When will the Houston Texans offense be complete?
During OTAs, Texans offensive coordinator Pep Hamilton has been laying the foundation for the new-look offense as he’s taken over the role following a promotion this offseason. Gone are the predictable days of Tim Kelly’s offensive scheme and play calling, and now it is time to have something fresh for Texans fans to be looking forward to in 2022.
Hamilton has the experience of being an offensive coordinator in a previous stop with the Indianapolis Colts, and last year with the Texans he was the quarterbacks coach, but now the offense is his. He’s building up second-year quarterback Davis Mills and working on an offense that can hopefully surprise many this upcoming season.
Hamilton spoke to the Houston media on Wednesday, and he talked about a variety of topics concerning the Houston offense, including Mills and what he expects from the QB from year one to year two. Here is what Hamilton had to say:
"“Well, you expect from year 1 to year 2, any player or any quarterback in particular to have a better sense of an NFL defense. That’s going to allow him to process information faster, and ultimately make better decisions, or be more consistent in making good decisions.”"
The support system for Mills seems to be excellent this season. His success will determine the success of the rest of the franchise, including Hamilton. If Hamilton’s offense makes Mills a better player in year two and beyond, eventually Hamilton will benefit from that too, maybe even one day being a head coach for either the Texans down the road, or with another franchise.
Texans: Offense is still a work in progress
Even with the expectations of Mills needing to have a better sense of the opposing defense, there is also the fact for the Texans offense they are not a complete unit yet. There are some new faces in not just Hamilton being the play caller in ’22, but there have been rookies and veterans added to a unit that struggled at times in ’21 to score points, especially in the second half.
"“We feel like the OTA’s and this minicamp was an orientation of what it is that we want to do. Now we want to take our system and continually acclimate our system to our playmakers. Our identity will be all about the players that we have in the system. Its not going to be about plays.”"
Hamilton also said the identity of the Texans’ offense will be made in the preseason, so when training camp comes around and preseason games take place (remember, two are national primetime games), the Texans will still be very much hard at work to getting the offense working as a complete unit.
Thinking about what the Houston offense can eventually become is exciting as Hamilton works to turn this unit back into a respectable one. There is no way — we hope — that the Texans will be at the bottom or near the bottom in rushing this season. Adding Marlon Mack and rookie Dameon Pierce (plus keeping Rex Burkhead) will improve this unit tremendously.
Hamilton has made this preseason must-watch for the Texans because even though the games don’t count in the standings, it will be exciting to see where the offense goes in the three preseason contests and how training camp helps build the offense.
The new OC and the rest of the offense have some pressure headed their way, but if this team does meet whatever their expectations are for themselves, then hopefully that turns into more than four wins this season.
What are your thoughts on the Texans new offense and what Hamilton had to say on Wednesday?