Going into Week 4, the Houston Texans were looking dead in the water. Sitting at 0-3, the team had not looked good offensively and had key defensive breakdowns late in the game. But in the last two games, the Houston Texans have outscored their opponents 70-10 in the last two games, upping their record to 2-3 heading to their bye week. So, what has changed in the last two weeks?
One thing that stands out offensively is the third-down conversions. The Texans weren’t necessarily putting themselves in good down and distances to make third-down conversions in the first two games. And as a result of that, the Texans were only 8 for 33 converting third downs. With drives not being extended, Houston struggled to score, only averaging 12.6 points per game. In the last two games, Houston has converted 13 of 27 third downs, which puts them at 48 percent, just under 50 percent. With that uptick in conversions on third down, the Texans have been able to extend drives more and that has resulted in more points on the board.
Along with the third-down conversions, the Texans have also valued the football more. In the first three games of the season, the Texans were an overall minus-3 in the turnover battle against the Los Angeles Rams, Tampa Bay Buccaneers, and Jacksonville Jaguars. In their last two games, the Texans have not turned the ball over against the Tennessee Titans and Baltimore Ravens. With Houston’s offense valuing the football and converting on third downs while trying to figure things out offensively, things have looked better, and the noise around this team has decreased.
But not only have things changed offensively for the Texans, but defensively as well. The Texans' defense forced two turnovers in the first two games. For a defense that has players like edge rushers Danielle Hunter and Will Anderson Jr., along with cornerback Derek Stingley Jr., that should not happen. But in the last two games, Hunter has had two sacks, Stingley Jr. has come up with an interception and Anderson has been present with tackles for loss. The result has been the Texans forcing four turnovers and giving their offense the ball more times to try to score.
Things started rocky for the Texans, but in the last two games, they have seemingly cleaned up some things and found some things that work positively in their favor. Of course, some will say they were playing against two teams that have not won much this season in the Titans and Ravens, but the fact remains they are not turning the ball over, converting third downs better and forcing turnovers and that is a positive step in the right direction for Houston going into the bye week.