The Houston Texans dropped their fourth straight game, this time falling to the Dallas Cowboys at home in another disappointing loss.
The offense did its job, putting 30 points on the board and giving Houston the lead late in the fourth quarter. At some point, that should be enough to win a football game.
The problem this season hasn’t been the offense nearly as much as it has been the defense. In three of their first four games, the Texans’ offense put the team in a position to close the game, and the defense didn’t deliver when it mattered most.
That has a lot to do with considering how much talent Houston has on that side of the ball. This is a unit filled with elite players at several positions, and coming into the season, defense is expected to be one of this team’s biggest strengths. Instead, they struggle a lot during the first four weeks.
The most frustrating part is how these games disappear. Houston had opportunities late in games to pull away and come away with a win, but they consistently failed to do so. When you’re trying to compete with the best teams in the AFC, those are the situations where your best players have to step up.
Many of Houston’s issues this season can also be traced back to coaching. Whether it’s questionable decisions, a lack of adjustments, or simply not getting enough from a very good roster, something is clearly not working.
At this point, it looks like changes will have to be made in an attempt to save the season before it’s too late. An 0-4 start doesn’t completely end your season, but the margin for error is now very small, and Houston can’t afford to keep making the same mistakes week after week.
This team is too talented to go without a win in four games, especially considering three of those games were played at home.
There is still a lot of football left to be played, but ultimately, talent on paper has to translate into wins. For the Texans, that needs to happen soon.