Houston Texans: Three elements that make the defense the NFL’s best
By T.A. Mock
The Texans pass coverage is on the rise
One of the biggest question marks coming into the season for the Houston Texans was their secondary and their pass coverage. The safety position was unsettled to Jackson was moved to safety, Mathieu was signed late in the game and Justin Reid was added in the draft.
Kevin Johnson was abysmal last season and he was returning as one of the top corners. Joseph was returning after he finally appeared to be in decline. Aaron Colvin was an intriguing add in free agency but he was primarily a slot guy in Jacksonville. There was promise but nothing was definite when it came to this secondary.
Then the injuries began to pile up and with them, more questions. The Texans had to sign countless free agents mid-season to come in and try and play immediately. This included guys like Kayvon Webster who couldn’t contribute and guys like Shareece Wright who have performed admirably.
More. Questions remain regarding Jordan Akins role. light
Webster has been on the IR nearly all season while Wright, Colvin, and Joseph all missed some games to injury. However, everyone, besides Webster and Johnson, are all healthy and contributing once again and the pass coverage has been surging forward.
Beyond the secondary, the Texans have been able to field a trio of linebackers that have been able to help stifle opposing team’s passing games. Zach Cunningham, Brennan Scarlett, and now Dylan Cole are all very capable of matching up with running backs and tight ends and locking them down. The surprise there are has been Scarlett while Cunningham and Cole were expected to thrive in this area.
All in all, this was expected to be the weakest point of the Texans defense coming into the 2018 season. There were lots of questions but they have seemingly all been answered in a resounding way.