The Houston Texans began their preseason schedule on Saturday night by defeating the Green Bay Packers, 26-7 at Lambeau Field, allowing them to put some of the drama of this offseason behind them.
There was much to be excited about following the win, one that many didn’t believe would happen. Even if it was a preseason win, the Houston Texans played better than expected and it was a much needed positive to an offseason that had plenty of negativity. The biggest negative for the game was the injury to Anthony Miller.
With the victory there were some numbers that stood out from Texans as it was another step towards Week 1 of the regular season, which the Texans will host the Jacksonville Jaguars to open the ’21 season.
Next are some numbers that jumped out from the first preseason game for the Texans:
0 – The number of touchdown passes thrown by the trio of Texans quarterbacks as Tyrod Taylor, Davis Mills, and Jeff Driskel. This will eventually improve, and for the first preseason games there should be no worries, yet.
1 – The new number of Lonnie Johnson Jr. is now No. 1 and not No. 32. It was somewhat different to see a defensive back with a single-digit number. Change can be good, and if that is what makes Johnson happier with the Texans, then the change in jersey numbers is a welcome sight.
1- How about Jonathan Greenard forcing one fumble. Though it is a preseason game, Greenard forcing a fumble is another positive for the Texans. In mid-August any positive is welcome, especially when it comes to Greenard having success to start his second season.
1- One final No. 1 from this game was a fourth quarter interception by Tremon Smith, as it was the only interception by the Texans in the preseason opener. Speaking of interceptions, Davis Mills also threw an interception in his debut with the Texans.
2- Jaleel Johnson of the Houston Texans forced two fumbles in the preseason win. He had a recovery in each half played against the Packers. Here is a fun fact, in his first four seasons Johnson with the Minnesota Vikings never had a fumble recovery in the regular season.
2 – Kamu Grugier-Hill finished the game with two tackles for loss. This is something to keep an eye on as last season with the Miami Dolphins he finished with one tackle for loss in the regular season. For his five-year career, Grugier-Hill has collected 12 TFL’s in regular season games.
Scottie Phillips bulldozes his way in 🚜 #HOUvsGB pic.twitter.com/Lb5ajP9T6F
— NFL (@NFL) August 15, 2021
4 – In his first snaps in a Houston Texans uniform quarterback Tyrod Taylor was 4-for-4 for 40 yards. Being perfect in passing attempts is a positive in itself, especially in the type of offseason the quarterbacks of the Texans have. Next week will be a bigger test for Taylor as he’ll most likely play more snaps.
24 – Nico Collins was targeted once in the preseason opener where he had one reception for 24 yards. The rookie is going to be one of the most exciting players on the roster in ’21 due to his athletic talent. This was also the first in-game action of any sort for Collins since ’19 as a member of the Michigan Wolverines.
43 – Desmond King showed he can help on special teams with his 43-yard punt return in the first preseason game of the season. King can really add to not only the depth in the secondary, but special teams will be very important to the Texans in ’21, so King is already an improvement over last season.
44.8 – Cameron Johnston had the punting duties for the Houston Texans against the Packers, and the number 44.8 was his average yardage for punts, with his longest punt traveling 51 yards.
66 – How about the production from Scottie Phillips? He finished with 66 yards rushing and one touchdown on 13 carries, averaging 5.1 yards per carry. Saturday night was an opportunity for Phillips to showcase his abilities at running back, and just from a numbers standpoint he took full advantage of his chance in Week 1 of the preseason.
112 – This was the total amount of passing yards for Davis Mills in his debut as a member of the Houston Texans. Mills still has a lot of work ahead of him, and for this game he finished 11-of-22 with one interception.
It might not have been the greatest game played, but it was, once again, something positive for the Texans franchise as they needed any positivity going into what could be a very tough ’21 regular season.
As for the preseason, next on the schedule is the Dallas Cowboys on Saturday, Aug. 21 at AT&T Stadium with a kickoff scheduled for 8 p.m. ET (7 p.m. CT).