The Houston Texans 2020 season opener vs the Kansas City Chiefs was not what every Texan fan hoped for. One thing I did not expect to see, was the Chiefs dominate on the ground. So, let's take a look at both run games, and the turning point in the game, where everything went wrong. Make sure to check out the YouTube breakdown (linked at end) complimenting this article!

WE ARE BACK EVERYBODY! After taking some much needed weeks off, this series is back in action for the 2020 season. If you haven't checked it out, here at Texans Unfiltered, I have rewatched and broken down every single Deshaun Watson game in a Houston Texans uniform.

You can find it all, ever since his first game vs. the Jacksonville Jaguars, up until the most recent Kansas City Chiefs playoff game. All his greatness is documented for you to enjoy! But now, let's get into the breakdown of our Week 1 matchup with the Chiefs. Watson finished 20/32 for 253 yards, with 1 TD and 1 INT. That's what the stats say about his performance; let's see what the film says.

Going in-depth in Houston Texans' newest tight end, Pharoah Brown, and how he fits heading into Week 2.

The Houston Texans have a lot to improve after a shaky start to their season with a disappointing defeat to the Kansas City Chiefs.

Kyle goes through Week 2 bets you will want to lock in before kickoff as the Houston Texans face the Baltimore Ravens, and we recap some of our prior bets from Week 1.

The Houston Texans have continued to fill out their practice squad after their Week 1 and there are interesting names to keep an eye on as the season progresses.

First of all, No DeAndre Hopkins’ Slander Allowed! Let’s crush this narrative that he was on the decline with the Houston Texans. Hopkins has shown no signs of slowing down. There's not a single statistic, advanced or traditional, that indicates any dropoff in play. No Houston Texans coach or NFL coach ever stated that he “lost a step” or “was no longer elite”. Hopkins is a Hall of Fame level talent and he will continue to produce as such.

Both AFC heavyweights will matchup in the season opener after a slugfest in the playoffs that resulted in the Kansas City Chiefs defeating the Houston Texans down the stretch.

Kyle goes through the season bets you will want to lock in prior to kickoff Thursday, and some interesting pro Texans bets for Week 1 against the Kansas City Chiefs

After powering through QB purgatory, Houston Texans fans have seen the light at the end of the tunnel, in the form of Deshaun Watson. A true savior for an otherwise uninspiring franchise. With Deshaun, there is always a shred of hope, that no team is unbeatable, no conquest unwinnable, and no triumph unachievable. Since his time at Clemson, to his rookie year and now going into the 2020 season, Watson has improved drastically, to the point where he has a surprisingly great shot at winning the MVP this season. In this article we’ll break down why that shouldn’t come as such a surprise.

The Houston Texans have made the necessary moves to get their 53 man roster ready for Week 1 against the Kansas City Chiefs.

The Houston Texans have several important decisions to make with the NFL mandating teams to have rosters set for the regular season on Saturday afternoon

As a brief introduction, I'm Kyle...nice to meet you! I've been betting on sports since my father started taking me to Pimlico Race Course in Baltimore (home of the Preakness) in the late 1980s. Over the years, I've tried for just over 50% of my bets. While this sounds terrible, it's actually decent for an amateur (for context, pro gamblers aim for about a 55% win rate or better... here's a good explanation:

https://drbobsports.com/sports-betting-as-an-investment/

If you're new to sports gambling or need a refresher, I'll give my picks as either "moneyline" or "spread" bets. Moneyline bets are posted as a +/- figure, with + bets less likely and - bets more likely to hit. For example, a +250 money line bet would win $250 plus the original $100 back for a $100 bet. Spread bets describe a handicap given to the underdog and favorite. For example, a theoretical Texans-Dolphins matchup with the Texans a heavy favorite might be posted as Texans -10.5, Dolphins...

The Houston Texans have put together an interesting core of players in the last two offseasons that have an interesting common denominator, Bruce Arians and the Arizona Cardinals.

