Nick Caley has seen his fair share of harsh criticism over the course of his first season as the newest offensive coordinator of the Houston Texans. Over time, the public rhetoric aimed at Caley has slowly gone from boiling hot to a quiet simmer, as more attention has been given to the development of quarterback C.J. Stroud, the stability of the offensive line, Houston's inability to run the football and injuries to key wide receivers on the depth chart.
That was until today, when prominent NFL quarterbacks coach, and founder of the now renowned quarterback training program known as QBTakeover, Quincy Avery joined in on the conversation and gave a scathing review of the former Los Angeles Rams tight ends coach. Let's just say, Avery hasn't been the biggest fan of the schematics of Caley's offense in relation to the growth trajectory of Stroud.
Quincy Avery dismantles Nick Caley's offensive scheme in harsh review
"The passing game took massive steps back last year with a new OC who clearly doesn't see the game like CJ does," quote-tweeted Avery via his X account earlier today, as he gave his commentary in response to an interview conducted between Texans analyst Garret Williams (Houston Stressans) and ESPN NFL analyst Benjamin Solak. He finished the post by expressing, "I honestly don't see how the offense performs better with their offensive philosophy."
As it relates to Caley "not seeing the game like C.J. does", he himself admitted exclusively to Texans reporter Jonathan Alexander of the Houston Chronicle that he was "a little too ambitious coming in as a first-time play-caller, realizing the personnel on the roster didn't fit what he was initially trying to do."
While the self-reflection is definitely a welcomed development, for some it only exacerbates the lack of confidence that many already had regarding the viability of the John Carroll University graduate. It potentially illustrates what could be a lingering chasm in communication and expectation between Stroud and Caley, which could prove to be disastrous in the long run for a Houston squad aiming for its first Lombardi Trophy in franchise history in 2026.
Avery further detailed his disgust with the current state of Houston's offensive game planning when, in response to Solak and Williams breaking down the Texans being one of the worst ranked rushing teams (run-blocking, epa/rush, rush success rate, etc.) since Stroud's debut in 2023, he bluntly stated,
"What makes this worse is the Texans run game is s*** and they lead the league in first down run rate. Constantly playing behind the sticks with the stalest passing game plan in NFL. Finding explosive plays from behind the sticks running quick game is a sure fire way to prevent your QB from being as successful as he can be."
With Avery's very direct commentary in mind, the fact that there have been a multitude of talent additions to the offense over the course of the offseason shows that Avery isn't just coming out of left field with his analysis.
The Texans' offseason plan illustrates a lot of Avery's gripes with the offensive product
General manager Nick Caserio and co. made it a point to grab at least five new offensive linemen throughout free agency and the draft, trade for running back David Montgomery, allow for Jerry Schuplinski to take the helm as the new quarterbacks coach and also snag multiple physical tight ends. This was all done in efforts to reshape the offensive roster into a more physical unit, with emphasis on running the football effectively for the entirety of an NFL game.
While the passing game has been highly inconsistent, no offense can survive multiple elite defenses on a weekly basis in the NFL by being one-dimensional. Houston has tried to address the imbalance by executing the aforementioned offseason plan. And in theory, it should lead to Stroud having a lot of pressure off of his shoulders due to being able to rely on a more complex offense to keep incoming defenders on their heels. It should help Stroud stay upright more, give the receivers more opportunities to play make with defenses shifting more to stop the run and open up the play action portion of the playbook which in turn could help unlock a new level of production from Stroud and the aerial attack.
However, it's still holistically on Caley as the offensive coordinator to take the existing pieces and throw together what projects to be a better offensive product in 2026. If not, more takes like Avery's will continue to flood the Houston sports media space throughout their 25th anniversary campaign.
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