May 16, 2023 • 22 mins
Did the Texans Rookie Minicamp provide a sneak peek at what to expect on the field in 2023? Perhaps. Drew Dougherty of Texans TV and Team Analyst/Radio Sideline Reporter John Harris explain.
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Episode Transcript
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Speaker 1 (00:02):
In the Lab, a Texans podcast that takes a different
look at things. Drew Doherty and John Harris have their
lab coats and goggles on and the Bunsen burners burning.
Here's Drew Demiko Ryans throughout the first pitch.
Speaker 2 (00:18):
Admirably.
Speaker 3 (00:18):
He even went from the rubber. John, that was cool
he did. That's a baller move.
Speaker 4 (00:23):
If you weld ask me what you would do on
a first pitch, that's probably the first one I would say,
don't do. Do not go up on top of the rubber,
because I don't think people understand that mound.
Speaker 5 (00:35):
The height of that mound.
Speaker 4 (00:36):
I would say, it's intimidating, but it throws you off
because you've been practicing, you're on flat land, you're flat land,
and all of a sudden you go up there and
you're like, whoa wait a second. It could throw you off,
but if you haven't been up there. But he went
up there and just delivered it. Very very well done.
And I've said last night to Mark on All Access
that's one of my bucket list items. I want to
(00:57):
throw out the first pitch of the game. Yeah, I
want to throw out the first pitch. Not at a
Texans game. But at ASTROS game. So I want to
raise my profile so high that they have to have
me to throw at a first pitch.
Speaker 2 (01:09):
I bet it could happen. It's not some mbers.
Speaker 3 (01:11):
I've seen other people that are not of your stature
throw out first pitches, and I've thought about that often,
you know, throwing from the mound and throwing a strike
because I I mean, I played catch with my boys.
Speaker 2 (01:24):
I head coached a.
Speaker 3 (01:26):
Baseball team, so you know, I threw the ball around
a little bit recently. But then that's different than being
in front of a bunch of folks being up on
a mound on a major league So yeah, I would
not have gone from the mount. I would have just
stayed right in front fired a strike, you know, casually,
because I also I have a problem with trying too hard.
Speaker 2 (01:44):
Sometimes it bit me.
Speaker 3 (01:45):
This weekend, I was playing in a softball tournament and
I haven't played softball in twenty years, you know, like
swung a bat.
Speaker 2 (01:51):
All that stuff.
Speaker 3 (01:52):
Yeah, and I fouled one off. Look, goofy. I used
to be a decent softball player right out of college,
you know, and in college else I can handle my
business and uh second, one man sharp grounder. They kind
of hit me when I was running to first. There's
an errant throw, and I instantly thought, I'm gonna take two. Yeah,
(02:13):
I should have just jogged straight up the first baseline
and casually turned to the fence and come back to first,
But like an idiot, I went, I'm gonna I'm gonna
try and get the second base, and some thought sometime
in the last twenty years, my brain and my legs
they kind of disconnected, so like there's no turning or shark.
So I basically made a wide, way too wide turn
(02:36):
and fell all over myself like a giraffe and yeah,
skin my elbow, hurt my shoulder a little bit, my
left shoulder, and it fell down.
Speaker 2 (02:46):
It was embarrassing. It was really really embarrassing.
Speaker 3 (02:48):
And what a compound of the embarrassment was some of
the kids that I coached actually saw.
Speaker 2 (02:53):
Oh man more than the veneer's gone oh man.
Speaker 4 (02:56):
It Anyways, yeah, that's life. The things that you realize
you can't do now that you used to be able
to do. Mine is probably basketball. I mean, I played baseball,
you know, growing up, so I haven't swung a bat
in forever.
Speaker 5 (03:10):
But going back on the basketball, court. Yeah, we used
to do.
Speaker 4 (03:13):
We did that.
Speaker 5 (03:14):
We went to the Greenbrier in seventeen.
Speaker 2 (03:16):
Well, no, eighteen.
Speaker 5 (03:17):
We've done this a lot.
Speaker 2 (03:18):
Actually you never saw.
Speaker 3 (03:19):
Okay, that's a big, big difference, though you have been
playing pick up basketball on a semi regular basis for
a while.
Speaker 2 (03:28):
I'm not joking, man.
Speaker 3 (03:29):
The last time I played softball was like two thousand,
like the spring summer or no summer fall of two thousand.
I just graduated college. Yeah, a long time, like got
up twenty three years back then. I got up the
plate first time, laced a liner on the left field lines,
(03:51):
a lot of a literation for an anxious anchor. I
was coming into second. I saw him kind of casually
throwing a second, and that part of my brain that like,
I compete too hard and I tried too hard. Wise,
so I took third base. Yeah I did it fine
back then, but I'm not twenty three anymore. So yeah,
I was ranging ranging down fla balls like Mickey Mantle
and center. It was just, yeah, my brain shut off.
(04:14):
But here's the Saturday I thought, Oh I can still
do that.
Speaker 2 (04:17):
I can't.
Speaker 4 (04:17):
But here's the thing, though, if you if you got
back to playing regularly, you probably could do a.
Speaker 5 (04:22):
Lot of what you used to do.
Speaker 4 (04:24):
Probably.
Speaker 2 (04:24):
I mean, like I'm I'm in okay shape.
Speaker 3 (04:27):
I can swim a mile, you know, I swim in
the mornings, but like I just that's passive stuff, like
there's no cutting involved. I lift weights, but there's no
like explosion involved. So yeah, it was just embarrassing. Goh,
I hate being a you know who's not embarrassing John.
The Texans rookies, now, we didn't see much on the field,
(04:47):
but we saw a few things and a few things
stood out to me. And I don't know how much
you've touched on this with Mark. I've heard some of
what y'all said, but not all of it. But here's
a few things I want to talk about Stroud and
Tank Dell specifically, just my little odd observations and I
want you to tuck away your observations and bring them
(05:09):
up in just a bit. But one of the fun
things we saw from Stroud, it kind of took me back,
and I think Mark.
