While the Houston Texans managed to reach the playoffs for the second year in a row with the former offensive coordinator Bobby Slowik, they regressed from their 2023 form and were ranked a distant 28th in PFSN’s Offense+ metric.
The sharp drop in offensive production, headlined by quarterback C.J. Stroud’s slump, led to Slowik’s firing less than a week after the Texans’ Divisional Round exit, and one player revealed that the team had even lost its true identity under purview.
Houston Texans Player Minces No Words About Bobby Slowik’s Offensive Regression
Slowik joined the franchise in 2023 and delivered incredible results in Year 1. Houston was among the most explosive offenses in football and Stroud looked like the game’s next elite quarterback. Slowik’s results were so good that he was invited for an interview with multiple franchises as a head coaching candidate.
However, things went south for the 37-year-old in 2024. Texans’ offensive line struggled throughout the year and failed to protect Stroud. The offense regressed across the board as the offensive line struggled, receivers got hurt, and Stroud was further behind the sticks than ever before.
Houston allowed a 42.3% non-blitz pressure rate during the Divisional Round against the Kansas City Chiefs, its sixth-worst mark of the season. Protecting Stroud was a weakness all year, as the unit ranked 25th in both non-blitz pressure rate and sack rate allowed in the regular season.
The Chiefs generated a 73.3% pressure rate when blitzing Stroud, too. Out of 76 instances where a defense blitzed 15+ times this season, that was the highest blitz pressure rate in any game.
The beating Stroud took at Arrowhead Stadium served as a final nail in the coffin of Slowik’s tenure in Houston. But his departure might have been coming anyway given how players have spoken about him after his firing.
“We simply weren’t good enough offensively,” a team source told ESPN. “We had all season to make adjustments and improvements, and it never happened.”
One of the players added that the team had lost its true identity.
“I don’t think we had a true identity of what the f*** we wanted to do.”
The Texans hired Nick Caley, who last served as pass game coordinator for the Los Angeles Rams, as their new offensive coordinator. Head coach DeMeco Ryans believes he can get their stalled offense going.
“I feel really strong in my conviction that [Caley] can lead us and get us over the hump,” Ryans said. “It’s my job to take this organization to new heights, and I think hiring Nick will help us to get there.”
Meanwhile, Slowik was hired as the senior passing game coordinator for the Miami Dolphins.