Former Texans wide receiver faces his former team

Matthew Stafford threw for 305 yards and three touchdowns in three quarters as the Los Angeles Rams dominated the inept Houston Texans in every way in a 38-22 win.

Houston quarterback Davis Mills tied a franchise record by throwing four interceptions last week.

Linebacker Tremaine Edmunds had the first of Buffalo’s four interceptions, and the Bills suffocated the offensively inept Houston Texans 40-0.

The undefeated Carolina Panthers and their top-ranked defense will face a rookie making his first NFL start for the second time this season Thursday against Davis Mills and the Houston Texans.

Tyrod Taylor threw for 291 yards and two touchdowns filling in for Deshaun Watson to lead the Houston Texans to a 37-21 win over Trevor Lawrence and the mistake-prone Jacksonville Jaguars.

PLANO, Texas – The top high school football stars have been recognized in week 2 of the 2021 Built Ford Tough Texas High School Football Player of the Week program. Now in its sixteenth year, the program is back again. Since 2006, the program has recognized outstanding student-athletes. The program has celebrated many future college and professional standouts during their Texas high school careers.

The Houston Texans begin camp with quarterback Deshaun Watson's status overshadowing everything else.

HOUSTON – The Houston Texans entered the 2021 season with a dire salary-cap situation, projected more than $13 million over the cap (via/OverTheCap.com) coming off a 4-12 season. Here’s a look at some of the other players that the Texans could lose before the 2021 season as casualties of salary cap gymnastics. Once arguably the best running back in the game, in 2016, Johnson was paid $12 million to rush for 691 yards in 2021. AdIn 2021, Johnson is set to have a salary cap number of about $8.5 million. Total Savings: $6.4 millionPOSSIBLE RESTRUCTURESWR Brandin CooksCooks has a $12 million cap hit in 2021 with zero dead money.

Tennessee Titans running back Derrick Henry (22) breaks away from Houston Texans defensive end Charles Omenihu (94) during the second half of an NFL football game Sunday, Jan. 3, 2021, in Houston. (AP Photo/Sam Craft)HOUSTON – The Tennessee Titans won the AFC South on Sunday. All it took was Derrick Henry surpassing 2,000 yards rushing and rookie Sam Sloman’s 37-yard field goal that bounced off the upright and through for a 41-38 victory over the Houston Texans. The Titans then capped a long drive with a 5-yard TD run by Ryan Tannehill with less than two minutes remaining. Henry had put the Titans on top 10-3 when he dashed 52 yards early in the second quarter.

Houston Texans defensive end J.J. Watt leaves the field after a losing an NFL football game against the Cincinnati Bengals Sunday, Dec. 27, 2020, in Houston. HOUSTON – The Houston Texans have been bad all season. Sunday was the third time in the past four games the Texans have had a chance to win or tie a game late but lost a fumble instead. “And in my mind, for me, he brings a high level of hope for us to be able to win a game. The Titans beat the Texans 42-36 in overtime in Week 6 behind a 212-yard rushing performance from Derrick Henry.

It’s the first road win for second-year coach Zac Taylor and the first time the Bengals (4-10-1) won away from Cincinnati since a 37-36 victory at Atlanta on Sept. 30, 2018. The Texans tied it on a 4-yard touchdown run by Johnson on their next possession. The Bengals had a chance to add to their lead in the second quarter, but Seibert’s 49-yard field-goal attempt was wide left. INJURIESBengals: CB William Jackson sustained a concussion in the second quarter. LT Laremy Tunsil injured his foot in the second quarter and didn’t return.

Indianapolis Colts wide receiver Zach Pascal (14) makes a catch under pressure from Houston Texans free safety Eric Murray (23) in the first half of an NFL football game in Indianapolis, Sunday, Dec. 20, 2020. (AP Photo/Darron Cummings)INDIANAPOLIS – Indianapolis Colts linebacker Darius Leonard made his final punch count Sunday. Bobby Okereke recovered the skittering ball in the end zone for the Colts' second win in three weeks over the Texans — in almost the exact same way. Watson answered by marching the Texans to the Colts 21. Sanchez punted in that week's game, a loss to Tennessee.