Speaker 2 (05:15):
Brought it up.
Speaker 3 (05:16):
But one of the first plays, and it was a
it was a basic play. It's nothing exotic, but seeing
him do the bootleg, and that's going to be a
part of this offense because it's a derivation of Gary
Kubiak's offense that we saw here back when. But it
was nice seeing that integrated very very early on in
a practice and we've and we've seen it over the
(05:37):
years here in between, you know, when when O'Brien was
running that offense to the offense we've seen over the
last few years. But it was just it's clear that
that's going to be a point of emphasis in this offense,
and there was you're basically jogging while you're doing it,
But just seeing that placed back in made my heart smile.
Speaker 5 (05:55):
It's such a staple in this offense.
Speaker 4 (06:00):
Think of so many different quarterbacks of so many different
shapes and forms and abilities that have run that particular
play and run it such that they get a wide
open passing pocket with all the time to look and deliver.
(06:20):
And when you have a guy that can throw the
ball with such accurate ball placement is so precise, like CJ. Stroud,
if you just give him that window, he's going to
find it and that becomes really really interesting. And obviously
he can move too, so he's always going to put
defenders in a bind when he is out on the move.
(06:45):
And sure there are other things that this offense has
to be able to do, but if you said, all right,
give me some absolutes, your bootleg game has to be
on point because there's so many different things that happen.
And once a quarterback gets out of the pocket and
the rush has been sucked in towards the run, and
(07:06):
the quarterback is now outside the pocket, he's somewhere between
the hash and the numbers and he's just looking at
the field. As a defensive back, you're like, oh, man,
I'm in trouble. And so if you're in man coverage,
well obviously you just you just stay in man coverage.
Speaker 5 (07:20):
But if you're in zone coverage, if you're say, you're
in cover too.
Speaker 4 (07:24):
If you're a flat defender, like, okay, he's booting at me,
do I keep sinking? Because if I keep sinking deep
underneath the deeper routes, man, he's gonna run for five
to seven yards and minimum before I can even get there. Now,
do I break forward to go tackle him? All of
a sudden, he'll throw the ball over me and I'll
get in trouble for that.
Speaker 2 (07:42):
So I'll listen to what you just said. Listen to
what you just said. I love this.
Speaker 3 (07:47):
You You make the defense and the guys on defense
think about so many more things than they normally would
not have.
Speaker 5 (07:52):
Absolutely, I love that.
Speaker 4 (07:54):
Yeah, absolutely, I mean that's no that that's that's essentially
when you think about football.
Speaker 5 (07:59):
That's exactly what you.
Speaker 4 (07:59):
Want to do.
Speaker 2 (08:00):
I mean, I I'm remember You're doing is not complicated.
It's forcing them to be complicated.
Speaker 4 (08:05):
And I mean that's you know, we said always say
that on the offensive side, you know, coach, on the
offense side of the ball. Look, there are a bunch
of meat heads on defense. They just want to run
and hit people. Make them think a little bit. Now,
you can't get to a point where you're thinking so
much like I think they're thinking that we think that.
They think that we think that they think that we're
gonna do this and think that No, but we're gonna
I can't think that.
Speaker 5 (08:25):
But you just have to have situations.
Speaker 4 (08:28):
And I think the scheme itself is just Taylor made
for putting a defense in a bind. What are you
gonna do defensive tackle when we block this way? What
are you gonna do defensive end when we do this?
What are you gonna do? Safety?
Speaker 5 (08:41):
If we give you this, what are you gonna do?
Speaker 4 (08:43):
Corner?
Speaker 5 (08:44):
If you're in zone and we do this?
Speaker 4 (08:46):
And so I think the bootleg is one of those
plays that puts so many people on the defensive side
in really a world of hurt. And it's almost it
becomes almost an either or situation. And you know, you
the first play of the game or whatever it is,
you run a zone run and you're like, okay, you
got people in the box, coach in the box looking
at it, going all right, what the defensive end? Do
(09:07):
you crash hard? What the backside linebacker do? Did they
lever spill? Like? How did they play this? Did they
run through the backside? What do they do on that
zone play? And then you make the next couple a
couple of plays, you come back to it and now
you and then you pull it out and you bootleg
and you get a look at what they're looking at.
(09:28):
And I just remember there were so many different things,
There were so many different wrinkles that came off of
the boot leg. I remember what Kyle Shannaing was calling
it here in nine and I remember Andre running a
route where he was on the backsides the boot was
booting towards him, but he was running, Oh I'm sorry,
the bootleg was going away from him. So he would
(09:49):
start across the field and so it was like you
were gonna boot and then you know Matt would throw
it and meet it. But then what would happen was
Andre would pivot and go back the other way, and
you're like, whoa, it's a long throw. But invariably that
route was open all the time. So oh and Daniels
do that a lot, and I've seen more teams do
that in the last you know, ten to fifteen years
(10:10):
where you start in a boot and then you go
back the other way and the corner is lost because
the corner is trying to run with that, and then
you go the back the other way. Now it's a
long throw, but they're just wrinkles that you can have
off of movement, off of that bootleg action. And if
you make the run fake look like the run play,
(10:30):
you just are going to get that many more eyes
on you.
Speaker 5 (10:33):
And it said split second.
Speaker 4 (10:34):
It's the split second to give Tank Dallas step or
two to run that inside post, you know on a
safety that's now looking at the run. It's just enough
to get Dalton Schultz down the scene where he needs
to get so or across the field. There are just
a lot of different things you can do once you
put a quarterback on the move and you force the
defense to think. Now, defensive guys, you know, I mean
(10:57):
I was joking a little bit, but you want them thinking, Yeah,
you don't want them getting out of reactive mode.
Speaker 3 (11:04):
You don't want them Yeah, you want to make things
tougher on them. Yes, one thing mentally.
Speaker 5 (11:08):
And that's what this That's what it absolutely does.
