Houston Texans: Five takeaways from first preseason game

Conclusion from take aways

The two positives are that:

1. Bill O’Brien seems competent calling the offense. He has two ways of calling the game for each quarterback playing to their strengths which is a lot of work to put in in the off season for both coach and players but it was pulled off and he made adjustments to help Tom Savage in his first few drives that were necessary and well called against what should be a very good Panthers defense this year.
2. Deshaun Watson looked like the real deal. If we’re comparing performances obviously Tom Savage got less time on the field and played against the first string defense whereas Watson faced second and third stringers. Bill O’Brien’s playbook of play action roll outs for Watson should only help increase Watson’s chances of exhibiting his dazzling athleticism which is the one quality he has in leaps and bounds over his competition for starting quarterback this year. If the play from both quarterbacks remains the same the rest of the preseason, it’s hard to believe Watson will not be starting come September 10th.

The two negatives are that:

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1. The game overall was sloppy for the Texans.  Not just the penalties but missed assignments and miscommunications on the field that led to some of those big Carolina plays. And Carolina busted off quite a few plays that were for big gains, so the team will need to clean up their game play going forward. This is the preseason though so better to learn these lessons and bad habits now than in the first four weeks of the regular season.
2. The defense did not look as vaunted as advertised. A big concern could be the wear and tear on J.J. Watt and Brian Cushing. They both (when healthy) have been big parts of this Texans defense for many years, but if health and/or age catch up to them, that could lead to a porous pass defense with a secondary that is thin.

Next: Dream Super Bowl matchup for Texans

With it just being the preseason there isn’t too much cause for concern. And there certainly was more positive than negative, especially the play of Deshaun Watson. And the team came out healthy with no major injuries, so all and all, not a bad preseason game. Now it’s onto week two against the Super Bowl champion New England Patriots.