Texans 17, Saints 13: Who Stood Out on Offense?

The Houston Texans defeated the New Orleans Saints in their first pre-season game on Saturday night and there is a lot to unpack.

The Texans offense needed significant help going into this off-season and we will not know exactly how this team will look until week one when all of the starters and new additions are playing but there are certain things that you can tell will go right and wrong for this Texans team in 2022.

The offense was pretty tough to watch all night. Starting quarterback Davis Mills only played two drives and went 3-for-3 passing but did not sustain any long drives. Quarterback Kyle Allen is the backup and would have played quite a bit, but unfortunately had COVID-19 and was forced to miss the game, leading to third-string quarterback Jeff Driskel playing nearly the entire game.

Driskel had a tough night but delivered when it mattered the most. Driskel tossed a touchdown pass to wide receiver Jalen Camp early in the game and delivered a beautiful deep pass to the second-year pro again in the fourth quarter for a huge gain. Camp has had a good off-season and was the Texans best receiving threat in the preseason opener.

Another receiver that stood out for the Texans was rookie Johnny Johnson III. Johnson didn’t make much of an impact until the fourth quarter, when it mattered most. Johnson caught a pass from Driskel and looked like former Texan DeAndre Hopkins with his impressive double spin move that put the Texans in great field position. Johnson eventually caught the game winning touchdown pass and really showed out when given the opportunity.

The Texans offense needs a spark in the run game and they may have found their guy in Dameon Pierce. Pierce’s energy on the field was evident and he provided a spark to the Texans run game that was failing miserably before he entered the game. It is clear that Pierce is the Texans best running back on the roster.

The Texans offense was pretty rough for a majority of the night but still managed to get the job done and secure the win. Despite the inconsistency from the offense, there are a ton of young players to keep your eye on and look forward to moving forward. Allen will likely play a lot next week if he is cleared and things should operate a bit smoother.

The Texans face the Los Angeles Rams in their next preseason contest Friday night.