The optimism surrounding the Houston Texans is most definitely on offense, particularly the passing offense. Most of the attention heads towards Deshaun Watson and the great veteran receivers around him. But if we know BOB, he'll still be leaning heavily on the run game. Every offense needs balance, and it's important not to forget about David, Duke Johnson, and the offensive line, when projecting our offense for 2020. So, let's analyze the starters, depth and the symbiotic relationship between these two aspects.

After a thrilling comeback win against the Buffalo Bills, the Houston Texans marched to Arrowhead Stadium to take on the explosive Kansas City Chiefs. I understand your concern and worry about reliving this game, but you can learn more from your losses than your wins. Reviewing the Bills game last week, it was clear that Deshaun Watson learned a lot from his first playoffs loss against the Indianapolis Colts in 2018. As much as we all want to wipe this game from our memory, I'm sure he will follow the same suit with this Chiefs loss and not make the same mistakes. The defense gets a lot of blame for this game, but after the first quarter, the offense only put up 7 points throughout the rest of the game, let's see what went right, and what went wrong.

Every NFL team every year has at least one or two breakout players, that make a huge jump in development and provide a much-needed boost. Last year you could point to Gareon Conley on the defensive side of the ball, and Nick Martin on the offensive side of the ball for the Texans. Two players who had a horrible reputation before the 2019 season; but were still young and had reason for promise that would finally be seen. This year the Texans are banking on internal development, and having as many breakout players as possible would obviously be highly welcomed. So in this article I will give you my thoughts on who I believe is most likely to breakout. Enjoy!

Winning the division is great and all, but the Houston Texans have their eyes set on more. We hadn't got past the 1st round since 2016, where we beat the Connor Cook led Oakland Raiders. This Bills team was no juggernaut, but certainly a better test than those Raiders. Every media "expert" predicted the Bills to win this matchup. They built a young, tough defense, and were led by the erratic but promising Josh Allen. Could Deshaun Watson pickup his first playoff win? He finished with 20/25 for for 247 yards and 1 passing TD. Adding 55 rushing yards and a rushing TD too. Let's see what the film has to say about his performance.

Our Houston Texans have won the AFC South 4 out of the 6 years BOB has been Head Coach. It's something that BOB himself takes pride in, along with his stans. While it's certainly great to win the division, and I agree that we could be in a lot worse situation, being the Browns of the NFL, for example. Winning the AFC South is not enough. Now that we've established ourselves as perennial threats for the division, we have to take that next step. This is no longer and accomplishment to hang our hats on. We should not be content with being above average. We need greatness. We need rings. We need the Super Bowl. So how do we get there? Let's discuss.

After one of the most monumental wins in Houston Texans history against the New England Patriots, everything in Texans land seemed joyous. We had beaten the elite, slain the giants, Bellichick who? The entire team seemed to click, and at a perfect time too, with the season nearing its end. Next up would be the Denver Broncos, Tennessee Titans, Tampa Bay Buccaneers, and the Titans again, to end it. Let's dive into the film and see how Quarterback Deshaun Watson played.

After a rollercoaster of an offseason, the Houston Texans offense is primed for more success than the media/public are giving us. After ranking 14th in the NFL in points per game with 23.6 why would BOB trade our best offensive weapon? Losing DeAndre Hopkins certainly looks like a loss on paper, and while I would love for him to still be on the team, he’s not, and we have to move on. Losing him shouldn’t stop you from getting excited about the WRs we do have on the team. Those WRs were brought in to help accentuate Deshaun Watson’s best talents. The WRs, the OL and even the RBs and TEs surrounding Watson is the best cast of sidekicks he’s ever had. On paper, we’ve got the looks of an elite offense and this article will explain how they can all work together to form a top 3 unit in the NFL. I want to ask you a question, when you look back at the last 5 or 6 years of Texans history, what were the main reasons for our lack of offensive success? For me it was atrocious Quarterback play, garbage Offensive Linemen, and a lack of depth from our weapons. Fast forward to 2020 and all...