(AP Photo/Aaron Doster)Dallas running back Ezekiel Elliott is inactive against San Francisco with a calf injury the two-time rushing championship has been battling for several weeks. Safety Deon Bush (foot) is also out after being listed questionable with Johnson. Cowboys: RB Ezekiel Elliott, QB Ben DiNucci, WR Malik Turner, CB Rashard Robinson, DE Bradlee Anae, LB Luke Gifford, DE Ron’Dell Carter. ___JACKSONVILLE AT BALTIMOREJaguars: CB Sidney Jones, CB Luq Barcoo, LB Quincy Williams, DT Daniel Ross, QB Jake Luton. Ravens: DE Calais Campbell, CB Jimmy Smith, CB Marcus Peters, RB Mark Ingram, LB Kristian Welch, DE Jihad Ward, C Trystan Colon-Castillo.

Micah Potter scored 20 points and Aleem Ford added 12 to lead the Badgers an 85-48 non-conference victory over short-handed No. Louisville (4-1), playing its first road game, originally had been scheduled to play at Wisconsin on Dec. 9. Trevor Anderson added 11 points and Brad Davison 10 for Wisconsin (6-1), which rolled to a 44-18 halftime lead. “Obviously really pleased with the way we played,” Wisconsin coach Greg Gard said. Wisconsin finished the half 10 of 17 beyond the arc, including three each by Trice and Davison.

Daniel Jones is active and is expected to start at quarterback for the New York Giants against the Arizona Cardinals on Sunday. After missing last week’s game with a hamstring injury, Jones practiced fully for the first time on Friday. Jaguars: QB Jake Luton, CB Luq Barcoo, LB Kamalei Correa, LB Quincy Williams, C Brandon Linder, TE Tyler Davis, DE Reggie Gilbert. Giants: WR Dante Pettis, CB Darnay Holmes (knee), ILB T.J. Brunson, OT Kyle Murphy, OT Jackson Barton, DE R.J. McIntosh. Buccaneers: DL Khalil Davis, CB Jamel Dean, RB Leonard Fournette, QB Ryan Griffin, TE Tanner Hudson, DL Jeremiah Ledbetter.

Indianapolis Colts middle linebacker Anthony Walker (54) celebrates with teammates after he recovered a fumble by Houston Texans quarterback Deshaun Watson during the second half of an NFL football game Sunday, Dec. 6, 2020, in Houston. (AP Photo/Eric Christian Smith)HOUSTON – With their offense sputtering in the second half Sunday, the Indianapolis Colts turned to their defense to seal a win over the Houston Texans. Philip Rivers threw two touchdown passes in the first half and the defense dominated after that, lifting the Colts to the 26-20 victory. Their offense didn't score after that, but the defense held Houston (4-8) scoreless in the second half and Justin Houston added a safety with a sack of Watson in the end zone. With Sunday's shutout in the second half, the Colts are allowing an average of 7.33 points in the second half of games this season.

(AP Photo/Aaron Doster)The New York Giants will be without starting quarterback Daniel Jones for Sunday’s game against the Seattle Seahawks. Jones was not expected to play because of a hamstring injury suffered last week against Cincinnati. Colt McCoy will make his first start of the season at QB for the Giants. Seattle was without both starting right tackle Brandon Shell (ankle) and backup Cedric Ogbuehi (calf) leaving a major question on the offensive line. ___CLEVELAND-TENNESSEEBrowns: WR Taywan Taylor, WR KhaDarel Hodge, CB Denzel Ward, RB Dontrell Hilliard, S Tedric Thompson, DE Joe Jackson.