Speaker 4 (11:10):
So those mechanics, the ball fake or the handoff, those
two things are CJ. Stroud have to look the exact
same because there are some things that defend defenders can
read and know, okay that's bootleg, that's a run. A
lot just reading hats of the offensive lineman. Is that
high hat, is that low hat? Then they can figure
that out whether it's run or not. So, but if
(11:31):
they're caught looking in the backfield, which a lot of
guys will do, you can catch them. You can catch
them peaking, and those are the guys you can exploit.
And who knows when you exploit one for a touchdown.
That's a difference in a game. I mean, you think
of how many games in twenty twenty two Drew You
know this, what nine ten games we had we either
had the lead, were tied or within a score going
into the fourth quarter, starting the fourth quarter. You know
(11:53):
that was a team that was not exceptional, let's be honest,
and yet they were in all those games. What happens
if you in those three or four, you know, three
or four of those games, you make one of those
plays in the fourth quarter and you win a couple early, well,
then maybe that turns into winning a few games down
the road, and who knows what that could turn into.
Speaker 3 (12:08):
You just said the words Tank Dell and Tank Dell explosive, shifty,
one of the leaders in touchdowns receiving yards over the
last couple of years in college football. But the slight
frame is what is always mentioned with Tank Dell. Well,
what are the specifics? Five, eight, one, sixty five?
Speaker 5 (12:30):
If he's lucky?
Speaker 3 (12:32):
Yeah, okay, And I hear that, so that instantly makes
me think, oh, he's tiny. He's gonna look like, you know,
a water bug out there. And then when he was
out there on the field, he's not big, obviously, but
he doesn't he just doesn't look as small as you
would think those dimensions are. Like he he looked like
he belonged out there, John, He did not look like
(12:53):
he was some sort of you know, novelty. I mean
he just seeing him in pads or not pads but
shoulder pads, helmet and next to everybody with a jersey on,
he looked like he belong Okay, and that's before he
catches anything, that's before.
Speaker 2 (13:08):
He makes any moves. It did not.
Speaker 3 (13:11):
It was not out of place, am I I kind
of clear on what I'm saying here, Like he looks.
Speaker 4 (13:16):
Like, yeah, he's he should be there, you know, yeah,
regardless of no, No, you're exactly right.
Speaker 3 (13:23):
I don't think he looked really teeny tiny when he
was out there like you would think he would when
you see those numbers for his height and his weight
put up and you you know what the numbers start
when you see.
Speaker 4 (13:33):
It's interesting because when you see him in the hallway,
you go dang, you know, because he still has a
little bit of a babyface too, so you know.
Speaker 3 (13:41):
He just he looks like as you and I are
old as hell. Now, It's just true, It's very true.
Speaker 4 (13:45):
So that's you excuse everything, really, yeah, And I'm fifty one.
Speaker 5 (13:49):
I I'm not scared to say it, but you do.
Speaker 4 (13:51):
You see him and you think boy, But then you
see him on the field and and I it's interesting
you say that, Drew, because I I have not looked
at him ever as being out of place from the
time I was talking to Dana Holgson for the kickoff
game in twenty twenty one. Since that moment when he
(14:11):
said that's the most electrifying player I've ever coached and
is riaking back thinking back to all the players that
he has coached, I thought, boy, that's a okay, And
then on the field you realize wow wow. And I
mean think about this way. If you get out on
a Houston freeway, right, you're amongst all these f one fifties,
(14:32):
and you know, you know, big infinities and all these
big SUVs and trucks and all that kind of stuff.
You know, but if you've got a Maserati, I mean,
those trucks can't hold a candle to that Maserati.
Speaker 5 (14:46):
That Maserati doesn't look out of place.
Speaker 4 (14:48):
I think scooting in between cars and get into places
because it's so quick. I mean, he is the Maserati
of this group, and so he may not physically look
the part. You seem in a huddle and you're like,
he's those guys hour over him. But then when he's
out running routes, everybody and their brother is scared of him.
And that's a that's a fear that I love that
(15:10):
the Texans now have. That they have at the at
least one, at least one player, and there I think
gonna be others, but at least one player where you
look at it and go man, defenses have to account
for him.
Speaker 5 (15:24):
Now, I wish the Colts wouldn't have gotten one too.
Speaker 4 (15:27):
They went out and got Josh Downs, and it's kind
of the same concept in the downs is a little
bit bigger, but I think tanks a little bit more electric, So,
you know, those two teams kind of It's interesting how
the Colts and the Texans attacked the draft. They they
both went out and got quarterbacks. They both went out
and got dynamic interior passing weapons that can be used
in a lot of different places on the field. But they
(15:47):
just wanted to put pressure on defenses, which is not
something that they were able to do. Really. I mean,
after the Colts lost, Jonathan Taylor was downhill and you know,
the Texans really struggled all year offensively, but but they
did have something with Damian Pierce was carrying a football.
So now you got pierced. Now you got Tank Dell.
Hopefully you're gonna get something over John metch you which
(16:08):
would be fantastic. You know, Nico Robert Woods gets brought in.
Speaker 3 (16:11):
No. A.
Speaker 4 (16:11):
Brown comes in, and then Dalton Schultz, who depending on
where you want to classify and tight end receiver, I
don't care.
Speaker 5 (16:16):
He's just a pass catching weapon. That's the way I'll
look at it.
Speaker 4 (16:19):
So you add all that in and now you've got
guys that a make a defense think a little bit
and b man As a defender. Really, the only recourse
you have in certain cases is I got back up.
I gotta move back. Well sometimes that's all you need
is just a half step here, a step there.
Speaker 5 (16:35):
You're further back than you would be.