Houston Texans OLB/DE Whitney Mercilus has long been one of the more underrated EDGE defenders. Drafted by the Texans back in 2012 with the 26th overall pick, Merc is one of the longer tenured guys on the team. His veteran leadership is something that is very tough to put a price on, but a huge reason for his new 54m dollar contract. In terms of on the field talent, Merc has always thrived as the Robin to a Batman. His success as a pass rusher depends a lot on the players around him, and that's okay, we just need to put him in a position to succeed. This article will look to explore how we can do so, to maximize his talents, by looking at his most recent tape in the 2019 season.

For most NFL franchises, you can look back and find one decision made by the front office that is considered the moment where everything changed.

Much has been made of the "worst" offseason in the NFL, that the Houston Texans have supposedly had. Media "experts" will tell you that no team can recover from losing their star Wide Receiver, and that incompetent Head Coach/General Manager, Bill O'Brien has no right to hold the position of power he has. While I am not a BOB fan whatsoever; I can thoroughly hate some of the bold moves he's made, while also entertaining and understanding his vision to "do what's best for the T.E.A.M". While the Texans are regularly ranked in the bottom 5-10 teams in the NFL, I'm here to share the case of why I still believe they will win the AFC South, over the Tennessee Titans, Indianapolis Colts, and Jacksonville Jaguars.

This week I break down the first four games of the Houston Texans 2019 season, through the lens of Quarterback Deshaun Watson. Games against the Saints, Jaguars, Chargers and Panthers seemed like a tough task at the time. After being bounced in the first round of the playoffs last year, Watson and the Texans were on a mission to prove themselves this year. Let's see how they started off the year and if they set a winning tone.

Houston Texans Wide Receiver Kenny Stills seems to be the forgotten man in our deep WR room. Him playing second, third or even fourth fiddle seems to be a theme throughout his career. But let me tell you that it has nothing to do with his talents on the field. After watching his 2019 film with the Houston Texans, I was shocked with just how good he is at literally everything. He's the most well-rounded WR on the team, and honestly since Andre Johnson. No, I'm not saying he's Dre, but whatever you ask Stills to do, he'll succeed.

The Houston Texans went on a legendary 9 game winning streak in 2018 and had made the playoffs, but none of that mattered if we couldn't defeat the Indianapolis Colts. I hate the Colts, I'm sure you hate the Colts, so let's see what went right and what went wrong for us in this AFC Wildcard game through the eyes of Quarterback Deshaun Watson.

The Houston Texans took an extremely aggressive approach to 4th downs last year, trusting Quarterback Deshaun Watson to make some magic. They were tied with Jacksonville for attempting the 4th most 4th downs in the NFL (25), and completed them at the 13th highest rate of 52%. BOB has long been passive on 4th downs, but now finally having a franchise QB in Watson that he can trust, he's completely changed his philosophy. Converting these 4th downs at a high rate is game changing, so let's take a look at three concepts the Texans leaned on to get the job done last year.

Houston Texans Quarterback Deshaun Watson should inspire confidence in any Texans fan, and if he doesn't, I think you're insane. He's improved so much since he entered the league but one thing has remained the same - his love for targeting receivers over the middle of the field.

In this weeks volume of Watson Watch I break down the film of the Colts, Jets, Eagles and Jaguars games. On a ridiculous 9 game winning streak the Houston Texans looked to keep it going and push the bounds of the impossible. The first test? The rival Indianapolis Colts come to Houston.

The Texans are in the middle of their best winning streak in franchise history. Last volume of Watson Watch looked at the start of the streak, and in this volume we continue it with wins against the Broncos, Redskins, Titans and Browns. Let's dive into the film through the lens of Deshaun Watson to see how he helped orchestrate this ridiculous winning streak.

