Got a question about the Texans? Life in general? Drew Dougherty's your guy. He's been with the Texans since 2009 and is chock full of meaningful, as well as generally useless, information. Fire away by clicking HERE!
Jose Rivas: Dear Drew, I know it's early, but what can our coaching staff do to help Davis Mills? See you at the game.
DD: See you there, Jose. As far as the coaching staff, Offensive Coordinator Pep Hamilton said Thursday that he has to call better plays. The Texans haven't won yet, and he said if there were different outcomes on a handful of plays in the first couple games, the conversations right now about the direction of the offense and the Texans would be different.
He also wants to make it tougher on defenses by getting into more advantageous down-and-distance situations.
"We're just trying to do everything we can to stay out of obvious passing situations," Hamilton said. "Because if you look across the league, that's the biggest challenge for quarterbacks."
Juan Garza: Dear Drew, When do you think Pep will utilize Dameon Pierce more?
DD: This Sunday. The same question was asked last week leading up to Denver. Pierce ran 11 time and caught a pass in the Week 1 tie with the Colts, and his carries went up to 15 last week in Denver. The Texans showed a willingness to get him more involved in Week 2. Their first play from scrimmage was a screen designed for Pierce, but the pass was incomplete. They handed off to the rookie on the next play, and he picked up eight yards. On 3rd-and-1, Pierce got the ball again and was stopped for no gain. He got rolling late in the first quarter and was hot through the early part of the third quarter.
Head Coach Lovie Smith paid the rookie a pretty strong compliment on Wednesday morning.
"He's a tough guy to bring down," Smith said. "Talk about finish, we as a football team need to finish. I haven't said that an awful lot to Dameon. He finishes plays. What we want to be, that toughness, extra effort, all those things you talk about, that's exactly what we see from him every time he gets the ball."
Based on everything we've seen and heard, I think the touches for Pierce this week will rise.
Ivyn Ferrell: Dear Drew, How does Derek Stingley, Jr. feel after his first couple weeks?
DD: The rookie cornerback keeps his proverbial cards close to the vest. He really doesn't say a whole lot. Stingley left the game for a bit in the second half at Denver, but came back in shortly thereafter. Ultimately he played 68 snaps, which was 94 percent of the action on defense. He was in for all 92 snaps against Indianapolis in the opener sevens days prior.
Jonathon Clayton: Dear Drew, Why is O.J. Howard only used in red zone situations?
DD: While Howard has been in for 12 and then 18 snaps over the first two weeks, it hasn't been solely in red zone situations. He's still getting acclimated to the offensive system, and I believe you'll see his rep count steadily rise as the season progresses. He started with a bang in Week 1, catching the pair of touchdown passes.
