The Texans fired several offensive coaches Friday, including Bobby Slowik, who is out after two seasons as offensive coordinator, sources told ESPN.
The Texans fired several offensive coaches Friday, including Bobby Slowik, who is out after two seasons as offensive coordinator, sources told ESPN.
HOUSTON — The Texans have fired offensive coordinator Bobby Slowik after two years in Houston, a source told ESPN on Friday. Houston also fired offensive line coach Chris Strausser and assistant offensive line coach Cole Popovich, according to sources, who added that a decision on the remainder of the offensive staff will be made when the team hires a new offensive coordinator.
The Texans won the AFC South (10-7) in 2024 and reached the divisional round for the second consecutive season, but the offense struggled throughout the year. The Monday after the season concluded, coach DeMeco Ryans said he wanted to take a week to evaluate the staff, and when asked about Slowik’s performance, he was short and didn’t give a ringing endorsement.
“I think overall with Bobby, I saw some growth,” Ryans said. “I saw some improvement throughout the year.”
Ryans also mentioned how the Texans’ offense needed to improve after a disappointing season as the unit ranked 18th in scoring (22.1) and 16th in total offense (329 yards per game). The most alarming aspect of the offense was pass protection. Quarterback C.J. Stroud took a beating of 52 sacks (second most) and was pressured on 38.6% of his dropbacks (third most according to NFL Next Gen Stats).
What made Stroud’s pressure rate of 38.6% worse was that the time to pressure rate was 2.59, the seventh fastest according to Next Gen Stats. The pass protection struggled with defensive twists and stunts that opposing defenses threw at them, leading to 52 unblocked pressures (second most).
As a result, Stroud regressed statistically from a strong rookie year. He finished 15th in passing yards (3,727) and tied for 15th in passing touchdowns (20) after having 4,108 yards (eighth in the NFL) with 23 touchdowns (13th) in Year 1 in two fewer games. And that’s with having Pro Bowl teammates in left tackle Laremy Tunsil, running back Joe Mixon and wideout Nico Collins.
Beyond Stroud, the Texans’ offense struggled for large stretches of the year. The second halves were a massive issue for the offense as it averaged a league-low 7.5 points per second half. From Week 7 to Week 12, the Texans did not score an offensive touchdown.
Coming into 2024, there were high hopes for the Texans’ offense with the Pro Bowl additions of wideout Stefon Diggs and Mixon. Diggs tore an ACL in Week 8 against the Indianapolis Colts, but even with Mixon rushing for 1,018 yards, the offense always felt challenged, especially in key situations. The offense was 17th in third downs (38.9) and 28th in red zone scoring (48.4)
“Overall, offensively, it wasn’t where we wanted to be,” Ryans said. “There were challenges throughout the year, that is every year. You have challenges, you have ups and downs where you try to figure out the course, who we have and how to make it work. We have to improve.”
Slowik was Ryans’ first offensive hire in 2023 after they spent six years together with the San Francisco 49ers. In the duo’s first season together in Houston, the Texans offensively thrived, highlighted by Stroud becoming the fifth rookie to pass for 4,000 yards in a season and leading the league in passing yards per game (274) and touchdown-to-interception ratio (23:5), something only quarterbacks Joe Montana and Tom Brady have accomplished.
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