For the first time in the BOB era the Houston Texans are actually returning all 5 starting Offensive linemen. This is huge for continuity which will lead to better communication and chemistry. When Laremy Tunsil, Max Scharping, Nick Martin, Zach Fulton and Tytus Howard were all healthy last year, the OL looked formidable. In part 1 of this series I looked at how this chemistry and communication helps the OL with double teams in the run game, and you can check out that article here: https://texansunfiltered.com/articles/the-importance-of-the-texans-returning-all-five-ol-pt-1

In part 2 I look at how this continuity will help them with stunts, something the right side of the line struggled with due to the revolving door at RT.

I was absolutely blessed for the opportunity to talk to the GOAT Jacob Martin of the Houston Texans. Talking to Texans players was one thing that I never imagined, but talking to my favorite player was truly a dream come true. We talk about what he's looking to improve on, his thoughts on Anthony Weaver, his time at Temple and being an underdog. Also the BLM matter movement, review his sacks from last year and a lot more. This was super fun and I hope y'all enjoy! Here's the video form of the interview.

Looking to completely turn their season around after starting 0-3, the Texans got their first W of the season against the Giants. You can see the breakdown of that game in the Volume 3, but today we are looking at the next 4 W's on this legendary winning streak. We beat the Cowboys, Bills, Jaguars and Dolphins. Three tough, close wins, then finally a dam burst and we exploded against the Dolphins. Let's dive into the film and see what happened from Watson's POV.

Much has been made of the Texans horrific offensive line in recent years. It has undoubtedly been an anchor weighing the team down. It is particularly worrisome when you finally find your franchise QB, and want to keep him upright at all costs. Preserving Deshaun Watson's health and elongating his career is of the utmost importance. Look at the Indianapolis Colts, who dealt with a similarly putrid OL for years, and quite literally destroyed the career of the talented Andrew Luck. It took them too long to fix it, and that's a problem the Texans couldn't possibly face as well.

We are back with another film review and this week we all took a look at a player who occupies one of our favorite positions to scout, cornerback, in Jaycee Horn. We all left relatively unimpressed with the film of Horn and thought that there were many things he had to work on before any of us called him a first round corner like many in the media have been saying. In this article, we give our thoughts on what we believe Horn did well and not so well in the form of a film review, hope you enjoy.

Houston Texans Safety Justin Reid is one of the key building blocks for this franchise. He had an extremely promising rookie season, and had a great sophomore year as well, especially when you consider he played through a tough shoulder injury all year. Now fully healthy, I expect J Reid to ball out and have a breakout year. His ability to cover all over the field, and be our best tackling DB, cannot be understated. Let's dive into his 2019 film.

Rashod Bateman was, simply put, the best wide receiver in the Big Ten last season. In a conference that included Rondale Moore, KJ Hamler, and Chris Olave, among others, that is certainly an impressive achievement and should give you an idea of just how good Bateman actually is.

Watson Watch returns with volume three kicking off the 2018 season. Volumes one and two looked at Deshaun Watson's 7 game rookie season. We saw how he started off shaky (as expected), but started to put on a show, and was on pace to break numerous records. Unfortunately the injury slowed that parade, and Watson was forced to miss the rest of the season. Sitting out games allowed him to watch more film, get more comfortable with the offense, and have a better understanding of NFL defenses. His sophomore campaign would be filled with highlights, and the growth he made from his rookie season cannot be understated. Let's dive into the season!

Safety Justin Reid was one of the biggest steals of the 2018 NFL Draft. The Houston Texans managed to get a 1st round talent out of Stanford, all the way in the 3rd round. His rookie season was extremely strong, amassing 88 tackles, 3 INTs, 10 PBUs, and much more. His impact on the field is masterful, but he's quickly become a leader on and off the field too. He's got to be one of the smartest players on the team, if not the smartest. In this article I will be breaking down his amazing rookie season. Part two of this series will be out Thursday and review his 2019 season, so be on the lookout for that too!

