3. Can David Johnson bounce back from 2020 season?
The Houston Texans need a lot of production from David Johnson in ’21, and he needs to have a rebound season compared to his overall play from a season ago, his first in Houston. There is a lot of pressure on Johnson for as long as he wears a Houston Texans uniform for being a part of the trade that sent DeAndre Hopkins to the Arizona Cardinals in ’20.
Johnson having a lot of expectations on his plate each and every season he plays for the Texans is what it is, but he does need to have better production in ’21 for this offense to have some sort of success.
In ’20, Johnson joined the Texans after being benched in ’19 by the Cardinals, and when joining the Texans the numbers didn’t exactly show for the talent Johnson has or has shown in the past. In ’20, Johnson had 147 rushes for 691 yards and six touchdowns, and that’s not going to cut it for the Houston Texans offense, especially in ’21.
Sure, there needs to be improved play from the run blocking of the offensive line, but Johnson needs to improve too. His pass-catching ability is huge for this offense as well, but to set the tone, Johnson needs to be more consistent moving forward.
If he doesn’t, there is plenty of competition at running back now as this offseason the Houston Texans have added Mark Ingram, Phillip Lindsay, and even Rex Burkhead to the roster.
Don’t be surprised to see Lindsay make a real challenge for the starter’s role, as he is the wild card in the running back situation, because he’s also been a 1,000-yard rusher in his career just like David Johnson.