Speaker 4 (16:37):
I mean, watching defenses against the Texas the last couple
of years, they just they just can't. They look for
Damian Pierce, especially last year, and they would just camp
everybody around a box and they would dare you. It
was like nineteen ninety five football, which nineteen nineties college
football is like there'd be two tight ends, it's a
full back, a wing back, and there would be twenty
(16:58):
guys in the box, and it will it's like, okay,
run against this, and yet you would, and you know,
people got smart and stopped doing that. And hopefully that's
what the Texans will be is smart and won't have
to do that, and they'll run. When they're looking for
a pass, they'll pass. We're looking for a run. We'll
put quarterbacks on the move. And I think that's gonna
end up being a really really good thing when you
put it all together. Now will happen week one? Don't know,
(17:20):
you know, new things take time, but hopefully in due
time they'll get to a point where this offense is
really really fun and effective to watch. Love it all.
Speaker 3 (17:28):
Right, Let's end with a Twitter question of the day.
The position group on this Texans team for twenty twenty
three heading into OTAs right now that looks to be
the strongest on paper is.
Speaker 4 (17:42):
Who I think the secondary? I think the secondary. You
can make a case that if you just said, give
me the top five players for the Texans right now,
who are your top five players? I mean, I think
one is layer. I mean Tunsel two through five will
probably be Damian Pierce, Jalen Petrie. Jalen Petree would be
(18:07):
in that mix, right, I mean I would. I would think,
you know, Shaq Mason, you know, is added to that mix.
I don't know how far down you get before you
get to Jimmy Ward. So now you're talking Petrie and Ward.
Those are your safeties. You had Stingley hopefully you know,
in a in a defensive scheme that will feature him
a little bit more and he'll play a full season.
(18:28):
Steven Nelson I thought was really really good. I don't
think that's talked about enough. I don't think he's talked
about how good Stephen Nelson was last year. And then
you acte Quille Griffin to the mix just this past weekend.
So now you're talking about a secondary that's.
Speaker 2 (18:40):
Not Desmond King and Tavier or Thomas right.
Speaker 4 (18:42):
Detroit duo guys that have been really good for the
last couple of years. You now have, I think bordering
on elite players, and you now have depth. Now it's
a matter of that pass rush, John Grenard, Chase Winovich,
Jerry Hughes, Wille Anderson making sure that they get to
the quarterback to allow that secondary to make even more
(19:04):
plays than they did last year.
Speaker 5 (19:05):
So I think that secondary to me is.
Speaker 4 (19:09):
I mean, it's tough because I think the offensive line,
with the addition of Shack Mason and I think Kenyan
Green's gonna turn that corner this year. And I think
Kenyan was on the verge of doing it last year,
but he got hurt in that Raiders game and I
don't think he's ever right after that. So I think
Kenyan Green fully healthy, Shack Mason the fold. I think
the offensive lines got an opportunity. Now we got to
see you play center and how that center adapts to
(19:29):
potentially having a rookie behind and c J. Stroud or
you know whomever a new quarterback to them. So at
that point, I think the offensive could be there. But
I just look at the secondary and think, boy, that
unit went from being absolutely got awful in twenty twenty
one to being better but not all the way there
in twenty twenty two, to being potentially really good in
twenty twenty three. And again to your point, you're bringing
(19:52):
up Dez and Tab and I brought up you know
guys before that. That's seven guys that have you know
had experience in this league. Guys have gone to pro
or highly rated draft picks or you know, high draft picks.
Just when you think you have enough, you need a
little bit more. When you think it's not enough, you're
in a lot of trouble. I think this group you
(20:13):
look at and go play. I mean, they get seven
guys for five spots. What are they gonna do? No,
that's exactly what you need. Yeah, this is exactly what
you need to be good in the secondary.
Speaker 2 (20:21):
Let me add to this.
Speaker 3 (20:22):
You you brought up mainly the talent and who's there,
which I think is that's what I was asking and
that's perfect.
Speaker 2 (20:29):
And I'll add to this.
Speaker 3 (20:31):
They're probably all going to be put into a scheme
and a defense that's going to be more advantageous for
them and for everyone around them. I think it's going
to be more helpful, which I think will only make
that secondary look better and be better.
Speaker 4 (20:43):
So absolutely, man, you throw all that together, you throw
in good coaching, good scheme, with some top notch players,
and you got an opportunity to have to have something. Now.
I don't know that people would look at the past
defense last year and go, oh, that was the big issue.
Speaker 5 (20:58):
It wasn't.
Speaker 4 (20:59):
It wasn't the biggest you Stopping the run is and
I think they've done a lot to bolster it. When
you talk about Seldon Rankins and Son Ridgeway being added,
some leade Collins, Roy Lopez, et cetera. Then you put
Will Anderson on the edge, also bringing in Chase Winovich.
You've made a lot of additions up front.
Speaker 5 (21:16):
Two.
Speaker 4 (21:16):
I think maybe the biggest might be Desnen Pairman at linebacker,
Denzel Peraman at linebacker.
Speaker 5 (21:20):
That group better stop the run.
Speaker 4 (21:22):
Yeah, Karen simple, you said, what's one thing they have
to do.
Speaker 5 (21:25):
That's it.
Speaker 4 (21:26):
They've got to stop the run to allow that secondary
to go make plays on the ball to stay out
of it. We can't have another year where two safeties
lead this team in tackles. Now, JP five is going
to be in there lit because that's just the way
he plays the game, and he's gonna.
Speaker 5 (21:40):
Make a lot of tackles.
Speaker 2 (21:41):
Yeah, but you don't.
Speaker 5 (21:42):
Yeah, that volume was just ridiculous.
Speaker 4 (21:44):
That can't happen. It's got to be Paraman, It's got
to be Chritian Harrit's got to be a linebacker the
lead a team in tackles or safeties are back there
making plays, but they've.
Speaker 5 (21:52):
Got to help in the run defense too.
Speaker 4 (21:54):
It's not like, you know, Jayala Petrie can't have eighty
five tackles this year. You know, he's got to be
one hundred tackle guy, but he can't be one hundred
and fifty or whatever it was. That's ridiculous. That can't happen.
Speaker 3 (22:03):
John Harris, always good to be with you, my friend.
