Article by bighoss34 and AgentWD40.
Originally published at reddit.com/r/BattleRedBlogRefugees.

We feel like the defensive roster has more questions than the offense. We added a DT, OLB, and a slot corner in the draft, signed three safeties in free agency, and have claimed/signed a couple of big bodies for the line. We’ll also need to flesh out the special teams groups with DBs and linebackers after cutting DeAndre Carter and Buddy Howell from the offense…

CB (6): Bradley Roby, Gareon Conley, Lonnie Johnson, Vernon Hargreaves, John Reid, Keion Crossen

Last Cut: Phillip Gaines (possible IR stash?)

We are returning two legit outside corners in the re-signed Bradley Roby (who seems to be excited about his new leadership role) and a contract year Gareon Conley. Roby was solid last season and dropped at least two sure fire pick-sixes, including one early in the Bills playoff game. Conley came over week eight and stepped right into the starting lineup, leading the league in pass breakups for the second half of the season, so it should be nice to see him more familiar with the team this year. Lonnie Johnson will be competing to the be third corner with Vernon Hargreaves. Both took their lumps last season, with Hargreaves adjusting to our system on the fly at slot and Lonnie getting torched in the playoffs (damn you, Travis Kelce!!!). Lonnie is a big body on the outside when Roby moves into the slot, and John Reid will be learning the system and eventually competing with Hargreaves at slot corner. If the team cuts DeAndre Carter as we projected, Reid might be asked to compete at kick or punt returner. Keion Crossen is a ST standout who will continue to be active on gamedays.

S (5): Justin Reid, Eric Murray, Michael Thomas, AJ Moore, Jaylen Watkins

Last Cut: Jonathan Owens

Yeah, we know. Five safeties may seem like a lot, but our defense does traditionally like to run a lot of three-safety looks, and based on precedent, keeping five is actually fairly typical for this team. Anyway, Justin Reid played last season with a torn labrum, and without the injury, he arguably would have been a Pro Bowler. Reid ought to star in Anthony Weaver’s defense as a playmaker, and we should expect more sacks, TFLs, and interceptions in 2020. The Eric Murray signing was a head-scratcher when you consider how high above market it appears we paid, but reports from camp have been strong, so hopefully he’s a good fit opposite Reid as our high safety. He’ll probably get some opportunities playing nickel and covering TEs as well (damn you again, Travis Kelce!!!). Michael Thomas is a former Pro Bowl ST player and should be our third safety. AJ Moore was one of our top ST players in 2019 and has been getting solid reviews in camp, while Watkins can be a decent dime cover guy.

ILB (3): Zach Cunningham, Benardrick McKinney, Dylan Cole, Tyrell Adams

Last Cut: Peter Kalambayi

Look for Cunningham to establish himself as the alpha dog on the second level for the team this year. Hopefully we can get him extended before the season starts, because if Cunningham can improve in coverage, we may be forced to use the franchise tag to keep him around next offseason. McKinney chipped in over 100 tackles for the third time in his last four seasons and should continue to anchor our run defense in the second level. Hopefully Weaver can be more creative in getting sack opportunities to these two guys. It’s worth noting that McKinney is coming off ankle cleanup surgery in February, which should allow him to move better in space, but continued health will obviously be a concern. And speaking of health, perpetual IR candidate Dylan Cole was recently activated from the PUP list. He’s fun to watch when he’s actually on the field, but thus far, those flashes have been few and far between. It was difficult choosing between Tyrell Adams and Peter Kalambayi for the final spot: Kalambayi is more versatile in that he can play both ILB and OLB, but Adams was pretty solid filling in for McKinney last season, and we may need more of a pure ILB with both McKinney and Cole coming back from injuries, so Adams made our cut. Also, don’t forget that the Texans worked out former Bronco Brandon Marshal recently, and if one of our guys goes down (God forbid), he could feasibly be scooped up to take over that coverage LB role.