The unbeaten Pittsburgh Steelers wound up relatively healthy for their game against the AFC North rival Cincinnati Bengals following a brush with the novel coronavirus. Defensive tackle Tyson Alualu is also back after missing a game with a knee injury. Cincinnati is without running back Joe Mixon, whose lingering foot injury is forcing him to miss a third game in a row. Receiver Cooper Kupp, left tackle Andrew Whitworth and running back Darrell Henderson all were active after missing practices with injuries. Raiders: T Kolton Miller (ankle), DT Maurice Hurst (ankle), QB Marcus Mariota, RB Theo Riddick, G John Simpson, DT Daniel Ross.

All rights reserved)HOUSTON – The Houston Texans are having an intensely disappointing season. After another blowout loss at home, questions are again prevalent about the Texans play-calling, especially in the run game. Houston’s blockbuster DeAndre Hopkins trade will continue to be topical as long as the Texans can’t run the ball. Well, much of the time Houston runs the ball to David Johnson, despite the fact it hasn’t worked all season. David Johnson can be cut without losing any money in 2021, but would make $5.1 million if kept.

All rights reserved)HOUSTON – The Houston Texans are 1-5 after a close-called overtime loss to the Tennessee Titans. Here are three main takeaways from the Texans’ loss:Watson leads teamDeshaun Watson showed why he’s one of the best quarterbacks in the NFL. On Sunday, he picked apart the Titans defense for 335 yards and four touchdowns, without turning the ball over. Simply, Henry is one of the best running backs in the NFL, and the Texans are one of the worst run defenses. Titans’ quarterback Ryan Tannehill picked apart the secondary with underneath passes to Adam Humphries and longer balls to A.J.

Henry took a direct snap and ran 5 yards for a touchdown 3:30 into overtime and the Titans remained undefeated, rallying to beat the Houston Texans 42-36 on Sunday. “Obviously, we all witnessed somebody taking a game over,” Titans coach Mike Vrabel said of Henry. Watson's final TD pass put Houston (1-5) up 36-29 with 1:50 left, but his pass to Randall Cobb on the 2-point conversion attempt failed. Brown on a 7-yard TD pass with 4 seconds left. Watson answered two plays later with a 53-yard TD pass to Will Fuller for a 30-29 lead with 8:37 left.

Houston Texans head coach Bill O'Brien, center, gives signals from the sideline during the second half of an NFL football game against the Pittsburgh Steelers in Pittsburgh, Sunday, Sept. 27, 2020. (AP Photo/Gene J. Puskar)HOUSTON – The Houston Texans had faith that coach Bill O'Brien was the man to lead them to their first championship. O'Brien repeatedly thanked the McNair family for the chance to coach the Texans and apologized for falling below their expectations. Romeo Crennel, who was the team's assistant head coach, will serve as interim coach for the rest of the season. I think football is the ultimate team game, so I really there’s no doubt in my mind that I want to coach again."

HOUSTON – The Houston Texans, TORO and the Texans cheerleaders have partnered with several other organizations this month to create TORO Takes the Bull out of Bullying, an educational program for elementary students. The TORO Takes the Bull out of Bullying show has gone virtual for the 2020-21 school year to make sure that everyone is safe and protected in the midst of the current pandemic. While participating in the virtual event, you can meet TORO, Texans Running Back David Johnson and Texans Cheerleader Jaclyn as you learn how to recognize different types of bullying and prevent bullying from happening in schools. There’s also several activities that kids can do at home, like this special worksheet that can earn this a pretty cool badge! The program includes a 45 minute interactive assembly program, an activity book for each student and other great prizes.

– Good morning, Texans nation. I’m on the plane ride home as I slowly work my phone keyboard after a couple of hours of sleep following the Texans' big loss to the Chiefs on Thursday night. The loss wasn’t pretty and painted a bleak picture about this offense and defense, but remember the Texans were seven-point underdogs and nobody gave them much of a chance to win. That said, here are a few of my takeaways from the 48 hours I spent in KC. It was a very good start for Johnson.