Grow from the flat, not from the mound.
Speaker 4 (22:08):
There.
Speaker 2 (22:08):
We'll see you next time on Texans in the Lab.
In the Lab, a Texans podcast that takes a different
look at things. Drew Doherty and John Harris have their
lab coats and goggles on and the Bunsen burners burning.
Here's Drew Demiko Ryans throughout the first pitch.
Speaker 2 (00:18):
Admirably.
Speaker 3 (00:18):
He even went from the rubber. John, that was cool
he did. That's a baller move.
Speaker 4 (00:23):
If you weld ask me what you would do on
a first pitch, that's probably the first one I would say,
don't do. Do not go up on top of the rubber,
because I don't think people understand that mound.
Speaker 5 (00:35):
The height of that mound.
Speaker 4 (00:36):
I would say, it's intimidating, but it throws you off
because you've been practicing, you're on flat land, you're flat land,
and all of a sudden you go up there and
you're like, whoa wait a second. It could throw you off,
but if you haven't been up there. But he went
up there and just delivered it. Very very well done.
And I've said last night to Mark on All Access
that's one of my bucket list items. I want to
(00:57):
throw out the first pitch of the game. Yeah, I
want to throw out the first pitch. Not at a
Texans game. But at ASTROS game. So I want to
raise my profile so high that they have to have
me to throw at a first pitch.
Speaker 2 (01:09):
I bet it could happen. It's not some mbers.
Speaker 3 (01:11):
I've seen other people that are not of your stature
throw out first pitches, and I've thought about that often,
you know, throwing from the mound and throwing a strike
because I I mean, I played catch with my boys.
Speaker 2 (01:24):
I head coached a.
Speaker 3 (01:26):
Baseball team, so you know, I threw the ball around
a little bit recently. But then that's different than being
in front of a bunch of folks being up on
a mound on a major league So yeah, I would
not have gone from the mount. I would have just
stayed right in front fired a strike, you know, casually,
because I also I have a problem with trying too hard.
Speaker 2 (01:44):
Sometimes it bit me.
Speaker 3 (01:45):
This weekend, I was playing in a softball tournament and
I haven't played softball in twenty years, you know, like
swung a bat.
Speaker 2 (01:51):
All that stuff.
Speaker 3 (01:52):
Yeah, and I fouled one off. Look, goofy. I used
to be a decent softball player right out of college,
you know, and in college else I can handle my
business and uh second, one man sharp grounder. They kind
of hit me when I was running to first. There's
an errant throw, and I instantly thought, I'm gonna take two. Yeah,
(02:13):
I should have just jogged straight up the first baseline
and casually turned to the fence and come back to first,
But like an idiot, I went, I'm gonna I'm gonna
try and get the second base, and some thought sometime
in the last twenty years, my brain and my legs
they kind of disconnected, so like there's no turning or shark.
So I basically made a wide, way too wide turn
(02:36):
and fell all over myself like a giraffe and yeah,
skin my elbow, hurt my shoulder a little bit, my
left shoulder, and it fell down.
Speaker 2 (02:46):
It was embarrassing. It was really really embarrassing.
Speaker 3 (02:48):
And what a compound of the embarrassment was some of
the kids that I coached actually saw.
Speaker 2 (02:53):
Oh man more than the veneer's gone oh man.
Speaker 4 (02:56):
It Anyways, yeah, that's life. The things that you realize
you can't do now that you used to be able
to do. Mine is probably basketball. I mean, I played baseball,
you know, growing up, so I haven't swung a bat
in forever.
Speaker 5 (03:10):
But going back on the basketball, court. Yeah, we used
to do.
Speaker 4 (03:13):
We did that.
Speaker 5 (03:14):
We went to the Greenbrier in seventeen.
Speaker 2 (03:16):
Well, no, eighteen.
Speaker 5 (03:17):
We've done this a lot.
Speaker 2 (03:18):
Actually you never saw.
Speaker 3 (03:19):
Okay, that's a big, big difference, though you have been
playing pick up basketball on a semi regular basis for
a while.
Speaker 2 (03:28):
I'm not joking, man.
Speaker 3 (03:29):
The last time I played softball was like two thousand,
like the spring summer or no summer fall of two thousand.
I just graduated college. Yeah, a long time, like got
up twenty three years back then. I got up the
plate first time, laced a liner on the left field lines,
(03:51):
a lot of a literation for an anxious anchor. I
was coming into second. I saw him kind of casually
throwing a second, and that part of my brain that like,
I compete too hard and I tried too hard. Wise,
so I took third base. Yeah I did it fine
back then, but I'm not twenty three anymore. So yeah,
I was ranging ranging down fla balls like Mickey Mantle
and center. It was just, yeah, my brain shut off.
(04:14):
But here's the Saturday I thought, Oh I can still
do that.
Speaker 2 (04:17):
I can't.
Speaker 4 (04:17):
But here's the thing, though, if you if you got
back to playing regularly, you probably could do a.
Speaker 5 (04:22):
Lot of what you used to do.
Speaker 4 (04:24):
Probably.
Speaker 2 (04:24):
I mean, like I'm I'm in okay shape.
Speaker 3 (04:27):
I can swim a mile, you know, I swim in
the mornings, but like I just that's passive stuff, like
there's no cutting involved. I lift weights, but there's no
like explosion involved. So yeah, it was just embarrassing. Goh,
I hate being a you know who's not embarrassing John.
The Texans rookies, now, we didn't see much on the field,
(04:47):
but we saw a few things and a few things
stood out to me. And I don't know how much
you've touched on this with Mark. I've heard some of
what y'all said, but not all of it. But here's
a few things I want to talk about Stroud and
Tank Dell specifically, just my little odd observations and I
want you to tuck away your observations and bring them
(05:09):
up in just a bit. But one of the fun
things we saw from Stroud, it kind of took me back,
and I think Mark.
Speaker 2 (05:15):
Brought it up.
