Houston Texans: Scottie Phillips is the future at running back

Is running back Scottie Phillips the next big thing at running back for the Houston Texans?

Scottie Phillips is absolutely the future at running back for the Houston Texans. Now one could argue Phillip Lindsay is the future at the position, and that argument would be solid until you get to three points of concern when comparing the two players and their respective abilities.

The age difference of the two players is a point of concern as Lindsay is 27 years old, while Phillips is four years younger at 23 years old, meaning Phillips probably has a lot less wear and tear on his body compared to Lindsay.

Another point of concern between the two players are the injury concerns. When it comes to Lindsay, throughout his young career he has dealt with toe, hip and knee injuries which have kept him out for long periods of time while a member of the Denver Broncos.

To his credit, Lindsay rushed for over 1,000 yards in two of his three seasons in Denver, including his rookie season in 2018.

Lindsay is a solid running back, but for the Houston Texans, as they look towards the future, the younger, healthier and all-around more gifted player is Phillips and he is the better option.

Lastly, the playing style Phillips possesses a far bigger skill-set when compared to Lindsay who seems to be a home run hitter at best. That means Phillips brings more value to the Houston Texans long-term at running back, which is most important during the rebuild of the franchise.

Houston Texans: Reasons why Phillips is the future at RB for the franchise

Houston Texans running back Scottie Phillips is not afraid to hit the hole head-first when rushing the ball. He also is talented enough to bounce to the outside and burn teams. Phillips has heart and will not be denied yardage in goal line scenarios or short yardage.

When given the opportunity, Phillips has shown the ability to shed tackles and break huge runs even when the offensive line misses their assignments. When he’s able to get outside and run down the sideline his second gear surpasses that of Phillip Lindsay.

Just a few short years ago at Ole Miss Phillips proved he can do a lot when he’s on the field at an extended period of time.

While at Ole Miss, Phillips had 1,470 rushing yards on 278 carriers over two seasons. That’s an average of 5.3 yards per rush, and in one of those seasons he only played nine games.

Phillips also had 184 total receiving yards, and a total of 20 touchdowns in his two years at Ole Miss. Now those receiving numbers don’t jump off the page but one could argue he was underused, and when used right could be a 1,000-yard rusher and receiver.

Here is an example of Phillips’ receiving talent in the tweet below:

Lack of playing time and experience are things that have done in Phillips to this point in his career, but look for that to change soon, because being on the 53-man roster Phillips has a chance to gain more attempts in 2021.

Houston Texans: Scottie Phillips compares to Arian Foster

While being an underrated running back, Scottie Phillip’s receiving skills may be even more underrated. His ability to swing wide and catch a screen pass, or go deep off of a wheel route to track the ball over the top of his head is admirable.

These are all things that have shown up during training camp this year and is the reason Phillips is on the Houston Texans 53-man roster. A team doesn’t usually carry five running backs, but Texans general manager Nick Caserio knew if he let Phillips go he wouldn’t be able to grab him back for the practice squad because of the value he brings. Instead the Texans released Buddy Howell.

Phillips is a special player, and at 23 years old look for him to soon take over as the feature back going into the ’22 NFL season for the Houston Texans. Playing time is the only thing holding him back from being the next great undrafted running back for the Texans.

His game resembles that of Houston Texans legend Arian Foster and with time his statistics and play on the field may mirror Foster as well.

For some Texans fans that comparison will be hard to accept do to Foster’s legacy in Houston. While that is understandable, try to separate the names from the players and the emotion from your assumption.

Watch the tape and the comparison to Foster becomes clear, especially their vision to hit jump cuts and hit the hole, to the speed to take the outside edge and run up the sideline is comparable. In the passing game is where the comparison is harder to see, with reps the comparison between the two players will come to light as well.

Don’t underestimate the ability and drive of Phillips with the Houston Texans, because the talent level is there as he’s the future top running back of this franchise.