The Houston Texans have spent plenty of time with the ball this season, and haven't been terrible moving it down the field, but no team in the NFL has been less effective at finding the end zone and coach Bill O'Brien believes it's time for a change.
O'Brien will take over play-calling duties from offensive coordinator George Godsey for Sunday's game against the Tennessee Titans, the Houston Chronicle reported Friday.
O'Brien had called plays in 2014, his first season at the helm in Houston, before handing those duties off to Godsey last year. O'Brien previously spent four years calling plays for the Patriots during his time on Bill Belichick's staff before becoming head coach at Penn State.
MORE: NFL Week 4 picks — how will Texans fare without Watt?
Clearly something has to happen to shake up the Texans' offense, which is coming off a 27-0 loss at New England in which it didn't even manage to reach the red zone. That obviously was a low point, but this is an ongoing issue for Houston. The numbers are stark:
The Texans have a league-worst three touchdowns this season, all of them via Brock Osweiler passes. Their 14 points per game average is tied with Tennessee for the worst in the NFL. They have reached the red zone just seven times in three games and come away with one TD from those trips for a 14.3 percent conversion rate that is last in the league.
Asked Thursday by reporters about the Texans' red-zone woes, O'Brien chalked it up to lack of opportunity.
“We haven’t been there enough," he said. "That’s what I see as a common thread. We haven’t been in the red zone.”
FANTASY: NFL Week 4 defensive rankings
For whatever reason, the Osweiler-led offense hasn't been able to get over that hump. The Texans actually rank fifth in the NFL in time of possession at 33:53 per game, but until they can actually do something with that time besides give their defense a breather, they won't make much progress.
"For us, it’s doing everything better," Godsey told reporters Thursday. "It’s coaching better. It’s executing better. As a unit, that’s been our battle cry this week.”