Speaker 3 (05:16):
But one of the first plays, and it was a
it was a basic play. It's nothing exotic, but seeing
him do the bootleg, and that's going to be a
part of this offense because it's a derivation of Gary
Kubiak's offense that we saw here back when. But it
was nice seeing that integrated very very early on in
a practice and we've and we've seen it over the
(05:37):
years here in between, you know, when when O'Brien was
running that offense to the offense we've seen over the
last few years. But it was just it's clear that
that's going to be a point of emphasis in this offense,
and there was you're basically jogging while you're doing it,
But just seeing that placed back in made my heart smile.
Speaker 5 (05:55):
It's such a staple in this offense.
Speaker 4 (06:00):
Think of so many different quarterbacks of so many different
shapes and forms and abilities that have run that particular
play and run it such that they get a wide
open passing pocket with all the time to look and deliver.
(06:20):
And when you have a guy that can throw the
ball with such accurate ball placement is so precise, like CJ. Stroud,
if you just give him that window, he's going to
find it and that becomes really really interesting. And obviously
he can move too, so he's always going to put
defenders in a bind when he is out on the move.
(06:45):
And sure there are other things that this offense has
to be able to do, but if you said, all right,
give me some absolutes, your bootleg game has to be
on point because there's so many different things that happen.
And once a quarterback gets out of the pocket and
the rush has been sucked in towards the run, and
(07:06):
the quarterback is now outside the pocket, he's somewhere between
the hash and the numbers and he's just looking at
the field. As a defensive back, you're like, oh, man,
I'm in trouble. And so if you're in man coverage,
well obviously you just you just stay in man coverage.
Speaker 5 (07:20):
But if you're in zone coverage, if you're say, you're
in cover too.
Speaker 4 (07:24):
If you're a flat defender, like, okay, he's booting at me,
do I keep sinking? Because if I keep sinking deep
underneath the deeper routes, man, he's gonna run for five
to seven yards and minimum before I can even get there. Now,
do I break forward to go tackle him? All of
a sudden, he'll throw the ball over me and I'll
get in trouble for that.
Speaker 2 (07:42):
So I'll listen to what you just said. Listen to
what you just said. I love this.
Speaker 3 (07:47):
You You make the defense and the guys on defense
think about so many more things than they normally would
not have.
Speaker 5 (07:52):
Absolutely, I love that.
Speaker 4 (07:54):
Yeah, absolutely, I mean that's no that that's that's essentially
when you think about football.
Speaker 5 (07:59):
That's exactly what you.
Speaker 4 (07:59):
Want to do.
Speaker 2 (08:00):
I mean, I I'm remember You're doing is not complicated.
It's forcing them to be complicated.
Speaker 4 (08:05):
And I mean that's you know, we said always say
that on the offensive side, you know, coach, on the
offense side of the ball. Look, there are a bunch
of meat heads on defense. They just want to run
and hit people. Make them think a little bit. Now,
you can't get to a point where you're thinking so
much like I think they're thinking that we think that.
They think that we think that they think that we're
gonna do this and think that No, but we're gonna
I can't think that.
Speaker 5 (08:25):
But you just have to have situations.
Speaker 4 (08:28):
And I think the scheme itself is just Taylor made
for putting a defense in a bind. What are you
gonna do defensive tackle when we block this way? What
are you gonna do defensive end when we do this?
What are you gonna do? Safety?
Speaker 5 (08:41):
If we give you this, what are you gonna do?
Speaker 4 (08:43):
Corner?
Speaker 5 (08:44):
If you're in zone and we do this?
Speaker 4 (08:46):
And so I think the bootleg is one of those
plays that puts so many people on the defensive side
in really a world of hurt. And it's almost it
becomes almost an either or situation. And you know, you
the first play of the game or whatever it is,
you run a zone run and you're like, okay, you
got people in the box, coach in the box looking
at it, going all right, what the defensive end? Do
(09:07):
you crash hard? What the backside linebacker do? Did they
lever spill? Like? How did they play this? Did they
run through the backside? What do they do on that
zone play? And then you make the next couple a
couple of plays, you come back to it and now
you and then you pull it out and you bootleg
and you get a look at what they're looking at.
(09:28):
And I just remember there were so many different things,
There were so many different wrinkles that came off of
the boot leg. I remember what Kyle Shannaing was calling
it here in nine and I remember Andre running a
route where he was on the backsides the boot was
booting towards him, but he was running, Oh I'm sorry,
the bootleg was going away from him. So he would
(09:49):
start across the field and so it was like you
were gonna boot and then you know Matt would throw
it and meet it. But then what would happen was
Andre would pivot and go back the other way, and
you're like, whoa, it's a long throw. But invariably that
route was open all the time. So oh and Daniels
do that a lot, and I've seen more teams do
that in the last you know, ten to fifteen years
(10:10):
where you start in a boot and then you go
back the other way and the corner is lost because
the corner is trying to run with that, and then
you go the back the other way. Now it's a
long throw, but they're just wrinkles that you can have
off of movement, off of that bootleg action. And if
you make the run fake look like the run play,
(10:30):
you just are going to get that many more eyes
on you.
Speaker 5 (10:33):
And it said split second.
Speaker 4 (10:34):
It's the split second to give Tank Dallas step or
two to run that inside post, you know on a
safety that's now looking at the run. It's just enough
to get Dalton Schultz down the scene where he needs
to get so or across the field. There are just
a lot of different things you can do once you
put a quarterback on the move and you force the
defense to think. Now, defensive guys, you know, I mean
(10:57):
I was joking a little bit, but you want them thinking, Yeah,
you don't want them getting out of reactive mode.
Speaker 3 (11:04):
You don't want them Yeah, you want to make things
tougher on them. Yes, one thing mentally.
Speaker 5 (11:08):
And that's what this That's what it absolutely does.
