Brock Osweiler had another bad game in a terrible first season with the Texans. Seeing how he performed during Monday night's 27-9 blowout loss at Denver, it's apparent that Osweiler hit a new career low during his short tenure his new team.
But benching him during a 4-3 start? That would only compound an expensive problem. Sticking with him is the only short-term choice the Texans have, because neither Tom Savage nor Brandon Weeden is one.
Osweiler was highly inaccurate and inefficient throwing the ball everywhere (22 of 41, 131 yards passing, no TDs, sack, fumble lost, 60.1 passer rating). His 3.2 yards per attempt was even more glaring when you consider Houston averaged 5.6 yards per carry rushing.
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The reality is, facing his former team on the road and a Broncos' defense ready for reneging revenge, Osweiler was doomed before kickoff. In comes his much cheaper holdover replacement, Trevor Siemian, not needing to do much to outplay him, leaning on a dominant running game. Osweiler, fresh off leading an impressive late rally against a bad Colts defense to help the Texans win a key division game last week, went back to proving how horrible a long-term investment he was and could be for Houston.
The Texans also again learned how far they are from being a "playoff contender," getting whipped by the reigning AFC West and Super Bowl champions. Being the best of the worst in the AFC South means jack. They already learned that last season.
But because they play in that division, it's also an opportunity to get Osweiler to a consistent, competent playing level, knowing even with him playing this poorly, they can punch a playoff ticket. Barring their season turning into an injury-riddled disaster, the Texans, still a solid 4-3, will repeat as AFC South champs, as they are still most trustworthy overall in relation to Indianapolis, Tennessee and Jacksonville.
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Think of it as flipping a money pit of a house, but instead of making a profit, the objective now will be keeping from getting more underwater with the 6-8 Osweiler. They can't afford to think any other way with Osweiler.
They've at least figured out that their actual smart free-agent pickup, running back Lamar Miller, is the key to their offense, and when needed, Alfred Blue can be good enough, too — when he's not losing a game-changing fumble in Denver.
Although there were some blind signing elements to how Osweiler ended up in Houston, there was obviously something general manager Rick Smith and coach Bill O'Brien saw in Osweiler to think he could be worth it. They were smart enough to draft a speedy field-stretcher, rookie wide receiver Will Fuller, to try to make better use of Osweiler's best trait, a strong down-field arm out of the pocket.
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Oweiler can be better than this, as we saw the Broncos, when he gets the right complementary coaching to help mask his weaknesses and highlight his strengths. It's on O'Brien and his offensive staff to figure that out, much like Gary Kubiak did with Osweiler in 2015.
The difference is Kubiak inherited Osweiler, before he and John Elway teamed to use draft picks on Siemian — a 2015 seventh-round pick — and 2016 first-round pick Paxton Lynch, two passers who fit the Broncos' system better. O'Brien and the Texans both actively pursued and acquired Osweiler, and O'Brien needs to tap into that once ultra-creative offensive mind he possessed while on the sidelines in New England. It's the only way to make Osweiler look better.
There seemed to be a near-epiphany the past few weeks, incorporating more multiple athletic tight ends into the mix. C.J. Fiedorowicz, Ryan Griffin and rookie Stephen Anderson (drawing a key pass interference) all had their moments on Monday night. Fiedorowicz came up with the game-tying TD last Sunday night with Fuller out.
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There's a whole lot of forcing the ball to DeAndre Hopkins now that must change until the on-field chemistry gets better. Osweiler threw the ball in Hopkins' direction a dozen times in Denver, but it added up to only 5 catches for 35 yards. Whether it's more tight ends or spreading the field with extra wide receivers, namely Braxton Miller and Jaelen Strong, the Texans need to work to get Osweiler out of telepathically telegraphing his passing plans. Moving around Hopkins more would also help.
As Osweiler has often struggled to get into a rhythm and get the ball out quickly in games, mixing up some more up-tempo and no-huddle offensive schemes in non-obvious, non-trailing situations can help. O'Brien, as the play-caller and schemer, has all of this in his repertoire to light a fire under Osweiler.
Reported tension between Osweiler and O'Brien may be a bit exaggerated. It's no more than any offensive-minded coach demanding a high level of execution from his quarterback and being disappointed when he doesn't get it. Besides, they need each other more than ever to make sure they can maintain their current jobs.
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With $37 million guaranteed going to Osweiler over this and next year as part of his four-year, $72 million deal, the Texans with stuck to him as a starter for a little while. They need to make the most of him.
The optimist would say, Osweiler still has come up with the plays when necessary to dispatch weaker competiiton, and it's not unusual to see still developing passers struggle in road games against very good defenses. The fact that Houston has drawn trips to New England, Minnesota and Denver early is much tougher than what it has left.
The Raiders and Packers' struggling pass defenses are the two non-division road games ahead of Osweiler. The Lions, Chargers and Jaguars are the next three at home, all favorable matchups for everything in the Texans' offense.
Winning in '16 without or despite Osweiler aren't options. Going all in to help prop him up, is.
Osweiler needs to do a lot to live up to the contract he got from the Texans, and at this point, he's already way behind in getting close to realizing that hype. But it would be a mistake to not let him try to earn what he's really worth.
