock.

Great job by Bobby Slowik. He got everyone on the offense involved. Even Pierce had a powerful run.

I meant to write this before the game, this was as difficult of a season opener in the NFL for any team. I expected the game to be close and each team to play well. This was a BIG win!
 
whodknee said:
Texans open at 3.5 over Bears
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I will take the Texans and give the points. The Bears win today was somewhat fluky. Pick 6 plus a blocked punt for 6. Ross will have the punt situation corrected, and CJ takes way better care of the ball then Levis. Caleb still very young and didn’t set the world on fire. He looks like he is going to be good and maybe great..but he isn’t at CJ’s level. Bears do have a pretty good D…but an early prediction is Texans 27 Bears 19.
 
TheRealJoker V2 said:
After action report. Post your thoughts here:

What went well:

1) Running game emerged. Joe Mixon was able to run at will against the Colts which opens up a lot of possibilities for this team.

2) Offense was efficient. They were able to move the ball well majority of drives and have their way with the Colts defense.

3) The stars were clutch. You pay them to win the game in “gotta have it” situations. Every time CJ needed to make a clutch throw he did. And Diggs/Nico held up their end of the bargain.

4) Fairbairn. Three 50 + yard FGs. Top 5 kicker in the league!

What didn’t go well:

1) Secondary breakdowns. Can’t allow that many busted coverage plays. Particularly from a vet like Ward. I’d rather just play Bullock all game and live with his growing pains if Ward is gonna have the same breakdowns.

2) Pass rush. Colts neutralized the pass rush. Sure they have a really good OL but this is supposed to be an elite pass rush. I know Anderson is not 100% but I expected more from Hunter. He got to Richardson a couple times but man he needs to be a game wrecker and finish.

3) Special teams punt team. Can’t allow a blocked punt. Uncharacteristic of a Frank Ross unit!

4) Coaching miscues. End of half communication breakdown ruining chance of FG attempt. Have to do a better job in that chaotic situation and be ready to spike it. Also the decision to go for two early. Could have bit us in the rear with that one point being the difference.
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I agree about all these except the 2 point try. I think it's absolutely justified to go for it there and is an obvious move to make it a touchdown game.

I'd also add Stroud - He was a little off and made some uncharacteristic decisions and some off throws. Fully expect him to get up to speed soon, but this wasn't a great game for him. He did come up big when required so that shouldn't go unnoted either.
 
banned1976 said:
Collins keeps getting better and better. If it continues, he should be considered to be one of the top 3 or 5 WR's in the league by the end of the season.

If the Texans run game remains this effective throughout the season, who can beat them? Especially when CJ heats up.

My biggest concern coming into this game was the Colts gaining an edge in TOP. It was the Texans that dominated the clock.

Great job by Bobby Slowik. He got everyone on the offense involved. Even Pierce had a powerful run.

I meant to write this before the game, this was as difficult of a season opener in the NFL for any team. I expected the game to be close and each team to play well. This was a BIG win!
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I almost feel like the success of the run game even took Bobby by surprise and they started going for a more run heavy approach in the second because of it. They just simply could not stop Mixon.
 
another thing,

I haven't been this satisfied (not completely satisfied) with where the team is week 1 in a long time. It looks like they've taken a step forward. Just the number of times they overcame 1st & 15 and 1st & 20 really has me feeling good. They did well in that respect last season & today they brushed it off, like just another day, no biggie. No panic.

& after that blocked punt where the momentum completely flipped on us, they didn't let that bother them. Just came back, stuck to the game plan, one foot in front of the other... all last season they talked about how mature Stroud looked, today I'm thinking this looks like a mature, veteran team.
 
thunderkyss said:
another thing,

I haven't been this satisfied (not completely satisfied) with where the team is week 1 in a long time. It looks like they've taken a step forward. Just the number of times they overcame 1st & 15 and 1st & 20 really has me feeling good. They did well in that respect last season & today they brushed it off, like just another day, no biggie. No panic.

& after that blocked punt where the momentum completely flipped on us, they didn't let that bother them. Just came back, stuck to the game plan, one foot in front of the other... all last season they talked about how mature Stroud looked, today I'm thinking this looks like a mature, veteran team.
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That's a great point. They really could have let the blocked punt derail them and they didn't let it effect them at all.
 