Speaker 4 (11:10):
So those mechanics, the ball fake or the handoff, those
two things are CJ. Stroud have to look the exact
same because there are some things that defend defenders can
read and know, okay that's bootleg, that's a run. A
lot just reading hats of the offensive lineman. Is that
high hat, is that low hat? Then they can figure
that out whether it's run or not. So, but if
(11:31):
they're caught looking in the backfield, which a lot of
guys will do, you can catch them. You can catch
them peaking, and those are the guys you can exploit.
And who knows when you exploit one for a touchdown.
That's a difference in a game. I mean, you think
of how many games in twenty twenty two Drew You
know this, what nine ten games we had we either
had the lead, were tied or within a score going
into the fourth quarter, starting the fourth quarter. You know
(11:53):
that was a team that was not exceptional, let's be honest,
and yet they were in all those games. What happens
if you in those three or four, you know, three
or four of those games, you make one of those
plays in the fourth quarter and you win a couple early, well,
then maybe that turns into winning a few games down
the road, and who knows what that could turn into.
Speaker 3 (12:08):
You just said the words Tank Dell and Tank Dell explosive, shifty,
one of the leaders in touchdowns receiving yards over the
last couple of years in college football. But the slight
frame is what is always mentioned with Tank Dell. Well,
what are the specifics? Five, eight, one, sixty five?
Speaker 5 (12:30):
If he's lucky?
Speaker 3 (12:32):
Yeah, okay, And I hear that, so that instantly makes
me think, oh, he's tiny. He's gonna look like, you know,
a water bug out there. And then when he was
out there on the field, he's not big, obviously, but
he doesn't he just doesn't look as small as you
would think those dimensions are. Like he he looked like
he belonged out there, John, He did not look like
(12:53):
he was some sort of you know, novelty. I mean
he just seeing him in pads or not pads but
shoulder pads, helmet and next to everybody with a jersey on,
he looked like he belong Okay, and that's before he
catches anything, that's before.
Speaker 2 (13:08):
He makes any moves. It did not.
Speaker 3 (13:11):
It was not out of place, am I I kind
of clear on what I'm saying here, Like he looks.
Speaker 4 (13:16):
Like, yeah, he's he should be there, you know, yeah,
regardless of no, No, you're exactly right.
Speaker 3 (13:23):
I don't think he looked really teeny tiny when he
was out there like you would think he would when
you see those numbers for his height and his weight
put up and you you know what the numbers start
when you see.
Speaker 4 (13:33):
It's interesting because when you see him in the hallway,
you go dang, you know, because he still has a
little bit of a babyface too, so you know.
Speaker 3 (13:41):
He just he looks like as you and I are
old as hell. Now, It's just true, It's very true.
Speaker 4 (13:45):
So that's you excuse everything, really, yeah, And I'm fifty one.
Speaker 5 (13:49):
I I'm not scared to say it, but you do.
Speaker 4 (13:51):
You see him and you think boy, But then you
see him on the field and and I it's interesting
you say that, Drew, because I I have not looked
at him ever as being out of place from the
time I was talking to Dana Holgson for the kickoff
game in twenty twenty one. Since that moment when he
(14:11):
said that's the most electrifying player I've ever coached and
is riaking back thinking back to all the players that
he has coached, I thought, boy, that's a okay, And
then on the field you realize wow wow. And I
mean think about this way. If you get out on
a Houston freeway, right, you're amongst all these f one fifties,
(14:32):
and you know, you know, big infinities and all these
big SUVs and trucks and all that kind of stuff.
You know, but if you've got a Maserati, I mean,
those trucks can't hold a candle to that Maserati.
Speaker 5 (14:46):
That Maserati doesn't look out of place.
Speaker 4 (14:48):
I think scooting in between cars and get into places
because it's so quick. I mean, he is the Maserati
of this group, and so he may not physically look
the part. You seem in a huddle and you're like,
he's those guys hour over him. But then when he's
out running routes, everybody and their brother is scared of him.
And that's a that's a fear that I love that
(15:10):
the Texans now have. That they have at the at
least one, at least one player, and there I think
gonna be others, but at least one player where you
look at it and go man, defenses have to account
for him.
Speaker 5 (15:24):
Now, I wish the Colts wouldn't have gotten one too.
Speaker 4 (15:27):
They went out and got Josh Downs, and it's kind
of the same concept in the downs is a little
bit bigger, but I think tanks a little bit more electric, So,
you know, those two teams kind of It's interesting how
the Colts and the Texans attacked the draft. They they
both went out and got quarterbacks. They both went out
and got dynamic interior passing weapons that can be used
in a lot of different places on the field. But they
(15:47):
just wanted to put pressure on defenses, which is not
something that they were able to do. Really. I mean,
after the Colts lost, Jonathan Taylor was downhill and you know,
the Texans really struggled all year offensively, but but they
did have something with Damian Pierce was carrying a football.
So now you got pierced. Now you got Tank Dell.
Hopefully you're gonna get something over John metch you which
(16:08):
would be fantastic. You know, Nico Robert Woods gets brought in.
Speaker 3 (16:11):
No. A.
Speaker 4 (16:11):
Brown comes in, and then Dalton Schultz, who depending on
where you want to classify and tight end receiver, I
don't care.
Speaker 5 (16:16):
He's just a pass catching weapon. That's the way I'll
look at it.
Speaker 4 (16:19):
So you add all that in and now you've got
guys that a make a defense think a little bit
and b man As a defender. Really, the only recourse
you have in certain cases is I got back up.
I gotta move back. Well sometimes that's all you need
is just a half step here, a step there.
Speaker 5 (16:35):
You're further back than you would be.
Speaker 4 (16:37):
I mean, watching defenses against the Texas the last couple
of years, they just they just can't. They look for
Damian Pierce, especially last year, and they would just camp
everybody around a box and they would dare you. It
was like nineteen ninety five football, which nineteen nineties college
football is like there'd be two tight ends, it's a
full back, a wing back, and there would be twenty
(16:58):
guys in the box, and it will it's like, okay,
run against this, and yet you would, and you know,
people got smart and stopped doing that. And hopefully that's
what the Texans will be is smart and won't have
to do that, and they'll run. When they're looking for
a pass, they'll pass. We're looking for a run. We'll
put quarterbacks on the move. And I think that's gonna
end up being a really really good thing when you
put it all together. Now will happen week one? Don't know,
(17:20):
you know, new things take time, but hopefully in due
time they'll get to a point where this offense is
really really fun and effective to watch. Love it all.