For the second year in a row, the edge rusher group in the NFL Draft is not great, but there are still guys worth checking out and one of those guys is Carlos Basham. His combination of size, speed, and agility make him an intriguing prospect for NFL teams to get acquainted with as the season progresses in 2020.

New Texans DC Anthony Weaver is bringing a level of excitement to the defense, and I've been trying to find out what he can change schematically. In part 1 of this series, I looked at what Weaver could take from mentor Rex Ryan. I focused on the strengths of the 4-3 Under, and 46 Bear defense, and looked at how it fit the Texans personnel. If you haven't checked out part 1, here is the link: https://texansunfiltered.com/articles/how-anthony-weaver-can-change-the-texans-defense-pt1

In part 2 I dive into the exotic blitz packages that Rex Ryan installed, and see how Weaver can use those same blitzes but with the Texans. Last week I wrote an article about the Texans 3rd down and long defense, and how it was MUCH better when we rushed more than 4 defenders (shocker). If Weaver can successfully employ some of these blitz packages, our defense will be much better as a result.

In the second volume of Watson Watch, I take a look at Watson's next and final three games in 2017 against the Chiefs, Browns and Seahawks. Watson showed tons of promise in these games, throwing a ridiculous 12 TDs in total. He was on pace to break numerous rookie records but it all unfortunately had to come to a pause. It was a crazy fun rookie season though, and will be interesting to look at how much he improves from it.

Texans DC Anthony Weaver is bringing a newfound energy, and he's said all the right things in his press conferences. He wants to put the players in the best situations for them to succeed and play an aggressive and exotic defense. But what does that really mean? In this article I look at Rex Ryan's defense, Weaver's mentor and the main figure for whom he's said to have schematic influence from. Part one of this series will analyze two defensive formations, and see how that can help us greatly in the run game. Part two released on Thursday will look at different blitzes Weaver could take from Ryan, and how that can help us in the passing game. But for now, let's see how he can add some of Ryan's scheme to the Texans, and what it would look like with our personnel.

In week two of our weekly film review that we do with YoungAriGold, we decided to take a look at Micah Parsons, the super talented linebacker from Penn State. We all left super impressed with his film and were comfortable calling him a top ten lock if he stays healthy and out of trouble this upcoming season. We grouped together some of his best plays and broke them down in this article for you guys, hope you enjoy.

Much like Andre Cisco, I sort of stumbled upon CJ Verdell and his abilities on the football field. Before he even enrolled in college, I knew about Verdell because my beloved Nebraska Cornhuskers were in his final three schools. When he didn’t end up picking Nebraska, he kind of fell off my radar until the 2020 draft process.

In this article I relive and break down Deshaun Watson's first four games as a Houston Texan. We get to see the highlights and lowlights of a rookie Quarterback in the NFL. Deshaun has come a long way from when he first entered the league. You should notice as a rookie, his fundamentals, mechanics, and decision making are not as elite as they are now, in 2020. This series will look to analyze and document the immense growth Deshaun has made, and how we should expect him to continue to improve. Enjoy.

I, and I'm sure many, have been frustrated with the Texans 3rd down and long defense. After watching every single Texans' 2019-2020 3rd down and long, I came away with some very interesting conclusions. To summarize; stop rushing only 3 defenders, and start rush 5+ defenders way more often. Our success rate in getting off the field on 3rd and long went way up, the more and more we rushed additional defenders. *Note: I classified "3rd and long" as 3rd and 8 or greater* In this article I will break down how our defense fared depending on how many defenders we rushed. And at the end, I look at RAC's "Prevent" defense on 3rd and long, and really see if it was effective or not. Enjoy the read!

Also, shoutout to @CobosQue! Cobo's was started 7 years ago and has really taken off, whether it is Arian Foster stopping by to grab some dillas, or other Houstonians trying to get there BBQ fix Cobo's has become a staple in the Houston community. Always fresh, never reheated. Taking pride in bbq, as it should be.

Special Orders, Big Orders welcomed.

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