Sweech said:
I agree about all these except the 2 point try. I think it's absolutely justified to go for it there and is an obvious move to make it a touchdown game.

I'd also add Stroud - He was a little off and made some uncharacteristic decisions and some off throws. Fully expect him to get up to speed soon, but this wasn't a great game for him. He did come up big when required so that shouldn't go unnoted either.
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CJ certainly missed a couple/few throws that we'd normally think he'd make no problem. And it looked like the Indy pass rush made things muddy early on enough to allow him no rhythm at all. But he finished the game at 75% comp with 2 TDs and no picks for a 115.9 passer rating. And most importantly was when we needed a money throw/play he delivered. The big throw across the field to Nico to extend the drive, the TD strike wide to Diggs to keep the lead extended, and the absolute dime to Nico again to keep the game killing drive alive.

If this was CJ 'off' at all, my word, defensive coordinators better hope he doesn't get even slightly more in sync moving forward.
 
Mann, kudos to Demeco for being aggressive on 4th down. In the past, we would have just settled and lost on a field goal. Also, good job to slowik for staying with the run game and calling some nice plays. It’s really impressive we put up 29 points in our first game with our newly acquired free agents. It’s only going to get better. Fun stat: Texans have won nine consecutive division games on the road. Longest active streak in the NFL.
 
Mollywhopper said:
CJ certainly missed a couple/few throws that we'd normally think he'd make no problem. And it looked like the Indy pass rush made things muddy early on enough to allow him no rhythm at all. But he finished the game at 75% comp with 2 TDs and no picks for a 115.9 passer rating. And most importantly was when we needed a money throw/play he delivered. The big throw across the field to Nico to extend the drive, the TD strike wide to Diggs to keep the lead extended, and the absolute dime to Nico again to keep the game killing drive alive.

If this was CJ 'off' at all, my word, defensive coordinators better hope he doesn't get even slightly more in sync moving forward.
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For sure he made plays when needed but some of the completions were off and he had two would be interceptions chalked off and some other throws that defenders could have opportunities on.

It's something I think he cleans up but I'm actually not sure I'd love to see it repeated. When luck goes the other way he could have just as easily thrown the game away if even the redzone one that got taken off for a penalty actually counted.

In scramble drill he was absolutely excellent. It's small tweaks and I fully expect they get fixed, but the issues were definitely there.
 
Texansballer74 said:
Hey you pretty much hit on everything. I would only add they went down there in a hostile environment, fought through adversity and came out victorious.

Great building block with lots to work on.

Let’s go!!!
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The hostile environment is still somewhat of an issue. We saw it last season when we play in a loud place and we once again saw the dumb procedural penalties, taking too much time getting in plays, and dumb false starts. It's paramount that it gets fixed by the playoffs.
 
Sweech said:
For sure he made plays when needed but some of the completions were off and he had two would be interceptions chalked off and some other throws that defenders could have opportunities on.

It's something I think he cleans up but I'm actually not sure I'd love to see it repeated. When luck goes the other way he could have just as easily thrown the game away if even the redzone one that got taken off for a penalty actually counted.

In scramble drill he was absolutely excellent. It's small tweaks and I fully expect they get fixed, but the issues were definitely there.
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Well sure, if he throws actual INTs where the defense didn't do anything wrong to cause it then that's a problem.
 
We peed away three points at the half. Ryan took the blame for it, but I'm not sure who's fault it was. I would have thought the referee would have done a better job of explaining the ten second run off after he had put 15 seconds back on the clock an that the clock was still running. I'm pretty sure that if coach had been alerted he would have put the field goal team out there.
 
edo783 said:
We peed away three points at the half. Ryan took the blame for it, but I'm not sure who's fault it was. I would have thought the referee would have done a better job of explaining the ten second run off after he had put 15 seconds back on the clock an that the clock was still running. I'm pretty sure that if coach had been alerted he would have put the field goal team out there.
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Teaching moment for all involved. Glad they got that experience along with the win. Now they will be ready if it happens again.
 