OLB (5): Whitney Mercilus, Jacob Martin, Jon Greenard, Brennan Scarlett

Last Cut: Davin Bellamy

Merc will continue to be our weak side 3-4 OLB and 4-3 DE. He played on 88% of our defensive snaps last year, although hopefully they scale that back a little to keep him fresh and allow him to be more explosive. Look for the Texans to be in 3-4 more often this season, as our third round pick Jon Greenard will be a major upgrade at OLB to last year’s starter Brennan Scarlett. Greenard is a technician as a pass rusher, but he’s also a capable run defender who can drop into coverage. We predict Greenard will get more and more playing time as the season progresses, splitting snaps with Jacob Martin, who should remain our pass rush specialist from the strong side in 2020. He flashed late in the season with 3.5 sacks in weeks 12 to 14 and added another big one in the playoffs against the Bills. Last but not least, Brennan Scarlett will take the final spot as veteran depth and a ST contributor. Duke Ejiofor was previously a wild card, since he had reportedly remade his body, dropping about 20 pounds to improve his quickness and take pressure off that repaired Achilles’ tendon. Of course, then he tore his ACL, likely ending his career with the Texans before it ever really began.

DL (7): JJ Watt, Ross Blacklock, Charles Omenihu, Brandon Dunn, Angelo Blackson, Carlos Watkins, Albert Huggins

Last Cut: PJ Hall gets in shape on the PS/IR

Like most seasons, our defense hinges on the health of resident superhuman JJ Watt, who we pray still has a few solid seasons left before he commits full-time to a career as a Hollywood celebrity and/or women’s soccer groupie. We expect Weaver to finally start forcing Watt to take a few snaps off this season, thus allowing Blacklock and Omenihu to absorb some of that pounding in the trenches. One of those two should be lining up opposite Watt at 3-4 DE, with Brandon Dunn holding down the middle at NT. Angelo Blackson will return as a run stuffer, mostly in 4-3 formations, and Carlos Watkins will be competing with Albert Huggins and PJ Hall for one of the two final spots. Someone is likely getting stashed, and it could be PJ Hall beginning the season on IR. We’re guessing at this point that Albert Huggins gets the final spot. Of course, if BOB sacrifices a goat to the football gods and somehow figures out a way to bring Clowney back, we may have to rethink this whole damn thing.

Final (Random) Note: We keep losing all the dreadlocks on our team! What’s the deal with that? Clowney was traded. Hopkins was traded. Fuller cut his hair. Ejiofor got injured again. We’ve already predicted Buddy Howell and Peter Kalambayi being cut. Hell… Vernon Hargreaves better watch his ass.

Article by AgentWD40 and bighoss34.
Originally published at reddit.com/r/BattleRedBlogRefugees

Since the increase to a 55-man roster is a new game week tweak rather than a season long change, we’re going to assume the regular roster size will stand at 53. In order to increase the game day actives from 46 to 48, eight offensive linemen need to be active, so we’ll need to keep at least nine OL on the initial roster, with one or two on the Practice Squad as well. Anyway, without further ado, here are our roster predictions for the offensive side of the ball…

QB (2): Deshaun Watson, AJ McCarron

Last Cut: Alex McGough

Watson is easily a Top-10 (if not Top-5) QB, and last year AJ proved capable of holding down the fort for a week or two if needed, keeping the Titan’s game competitive even with multiple starters out. In light of the COVID pandemic, it initially seemed reasonable that we might keep three QBs on the roster in case we had a positive diagnosis at some point. However, due to the lack of any real offseason or training camp to adequately prepare and vet younger players, along with the success the NFL has had thus far in containing the virus, it seems unlikely that we’d use a roster spot on a guy like McGough (or any third-string QB, for that matter). It’s similarly unlikely that he’d get picked up by another team, so if he ends up being needed at some point (God forbid), then he should be available.

RB (4): David Johnson, Duke Johnson, Karan Higdon, Cullen Gillaspia

Last Cut: Buddy Howell

First of all, can we all just agree that David Johnson is looking mad swole right now? Okay, great. As for the third running back, it’s difficult to guess who the Texans will keep between Karan Higdon and Scottie Phillips. We’ve all seen glowing film reviews of Phillips, including Clyde Edwards-Helaire comparisons. Meanwhile, Higdon drew some excitement coming into camp in 2019, and he seems to be more of a between-the-tackles back (although not a typical power runner). Regardless, his college tape was littered with long gains busted off from the interior of the line, and with Hyde gone, we need a guy like that to pair with Johnson & Johnson, both of whom get a lot of their yards in space and as receivers. And that pushes Scottie to the Practice Squad. Cullen Gillaspia is probably the safe choice for ST ace over Buddy Howell. Aside from being the only FB on the team, he showed promise as a second level blocker last year in his few offensive snaps, and running backs coach Danny Barrett has already said he hopes to see Gilly in “a more prominent role” this season.

