In a frustrating season, in a losing cause, Texans’ Dameon Pierce breaks loose for 98-yard kickoff return for a score

HOUSTON – Dameon Pierce has endured a frustrating season without complaint, exercising silence and restraint during a year where his status on the depth chart, workload and productivity have all declined.

One year after being named a Pro Bowl alternate as one of the top rookie running backs, Pierce has been relegated to a complementary role behind starting running back Devin “Motor” Singletary -- and has cheered on his teammate while his numbers have taken a hit.

On Sunday, Pierce reminded everyone in the NFL how explosive and powerful he can be toting a football in the open field.

Pierce returned a kickoff 98 yards for a touchdown during a 36-22 loss to the Cleveland Browns at NRG Stadium, aggressively attacking the middle of the field in a structured return before cutting to his right toward the sideline and running away from pursuit. The Buford, Georgia native wasn’t going to be caught -- especially by Browns kicker Dustin Hopkins, who injured his hamstring chasing after Pierce in vain. He got shoved at the 2-yard line by linebacker Charlie Thomas II and dove into the end zone.

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It was one of the few bright spots during a setback to the Texans’ playoff outlook, and the touchdown got the Texans on the scoreboard after the Browns opened up a 14-0 lead following a 75-yard touchdown pass from Joe Flacco to Amari Cooper.

The touchdown from Pierce, who rushed for 939 yards as a rookie last season and earned the NFL Angry Run of the Year award, is just the third kickoff return for a score this year and the second by the Texans after fullback Andrew Beck’s 85-yard return against the Jacksonville Jaguars.

“Dameon gave us the spark we needed, he gave us the spark to get us back into the game,” Texans coach DeMeco Ryans said. “Putting him back there at the kickoff return is something we explored throughout the week, and he did a really good job of practicing it. And, he showed up. He showed up and made a big-time play for us to spark our entire team. Proud of Dameon and what he was able to do for us today.”

Pierce has rushed for 394 yards and two touchdowns this season. He had a season-high 24 carries for 81 yards in a win over the Pittsburgh Steelers on Oct. 1 and 20 runs for 66 yards against the Atlanta Falcons the following week. He injured his ankle against the Carolina Panthers, missing nearly a month of action before returning.

Pierce, a fourth-round draft pick from Florida, hasn’t been as strong a fit in a San Francisco 49ers style zone-based running scheme as he was in a more straightforward offense a year ago. He’s averaging 2.9 yards per carry.

“It’s a completely different offense than he was in before,” Texans offensive coordinator Bobby Slowik said Thursday. “It takes time.”

Pierce rushed for 4.3 yards per carry as a rookie with four touchdown runs.

“New offense, so it’s really like another rookie year for me,” Pierce said earlier this season. “Complete overhaul from top to bottom. Completely new identity, whole new philosophy, just trying to find out how I can make plays within the system

“At the end of the day, we’re a lot more detailed than last year, two different offenses. It comes from the 49ers, those guys got a winning tradition, those guys know how to win, they know exactly how to run the ball. They know exactly what they want, they know how they want it.”

Aaron Wilson is a Texans and NFL reporter for KPRC 2 and click2houston.com.