TheRealJoker V2 said:
4) Coaching miscues. End of half communication breakdown ruining chance of FG attempt. Have to do a better job in that chaotic situation and be ready to spike it. Also the decision to go for two early. Could have bit us in the rear with that one point being the difference.
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I don’t see a situation like that ever getting repeated. Coach took the blame for that, but the officials jacked that up imo. Just another reason why I love Demeco.

And why oh why is not anyone giving any credit to our run defense? I thought it was night and day compared to last year.
 
Did not realize the Texans held Taylor to 48 yards and only 3 YPC. Upon further review it appears both defenses sold out to stop the opposing team’s strength. Texans focused on stopping the Colts running game and Colts focused on stopping the Texans passing game.

Both teams were able to adjust in different ways. Texans were able to run the ball for 200+ yards. Colts were able to get big plays in the passing game, I believe three went for 50+ despite Richardson being 9-19…

End of the day, the good guys got the win! And teams are put on notice that the Texans have a balanced offense. Pick your poison, this is an offense that can run the ball down your throat if you want to avoid the track meet big play passing offense.
 
edo783 said:
We peed away three points at the half. Ryan took the blame for it, but I'm not sure who's fault it was. I would have thought the referee would have done a better job of explaining the ten second run off after he had put 15 seconds back on the clock an that the clock was still running. I'm pretty sure that if coach had been alerted he would have put the field goal team out there.
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Or at the very least been ready to just spike it.

I have to 20 percent on the coaches and 80 percent on the referees.
 
TheRealJoker V2 said:
Did not realize the Texans held Taylor to 48 yards and only 3 YPC. Upon further review it appears both defenses sold out to stop the opposing team’s strength. Texans focused on stopping the Colts running game and Colts focused on stopping the Texans passing game.

Both teams were able to adjust in different ways. Texans were able to run the ball for 200+ yards. Colts were able to get big plays in the passing game, I believe three went for 50+ despite Richardson being 9-19…

End of the day, the good guys got the win! And teams are put on notice that the Texans have a balanced offense. Pick your poison, this is an offense that can run the ball down your throat if you want to avoid the track meet big play passing offense.
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the rematch is going to be interesting.
 
Marcus said:
I don’t see a situation like that ever getting repeated. Coach took the blame for that, but the officials jacked that up imo. Just another reason why I love Demeco.

And why oh why is not anyone giving any credit to our run defense? I thought it was night and day compared to last year.
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Honestly our run D last season held a lot of RBs to under 4 per carry and low totals.

Now Taylor did have a big week in that final game, but our D was extremely banged up (the whole team was) at that point.
 
Gus Bradley (Colts defensive coordinator) really surprised me this game. I think he surprised the whole team in fact.

He's a very standard cover 3 guy. He calls that A LOT with a little cover 4 thrown in there and very rarely blitzes. Their typically a defense where you know what you're going to get but it's going to be hard to beat. They pulled a lot of stuff out of their bag this game that you really don't often see from Gus Bradley. I doubt that continues the rest of the season , but it's nice to see them pull out all their tricks and still win.
 
TheRealJoker V2 said:
I gave Tunsil/Howard more credit than I should’ve protecting the edges in this game. They are shaking off the rust post offseason surgeries. It may take another game or two but I expect Tunsil to be back to normal.

As for Howard, I think i’d rather have Fisher starting and growing now than wait to see if Howard will get it together post injury.

Stroud made plays when he had to and stayed healthy though!
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You want the Texans future franchise LT playing RT? I'd rather deal with the poor run blocking and occasional false start from Tunsil til Fisher is ready to take over.
 
Okay… I’m a pavement markings guy. I run my own company striping football fields. Multiple major D-1 universities and NFL camps across the nation. I’m -real- comfortable working with turf. The turf at Lucas was weird looking. I mean I’m looking at my TV so it isn’t accurate but I’ve painted enough fields to think I am seeing what I’m seeing.

Most turf comes pre-colored but there appeared to be paint on theirs. Namely on that white midfield logo. Thats fine. We change turf around with removable paint all the time but… that field is permanent so if shouldn’t get dirty that way.

So what I saw was paint was being marred. This tells me an inexperienced line striper overpainted that field. No wonder -nobody- could stay upright.
 
