Devin Singletary still believes he can be an offense’s lead running back.
The former Buffalo Bills 2019 third-rounder led the AFC East champions with 819 yards last season. In each of Singletary’s four seasons in Buffalo, he led the Bills in rushing yards.
With the Houston Texans signing Singletary, the move appears puzzling given Dameon Pierce generated 939 yards through 13 games as a rookie.
The Texans added Singletary to complement their former fourth-rounder. While that may be Houston’s intentions, Singletary still believes he can lead an offense and will compete as such in training camp.
Nevertheless the former Florida Atlantic product knows that Pierce is not an adversary, but a partner.
Singletary laid out how running backs are able to compete against one another yet form a bond.
“For one, it’s respect,” Singletary told reporters June 14 at mandatory minicamp. “We respect each other for sure. Two is — and this offense hasn’t been showing that — more than one guy can eat. You know what I’m saying? More than one guy can eat.”
When Singletary sees Pierce having a big game, the reaction is to lean into the enthusiasm, not shy away simply because it secures Pierce’s spot atop the depth chart.
“The biggest thing for us is we’re going to be feeding off of each other’s energy,” Singletary said. “Of course, it’s a game, it’s competition. You’ve always got to compete, but it’s going to be a healthy competition. Making each other better, pushing yourself to each other’s best — getting the best out of each other. So, I think that’s going to be big.”
The #Texans have not had two backs go over the 500-yard mark in a season since 2014 when Arian Foster had 1,246 and Alfred Blue had 528.
— Mark Lane (@therealmarklane) July 7, 2023
