After some uneven results throughout training camp, the Houston Texans' offense seemed to finally hit another gear in their joint practice today against the Las Vegas Raiders.
According to multiple reports from individuals who attended the affair, they saw the offense being able to move the football "with relative ease" against Raiders defenders. From the red zone mastery of rookie wide receiver Lewis Bond, to quarterback C.J. Stroud reportedly having one of his best passing days of the entire offseason, it's great to finally have some sense of what the game plan of offensive coordinator Nick Caley could look like in the right circumstance.
I guess it really does help to not have to train against the best defense in the NFL? With that said, here are some specific tidbits about the excellence of Houston's offense today as provided by Houston sports analyst Jacob Barzilla, via his X account today.
The Houston Texans had numerous explosive plays in practice today against the Las Vegas Raiders
"C.J. Stroud & David Montgomery had what I would say is their best days of camp so far"
On C.J. Stroud, Barzilla mentioned that Stroud being stellar during various team periods, including a stretch of going 5-5 on pass attempts that included multiple completions of 10-plus yards to both wide receivers Nico Collins and Jayden Higgins.
The David Montgomery point could be expanded to the rushing attack as a whole, as the unit reportedly had itself a day against the Raiders run defense, as stated by the Athletic's Sam Warren, who covers the Raiders. This would include Woody Marks joining in on the action with a couple of touchdowns in team drills. Head coach DeMeco Ryans even said in today's post-practice press conference that the running backs were the "highlights" of today's joint practice.
"Lewis Bond flashed with 2 touchdowns in red zone from Davis Mills"
Rookie wide receiver Lewis Bond continued to show why so many fans and local media members have him as a guaranteed lock to make the 53-man roster. Regardless of playing with the starters or the reserves, Bond has been a constant positive in the passing game for Ryans and the coaching staff. With his red zone production on display against the Raiders today, his buzz around the team only continues to grow.
"Texans offensive line had some issues in pass protection handling defensive ends Maxx Crosby & Kwity Paye on the edge"
On a more problematic note, Houston continued to shuffle its offensive line to find a spark, this time against one of the most ferocious pass rushers in the NFL in Maxx Crosby. And as one could've predicted, there were numerous times where Crosby and fellow edge rusher Kwity Paye made light work out of the Texans' offensive line.
Stroud was sacked multiple times throughout the day, which doesn't make fans feel any better about elements of what they saw against the Los Angeles Chargers last Thursday night. Ultimately, the line is still a work in progress, but at least they show more tenacity and fight than in years past.
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