That run includes a come-from-behind 51-31 victory over the Texans in the divisional round of the playoffs. The Texans' Deshaun Watson threw a touchdown pass and ran for another score, but he also was under relentless pressure and was intercepted once. The elusive Johnson finished it off by scampering 19 yards to the end zone for a 7-0 lead. Watson threw a touchdown pass and ran for a TD later in the quarter to make the final score a bit more respectable. The teams then stood together in a line that stretched from one end zone to the other for a moment of silence before the coin toss.

HOUSTON – Fantasy football writer and insider Scott Barrett of Fantasypoints.com talked with me this week on how he believes various Texans players will fare in the 2020 football season from a fantasy standpoint. I think Bill O’Brien sees Will Fuller as the Wide Receiver 1 over Brandin Cooks and Cooks is hurt right now. Tight Ends“I think it’s (Jordan) Akins over (Darren) Fells, but I don’t think you want any of those guys. You haven’t seen a Texans tight end produce starter numbers in a number of years. Probably just steer clear of those tight ends, unless someone explodes in week 1.”Defense/ Special teams“They’re somewhere in the middle.

Fans watch the Kansas City Chiefs during NFL football training camp Saturday, Aug. 29, 2020, at Arrowhead Stadium in Kansas City, Mo. Chiefs coach Andy Reid no longer carries around the heavy and ignominious tag of best coach never to win a championship. This is the best opportunity you can have to start the season.That contract extension is the second largest in NFL history. Very, very dynamic players, Texans coach Bill O'Brien said. They also will miss cornerback Bashaud Breeland and defensive tackle Mike Pennel, who are suspended for the start of the season.

Hopkins and the Cardinals agreed to a two-year contract extension on Tuesday that will keep the three-time All-Pro in Arizona through the 2024 season. Hopkins said he worked on about 90% of the deal and had some help from advisers. Cardinals GM Steve Keim said it was a great process and he got to know the receiver even better during negotiations. It was our goal all along to get (Hopkins) extended, Keim said. I was like, man, if I could be in this offense, a pass-first offense one day, the sky's the limit, Hopkins said.

I like football on all levels and always enjoy watching camp workouts especially the 1 on 1 drills as guys fight for jobs. They were fired up play after play2 speaking of making plays on the Defense, shoutout to Carlos Watkins. I watched this group and their drills a lot today and was impressed with Randall Cobb and Brandin Cooks . He doesnt sit still and was smiling and clapping after good plays were made. Keep it locked into KPRC Channel 2 Sports and our sports page on click2houston.com

During interviews with the media, two Texans discussed Thursday the task of replacing one of the most important players in franchise history, DeAndre Hopkins. The Texans look to avoid that, according to head coach and general manager Bill OBrien. Theyve worked hard. You can tell theyve worked hard. Weve worked hard on that and we have a good plan for it and hopefully, that will help us in the health department.

FILE - In this Oct. 24 2019, file photo, Minnesota Vikings running back Dalvin Cook walks on the field before an NFL football game against the Washington Redskins in Minneapolis. The Vikings have centered their offense around running back Dalvin Cook and praised him at every turn, but now the bill has come due. (AP Photo/Bruce Kluckhohn, FIle)MINNEAPOLIS Dalvin Cook logged off last week from virtual team activities with the Minnesota Vikings, no longer willing to participate until he has secured a new contract. The three-year, $39 million contract Arizona gave David Johnson, who's now with Houston, might be the most realistic model. Gordon took a two-year, $8 million contract with Denver.

The Arizona Cardinals have acquired three-time All-Pro receiver DeAndre Hopkins in a trade that will send running back David Johnson and draft picks to the Houston Texans, a person familiar with the situation told The Associated Press. The person spoke to the AP on condition of anonymity Monday because the trade hasn't been officially announced. Hopkins has been one of the most consistent receivers in the NFL over the past seven years, topping 1,000 yards receiving in five of seven seasons. He battled injuries for much of 2019 and finished with 345 yards rushing and 370 yards receiving. Houston Texans wide receiver DeAndre Hopkins is being traded to the Arizona Cardinals.