David Culley’s favorite word throughout 2021 was consistency. Whether or not the Houston Texans achieved consistency was another story, but the first-year coach knew that his club needed more of it to avoid a 4-13 finish.
Although Culley is gone and Lovie Smith has taken the reins as coach, the theme still remains, especially for Pep Hamilton. The former quarterbacks coach and passing game coordinator was promoted to offensive coordinator with the promotion of Smith from defensive coordinator and associate head coach to the big role.
Hamilton relishes the opportunity to show how consistent the Texans offense can truly be.
“I think it’s a great opportunity for us to atone for some of the things that happen over the course of last season,” Hamilton told reporters on Wednesday after mandatory minicamp at Houston Methodist Training Center. “To be able to go out and show that we can play at a high level of football more consistently. We had times where we played good football offensively, but there were times also where we tended to make mistakes and crate issues for ourselves.”
The Texans were dismal in the red zone with a 51.4% conversion rate, the sixth-lowest in the NFL. Houston fared a little better in the turnover department with just 22 given away over the 17-game season, tied for the 13th-fewest in the league. However, the run game was atrocious with a 3.4 yards per carry and 83.6 yards per game, both the worst in the NFL.
Hamilton knows that the Texans are 0-0 and have a chance to show the personnel is capable of playing formidably on offense with second-year quarterback Davis Mills leading the way.
Said Hamilton: “Myself and the rest of our off staff have been charged with this duty of making sure we put players in the best position to be successful.”
The last time Hamilton was an offensive coordinator in the NFL was with the Indianapolis Colts from 2013-15. The last time Hamilton worked with Smith was with the Chicago Bears from 2007-09 as the quarterbacks coach.
