The Houston Texans' win column is finally looking less bare after Sunday's 26-0 win over the Tennessee Titans stopped the season-opening slide. It was a solid team effort from head coach DeMeco Ryans' squad, highlighted by rookie running back Woody Marks' breakout performance at NRG Stadium.
Marks put the rest of the AFC South on notice by tallying 69 rushing yards on 17 carries and 50 receiving yards on four catches, all while scoring two touchdowns. It was the type of performance that the Texans envisioned the ex-USC Trojan having when he was drafted 116th overall in April, and it may have been good enough to officially steal the starting RB job from Nick Chubb.
Woody Marks Has Stolen Texans' RB1 Job from Nick Chubb After Week 4
With Joe Mixon opening the season on the non-football injury list, the Texans signed Chubb to a one-year contract in June. It seemed like a mutually beneficial idea at the time. Chubb got a chance to prove himself after playing only 10 games in the last two seasons, while Houston was hopeful he could return to the form that amassed over 5,300 yards and 40 TDs on the ground from 2019 to 2022.
Fast forward to now, when Chubb is playing like he's lost a step despite the occasional solid performance. He only had 141 rushing yards and one touchdown entering Week 4, and finished the encounter against the Titans with 47 rushing yards on 13 carries and 15 receiving yards on two catches. He also averaged just 4.1 scrimmage yards per touch compared to Marks' 5.7.
As excited as Texans fans are to see Marks in a bigger role, his increased playing time on Sunday wasn't a surprise. His snap count and opportunities have increased with each game in September, proven by the chart below:
Week 1 Snaps/Carries | Week 2 Snaps/Carries | Week 3 Snaps/Carries | Week 4 Snaps/Carries | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
Woody Marks | 7/3 | 13/3 | 30/6 | 40/17 |
Nick Chubb | 32/13 | 26/12 | 33/9 | 30/13 |
It's going to be interesting to see if Marks' upward trajectory continues into October. The Texans have clearly shown that they want him to be a big part of their offense, meaning it'll be up to him to continue capitalizing on the opportunities he's given — especially if he wants a concrete role after Mixon returns (whenever that happens).
Marks' next shot at stealing more playing time will come on the road against the Baltimore Ravens in Week 5. Although the Ravens are known for fielding some of the league's best defenses, they entered Week 4 surrendering the third-most rushing yards per game in the NFL (149.0), opening the door for the Texans' RB to gain more playing time, as well as for Chubb to prove he still belongs in the fold.