NitroGSXR said:
Okay… I’m a pavement markings guy. I run my own company striping football fields. Multiple major D-1 universities and NFL camps across the nation. I’m -real- comfortable working with turf. The turf at Lucas was weird looking. I mean I’m looking at my TV so it isn’t accurate but I’ve painted enough fields to think I am seeing what I’m seeing.

Most turf comes pre-colored but there appeared to be paint on theirs. Namely on that white midfield logo. Thats fine. We change turf around with removable paint all the time but… that field is permanent so if shouldn’t get dirty that way.

So what I saw was paint was being marred. This tells me an inexperienced line striper overpainted that field. No wonder -nobody- could stay upright.
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Do you know who the CHEFS are?
 
TheRealJoker V2 said:
2) Pass rush. Colts neutralized the pass rush. Sure they have a really good OL but this is supposed to be an elite pass rush. I know Anderson is not 100% but I expected more from Hunter. He got to Richardson a couple times but man he needs to be a game wrecker and finish.
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I think a lot of that was keeping the edges contained & trying to keep Richardson in the pocket Everybody was mostly staying in their lanes. I think it will be different when they can pin their ears back and just rush the QB.
 
DocBar said:
You want the Texans future franchise LT playing RT? I'd rather deal with the poor run blocking and occasional false start from Tunsil til Fisher is ready to take over.
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Fisher started almost his entire career at RT in college. If he’s a better option than Howard I want him at RT.

Tunsil is the team’s LT until he can no longer shut down Myles Garrett. I don’t care about his false starts as long as he can continue to protect CJ’s blindside from the best pass rushers in the league.
 
mws said:
I think a lot of that was keeping the edges contained & trying to keep Richardson in the pocket Everybody was mostly staying in their lanes. I think it will be different when they can pin their ears back and just rush the QB.
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I hope you’re right. Worried about Anderson’s ankle issue. Think Autry will help too. But I want to see Hunter take over a game and expected that to start today.
 
This game should not have been as close as it was.
Texans won TOP 40:00 - 20:00
Offensive plays - Hou 76, Ind 43
Rush yards - Hou 213, Ind 104
Completion percentage - CJ 75%, AR 47%

Giving up the big plays, including the blocked punt, has got to be cleaned up going forward.
 
TheRealJoker V2 said:
OL did great in the run blocking today. They were able to move the pile and Mixon didn’t need a large hole to reward them.
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For sue our rushing game was clicking today but on the other hand the passpro left a lot to
be desired as the 4 sacks given up would indicate.
First game of the season and on the road in a loud Dome stadium soperhaps much of. It
can be fixed with some minor adjustments.
I'm already looking forward to the grades/ratings. Green played most of the game @ LG,
right ?
 
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Dejaview said:
Do you know who the CHEFS are?
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Yeah… you and every other person in my life points out the CHEFS, SHCOOL, SOTP, etc to me and every other pavement guy yall see. I was trying to contribute something useful. I’ve been doing this for close to 20 years. We work -very- hard at what we do but I gotta be honest… being the butt of a joke gets old. Oh well.

:(
 
Speedy said:
This game should not have been as close as it was.
Texans won TOP 40:00 - 20:00
Offensive plays - Hou 76, Ind 43
Rush yards - Hou 213, Ind 104
Completion percentage - CJ 75%, AR 47%

Giving up the big plays, including the blocked punt, has got to be cleaned up going forward.
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Good teams win even when they are not hitting on all cylinders. The Colts always play us tough.

We just won an away game against the team who is probably our biggest rival in the division this year. It wasn't perfect but it is still a 1 in the win column. I'm not ready to spit the kool-aid out yet.
 
CONS
——-
No DTs
Lassiter didn’t look fluid.
Ward and Stingley were overreaching which hurt Pitre.
Murray WTF was he out there so much for?
Dell does NOT twitch the same.
Al-Shazzir (sp) looked like hot garbage. Townsend was off.
O-line O-line O-line

PROS
——-
Mixon
Tunsil looks solid
Mixon
Stroud managed the game
Mixon
Caleb Bullock is promising
Mixon
 
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