Texans can fix red zone offense with one simple move

The Houston Texans were horrendous in the red zone last year, but with key additions over the offseason have set themselves up for a revival in 2017.

The Houston Texans were not always bad in the red zone. In 2016, they ranked 14th in the NFL in red zone efficiency. They were just ahead of the pack that year.

It is hard for some to imagine that a squad that included quarterback Brian Hoyer, wide receiver Cecil Shorts and an oft-injured player in running back Arian Foster out produced the Texans’ 2016 squad.

But they did, by a long shot.

In 2016, the Texans ranked 31st– ahead of only a putrid Jets offense- in red zone efficiency. These rankings provided by TeamRankings.com

So what changed?

Well, the Texans threw the ball more and at a much less efficient rate in 2016. Not a good plan when your quarterback was Brock Osweiler.

Believe it or not, the aforementioned Hoyer was a good red-zone quarterback in 2015. He threw for eight touchdowns and no interceptions in 16 attempts inside the ten yard line.

In 2015, the Texans attempted 59 passes in the red zone between Hoyer and Ryan Mallet.

Hoyer threw 45 of those passes. Last season, Osweiler alone threw 59 red zone passes and Tom Savage threw 10.*

Osweiler, like most of last season, was horrendous. Surprise!  Hoyer and his 62 percent completion percentage inside of ten yards vastly out performed Osweiler’s 50 percent flop on his 24 passes in that same yard range.*

The Texans threw the ball more in 2016 than 2015 not because they were more talented at quarterback, but because–sadly enough– they were worse running the ball than passing.

Bill O’Brien likes to run the ball. That has been evident since he got here in 2014, as the team has ranked in the top five every season in rushing attempts. The red zone is especially run heavy for offenses around the league.

Not surprisingly, the Texans top two rushers– Lamar Miller and Alfred Blue– made up 80% of their rushing attempts inside the ten yard line. Lamar miller ran 48.4 percent of the time and scored five times on fifteen attempts.*

Scoring a touchdown a third of the time is efficient. In fact, it is more efficient than the Pittsburgh Steelers and running back Le’Veon Bell. That’s good company.

Blue was a different story. He rushed the ball ten times for a measly 12 yards and did not gain a single yard when he ran the ball inside the five yard line. That is atrocious. That was last year’s “bruiser” back.

D’Onta Foreman is this year’s power back.

Blue fell out of favor in Houston and they were left with no other options other than Miller in the red zone towards the end of the year.

So, how do you keep Miller fresh and substitute out Blue? Throw in a 230-plus pound back fresh off of a two-thousand yard rushing season at the University of Texas.

While D’Onta Foreman may not run as angry as some would like a man of his size to, he is still a brute force for would-be tacklers to deal with.

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Foreman finished the season fourth among running backs in 2016 with 64 broken tackles.

O’Brien does not often trust rookies, especially one’s with fumbling issues as Foreman’s, but the team’s excitement over the selection of the former Longhorn star shows that they may give him a role early on in his career. The role of Miller’s spell back and a goal-line threat would be most ideal.

This would not only keep Miller fresh, but would also present a serious upgrade on a talent level from Blue to Foreman.

With a rejuvenated Miller, and the subsequently lack of touches for Blue, the Texans’ red zone rushing offense should be more efficient in 2017.

If their rushing offense is more efficient, the Texans will not have to rely so heavily on the passing attack in the red zone.

Let’s hope Foreman can stay healthy and hold onto the ball because those are the only obstacles in his way that he hasn’t run through already.

No, Foreman will not solve every issue the Texans’ offense has, but his presence will improve every aspect of life for their offense in 2017. Especially in the red zone.

*Stats used for red zone efficiency from pro-football-reference.com