Speaker 3 (17:28):
Right, Let's end with a Twitter question of the day.
The position group on this Texans team for twenty twenty
three heading into OTAs right now that looks to be
the strongest on paper is.
Speaker 4 (17:42):
Who I think the secondary? I think the secondary. You
can make a case that if you just said, give
me the top five players for the Texans right now,
who are your top five players? I mean, I think
one is layer. I mean Tunsel two through five will
probably be Damian Pierce, Jalen Petrie. Jalen Petree would be
(18:07):
in that mix, right, I mean I would. I would think,
you know, Shaq Mason, you know, is added to that mix.
I don't know how far down you get before you
get to Jimmy Ward. So now you're talking Petrie and Ward.
Those are your safeties. You had Stingley hopefully you know,
in a in a defensive scheme that will feature him
a little bit more and he'll play a full season.
(18:28):
Steven Nelson I thought was really really good. I don't
think that's talked about enough. I don't think he's talked
about how good Stephen Nelson was last year. And then
you acte Quille Griffin to the mix just this past weekend.
So now you're talking about a secondary that's.
Speaker 2 (18:40):
Not Desmond King and Tavier or Thomas right.
Speaker 4 (18:42):
Detroit duo guys that have been really good for the
last couple of years. You now have, I think bordering
on elite players, and you now have depth. Now it's
a matter of that pass rush, John Grenard, Chase Winovich,
Jerry Hughes, Wille Anderson making sure that they get to
the quarterback to allow that secondary to make even more
(19:04):
plays than they did last year.
Speaker 5 (19:05):
So I think that secondary to me is.
Speaker 4 (19:09):
I mean, it's tough because I think the offensive line,
with the addition of Shack Mason and I think Kenyan
Green's gonna turn that corner this year. And I think
Kenyan was on the verge of doing it last year,
but he got hurt in that Raiders game and I
don't think he's ever right after that. So I think
Kenyan Green fully healthy, Shack Mason the fold. I think
the offensive lines got an opportunity. Now we got to
see you play center and how that center adapts to
(19:29):
potentially having a rookie behind and c J. Stroud or
you know whomever a new quarterback to them. So at
that point, I think the offensive could be there. But
I just look at the secondary and think, boy, that
unit went from being absolutely got awful in twenty twenty
one to being better but not all the way there
in twenty twenty two, to being potentially really good in
twenty twenty three. And again to your point, you're bringing
(19:52):
up Dez and Tab and I brought up you know
guys before that. That's seven guys that have you know
had experience in this league. Guys have gone to pro
or highly rated draft picks or you know, high draft picks.
Just when you think you have enough, you need a
little bit more. When you think it's not enough, you're
in a lot of trouble. I think this group you
(20:13):
look at and go play. I mean, they get seven
guys for five spots. What are they gonna do? No,
that's exactly what you need. Yeah, this is exactly what
you need to be good in the secondary.
Speaker 2 (20:21):
Let me add to this.
Speaker 3 (20:22):
You you brought up mainly the talent and who's there,
which I think is that's what I was asking and
that's perfect.
Speaker 2 (20:29):
And I'll add to this.
Speaker 3 (20:31):
They're probably all going to be put into a scheme
and a defense that's going to be more advantageous for
them and for everyone around them. I think it's going
to be more helpful, which I think will only make
that secondary look better and be better.
Speaker 4 (20:43):
So absolutely, man, you throw all that together, you throw
in good coaching, good scheme, with some top notch players,
and you got an opportunity to have to have something. Now.
I don't know that people would look at the past
defense last year and go, oh, that was the big issue.
Speaker 5 (20:58):
It wasn't.
Speaker 4 (20:59):
It wasn't the biggest you Stopping the run is and
I think they've done a lot to bolster it. When
you talk about Seldon Rankins and Son Ridgeway being added,
some leade Collins, Roy Lopez, et cetera. Then you put
Will Anderson on the edge, also bringing in Chase Winovich.
You've made a lot of additions up front.
Speaker 5 (21:16):
Two.
Speaker 4 (21:16):
I think maybe the biggest might be Desnen Pairman at linebacker,
Denzel Peraman at linebacker.
Speaker 5 (21:20):
That group better stop the run.
Speaker 4 (21:22):
Yeah, Karen simple, you said, what's one thing they have
to do.
Speaker 5 (21:25):
That's it.
Speaker 4 (21:26):
They've got to stop the run to allow that secondary
to go make plays on the ball to stay out
of it. We can't have another year where two safeties
lead this team in tackles. Now, JP five is going
to be in there lit because that's just the way
he plays the game, and he's gonna.
Speaker 5 (21:40):
Make a lot of tackles.
Speaker 2 (21:41):
Yeah, but you don't.
Speaker 5 (21:42):
Yeah, that volume was just ridiculous.
Speaker 4 (21:44):
That can't happen. It's got to be Paraman, It's got
to be Chritian Harrit's got to be a linebacker the
lead a team in tackles or safeties are back there
making plays, but they've.
Speaker 5 (21:52):
Got to help in the run defense too.
Speaker 4 (21:54):
It's not like, you know, Jayala Petrie can't have eighty
five tackles this year. You know, he's got to be
one hundred tackle guy, but he can't be one hundred
and fifty or whatever it was. That's ridiculous. That can't happen.
Speaker 3 (22:03):
John Harris, always good to be with you, my friend.
Grow from the flat, not from the mound.
Speaker 4 (22:08):
There.
Speaker 2 (22:08):
We'll see you next time on Texans in the Lab.
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