Texans Should Stop Forcing the Run and Let C.J. Stroud Attack the Cowboys

The Houston Texans have spent three weeks trying to establish an offensive identity. At 0-3, the answer should be obvious: Put the football in C.J. Stroud’s hands. Houston’s running game is not creating enough positive plays, and Sunday’s matchup with a vulnerable Dallas Cowboys pass defense offers the perfect opportunity to stop forcing something that is not working.

DeMeco Ryans wants a physical, balanced offense. That sounds good. The actual production tells a different story.

Houston enters Week 4 ranked 30th in rushing at 84.6 yards per game and 28th at 3.6 yards per carry. David Montgomery and Woody Marks have too often been contacted before reaching the line of scrimmage, leaving offensive coordinator Nick Caley with difficult second- and third-down situations. 

The Texans managed only 70 rushing yards during Sunday’s 19-17 loss to Indianapolis. Montgomery led the team with 33 yards on 11 carries, while Houston finished with just 223 net yards and possessed the football for 24:47.  That is not a foundation. It is a weekly obstacle.

Ryans acknowledged Monday that Houston could lean more heavily on its passing game while the rushing attack searches for answers. That adjustment is overdue.

Stroud has not played perfectly, but he is far from Houston’s biggest problem.

Through three games, he has completed 72 of 120 passes for 794 yards, three touchdowns and no interceptions. His 88.0 passer rating is not spectacular, but avoiding interceptions behind an inconsistent line and without Nico Collins for two games matters. 

Stroud threw for 353 yards against Cincinnati when Houston finally committed to passing. The Texans scored only six points, but much of that failure came from poor red-zone execution, dropped passes and protection breakdowns.

The lesson should not be that Houston passed too much, but rather the lesson should be that the passing game needs better structure. 

Use quicker concepts. Move Stroud outside the pocket. Create defined reads. Give Jaylin Noel opportunities in space. Get Kayshon Boutte involved before the fourth quarter. Let Dalton Schultz control the intermediate middle.

The Texans do not need 55 attempts every Sunday, but 35 purposeful passes might serve this offense better than repeatedly running into a wall.

If Houston wants to change its approach, the Cowboys are the opponent to test it against.

Through three games, Dallas’ defense has allowed opposing quarterbacks to complete 72.6% of their passes for 623 yards and seven touchdowns. The Cowboys had not intercepted a pass and had recorded only two sacks through Week 3. Opposing passers carried a 121.3 rating against them. 

Those numbers are inviting. Dallas fell to 1-2 after a 34-31 loss to Baltimore in Brazil, and the Cowboys now face another emotionally charged game against their in-state rival. Houston cannot approach this matchup timidly.

Let Stroud attack early.

Use the pass to establish rhythm, then run Montgomery and Marks once Dallas begins playing lighter boxes. That is still offensive balance. It simply arrives in a different order.

Andre Ware made a similar point while discussing the matchup on Texans All-Access, describing Houston as a pass-first team and arguing that the offense should begin with what is currently working. John McClain also said Stroud needs to become the focal point against Dallas. 

I agree. Stop trying to create an identity based on preseason intentions. Build one around the best player available.

Help may be coming.

Ryans said Monday that the Texans are hopeful Collins and starting right guard Ed Ingram can return against Dallas. Collins has missed two games with a hamstring injury, while Ingram has been sidelined by a groin issue. 

Collins’ return would immediately alter how Dallas defends Houston.

He caught seven passes for 75 yards and a touchdown in the opener against Buffalo. Without him, Xavier Hutchinson has become Houston’s most frequently targeted wide receiver, but the offense has lacked a consistent boundary threat.

Ingram’s potential return matters just as much. Houston has rushed for only 130 combined yards over the past two games without him. Even if both return, the Texans should not immediately fall back into forcing the running game.

Use Collins to create favorable boxes and then execute the run.

Houston hosts Dallas at noon on Sunday, Oct. 4, at Reliant Stadium. The Texans are 0-3, and no NFL team has recovered from an 0-4 start to reach the postseason since 1992. 

That makes Sunday more than a rivalry game. It is a chance to rescue the season and NOT lose to a state rival.

I understand wanting to run the football. I just do not believe in calling ineffective plays because they fit an identity Houston wishes it had.

Stroud has 794 passing yards without throwing an interception. Dallas has allowed seven passing touchdowns without collecting a pick.

Attack that matchup. Open the game through Stroud. Let him find Collins if he returns, Schultz underneath and the younger receivers in space. Make Dallas adjust first.

The Texans can keep searching for their running game. They cannot allow that search to cost them another Sunday.