TE (3): Darren Fells, Jordan Akins, Kahale Warring

Last Cut: Dylan Stapleton

Most of us were a bit surprised when the Texans re-signed Darren Fells in the offseason, although he did score seven touchdowns and seemed to have a nice rapport with Watson as a check-down target when on the run. His two-year contract implies that Jordan Thomas (who barely saw the field last season) could be on his way out for a late-round draft pick to a team like the Miami Dolphins looking for a red-zone target. And since both Fells (Y) and Akins (F) are reliable options, we can afford to take a chance on Kahalekuiokalani Michael Wodehouse “Kahale” Warring (U), whose freak athleticism will hopefully translate onto the field this season. Also, he’d somehow end up with only the second longest name on the team, probably for the first time in his life. We know next to nothing about Stapelton, but it’s reasonable to assume that we’ll keep a TE on the Practice Squad.

WR (6): Will Fuller V, Brandin Cooks, Kenny Stills, Randall Cobb, Keke Coutee, Isaiah Coulter

Last Cut: DeAndre Carter

Despite the heartbreaking loss of DeAndre Hopkins, this is without a doubt the deepest receiver group we’ve ever had. Fuller, Cooks, and Stills are all speed demons who can take the top off any offense, and Cobb is the legit slot option this team has been fruitlessly seeking for ages. Now, despite being in BOB’s doghouse last season, we’re picking Coutee over Carter as the backup slot. Coutee’s problems thus far have apparently been more mental than physical, and reports from wide receivers coach John Perry indicate that he “came back with a great attitude” and that “he’s got such an internal fire” to keep getting better every day. So hopefully the kid out of Texas Tech will finally put it all together. Plus, we still haven’t forgiven Carter for that fumbled return against the Chiefs. As for the rookies, there’s a lot to like in Tyler Simmons’ college film as a returner, but as an UDFA, the lack of a real offseason will obviously hurt his chances to stand out. Coulter is kinda in the same boat, but since we did spend a draft pick on him (and he can also return kicks), he probably has a leg up.

OL (9): Laremy Tunsil, Max Scharping, Nick Martin, Zach Fulton, Tytus Howard, Rod Johnson, Senio Kelemete, Greg Mancz, Charlie Heck

Last Cut: Brent Qvale (possible IR stash?)

For the first time in years, we’ll be returning all five starters on the line, which actually could end up being one of the biggest strengths of this team. Crazy, right? However, since the guys in the trenches have the most likely chance of attrition due to COVID spread, let’s knock on wood and hope they all stay healthy. Trading up to grab Charlie Heck in the draft kinda came out of left field, but the team obviously sees a future swing tackle in this coach’s son. Either way, Rowdy Roddy Johnson probably has the inside track right now due to his experience in the system. Kelemete just signed a contract extension, and Mancz is our only true backup center, so both those guys are locks. Cordel Iwuagwu looks like a Practice Squad project, but he has decent length and size. We went ahead and dropped Qvale to make room on the roster for A.J. Moore (but we’ll discuss defense tomorrow).

Specialists (3): Kaimi Fairbairn (K), Bryan Anger (P), Jon Weeks (LS)

We went ahead and included these guys here, since they’re kind of obvious. Also, it gives us another opportunity to write “John Christian Kaʻiminoeauloameka’ikeokekumupa’a Fairbairn.”

Tomorrow… DEFENSE!!!

Chat it up. This is your Texans Chat daily thread. Here’s some Texans news from yesterday or maybe even from days before yesterday. Only excerpts have been used, and readers are encouraged to click the links to read the full article which supports the authors and organizations they represent.

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Texans Camp: OLB Duke Ejiofor Sustains Torn ACL
By Mike Fisher on Aug 14, 2020.

Houston Texans outside linebacker Duke Ejiofor – the Houston-area native who missed all of the 2019 NFL season due to a torn Achilles tendon a year ago – on Friday collided with horrible injury luck once again.

Ejiofor tore an anterior cruciate ligament at Friday’s training camp practice, as Aaron Wilson of the Houston Chronicle  is the first to report.

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Texans coach Bill O’Brien says practice is no different after giving up play-calling
by Mark Lane on Aug 16, 2020.

2020 is the first training camp since 2016 where Houston Texans coach Bill O’Brien is not calling the plays.

However, the seventh-year coach, who is doubling up as the team’s general manager, says that practices are still the same.

“I wouldn’t say that practice is too much different because even last year [offensive coordinator] Tim Kelly would relay the play in to Deshaun (Watson) quite a bit,” O’Brien said. “So Deshaun is very used to hearing Tim’s voice in the helmet.”