It was certainly an interesting year for the Houston Texans and their fans. After drafting Jadeveon Clowney first overall in the draft, you saw him play in just four games. Yes, four. But hey, you went 9-7, so I guess drafting Clowney really did turn your season around!
OK, that's a bit of an exaggeration, but Texans fans have to be happy with what they saw last year. The team won four of its last five games to finish 9-7 and nearly snuck into the playoffs. J.J. Watt had a season for the ages and snagged his second Defensive Player of the Year award, and DeAndre Hopkins had a breakout year, leading the team in receiving yards with 1,210.
This was a great season for you compared to the debacle that was 2013 when you lost 14-straight games. And while you may be satisfied with what you saw in 2014, there's plenty of reasons to be even more optimistic about next year.
Here's why.
Mr. Bill
Maybe it's because he grew up in my hometown of Andover, Mass., but I really like Bill O'Brien. The guy knows how to coach. In his one season as offensive coordinator for the New England Patriots, the team went 13-3 and advanced to Super Bowl XLVI. Tom Brady threw for a career-best 5,235 yards, which at the time was the second most in NFL history for a single-season. Plus, O'Brien wasn't afraid to go toe-to-toe with the Golden Boy. It takes chops to stand up to Tom Terrific.
Let's not forget, too, what O'Brien did for Penn State football. He resurrected that program in the wake of the Jerry Sandusky scandal. I know opinions of O'Brien are currently split among Penn State fans, but there's no denying that he saved that program from the doldrums. The team went 8-4 in his first season, which was the most wins by a first-year head coach in school history.
When he came to Houston, O'Brien inherited a talent-laden team, despite their 2-14 record. And what'd he do? He made them 9-7 and kept them in playoff contention until the final Sunday of the season. While one season may be too small a sample size to hail O'Brien as the first successful disciple from the Bill Belichick coaching tree, things are off to a pretty good start.
You still have J.J. Watt
If you need more explanation than this you might need real therapy.
Let's proceed.
The other quarterback named Tom
The quarterback position in Houston last season was a mess, plain and simple. Ryan Fitzpatrick is not a franchise quarterback (although his beard put up decent numbers at the combine), and the jury is still out on Ryan Mallett. Also, you need to take Case Keenum off your speed dial.
It's unfortunate, too, because the Texans are a quarterback away from making a Super Bowl run. It may not seem like it now, but I think Tom Savage is poised to be your franchise guy for the next 10 years. I know, he didn't dazzle fans last year when he came in for relief of Ryan Fitzpatrick in Week 15 at Indy (127 yards and an interception), but I trust O'Brien chose this kid for a reason. Keep in mind, O'Brien coached Tom Brady to one of the best seasons in NFL history. At Penn State he helped Matt McGloin, who threw eight touchdowns and five interceptions in the season prior to O'Brien's arrival, put up 24 touchdowns and just five interceptions in 2012.
Savage has the size, strength and talent to succeed in the NFL, and he has a coach who knows how to get the best out of players at that position. In the AFC South where you have big quarterbacks like Andrew Luck (6-foot-4, 240 pounds) and Blake Bortles (6-foot-5, 232 pounds) leading their respective teams, Savage (6-foot-4, 228 pounds) seems like a solid choice for the Texans going forward.
So, while 2014 was a big step forward for the Texans, fans should be optimistic that the best is yet to come. Maybe next year Clowney will play five games. Whoa.
Colin J. Liotta is a Digital Features Editor at NFL.com. He's also a lover of comic books and a "Back to the Future" historian. You can follow him on Twitter @TheSportsHero.
