Texans v. Panthers: Bill O'Brien Officially Names Ryan Mallett Texans' Starting Quarterback

Ever since Ian Rapoport first reported that the Texans had decided to start Ryan Mallett at quarterback against the Panthers on Sunday, there was fear--admittedly, a fairly irrational and yet somehow sort of understandable fear--that the report was wrong, or that this was a ruse and Brian Hoyer would still run out on the field for the Texans' first offensive possession. That concern can now be put to rest, as Bill O'Brien (despite his earlier oath not to do so) publicly announced that Mallett would in fact be the Texans' starting quarterback on Sunday. Some tweets from that presser:

O'Brien on Mallett: "He's a decisive player. Let it rip and go play quarterback."

— Houston Texans (@HoustonTexans) September 17, 2015

O'Brien on QB situation: "You can't make a decision based on a relationship with a player. You have to base it on the 53-man roster."#Texans

— Deepi Sidhu (@DeepSlant) September 17, 2015

"When Ryan went into the game, he added a spark to our team."-Bill O'Brien.

— Drew Dougherty (@DoughertyDrew) September 17, 2015

O'Brien believes Mallett's oversleeping episode was a wake-up call for him. #PunsOnPuns #Texans

— Deepi Sidhu (@DeepSlant) September 17, 2015

O'Brien on whether or not Mallett will continue to start says he reserves the right to make position changes & this is Ryan's opportunity.

— Deepi Sidhu (@DeepSlant) September 17, 2015

Rest easy, Texans fans. Bill O'Brien has assured us that Ryan Mallett will be under center for that first offensive series on Sunday. Unless...

UNLESS THIS IS A TRICK, TOO. O'BRIEN LEAKED THE STORY ABOUT MALLETT STARTING, AND THEN CONFIRMED IT PUBLICLY, JUST TO THROW THE PANTHERS OFF THE TRAIL. CAROLINA WILL NEVER EXPECT IT. BRIAN HOYER IS STILL THE STARTER.

UPDATE (2:01 p.m. CDT): Bill O'Brien has identified the leak. I repeat, Bill O'Brien has identified the leak.

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