Tom Savage immediately went home after Sunday's loss to the Indianapolis Colts and re-watched his performance on his iPad. His own harshest critic, Savage knew he was capable of more.
"It's just like, it's almost cringe worthy because you've done it so many times," Savage said.
Following the 20-14 loss, Savage said he was the most frustrated he had ever felt after a game. Savage threw a fourth-quarter touchdown pass to DeAndre Hopkins, and then nearly led the Texans to a game-winning touchdown on the next drive. After throwing three incomplete passes, Savage was sacked on fourth-and-7 to end the game.
"I can make those throws," Savage said Wednesday. "I can go out there right now in this outfit and go make the throws, and I know that. I'm not going to use that excuse and say it was rust. It's the National Football League. You got to be out there, you got to go out there and make plays and that's what the team needed."
The fourth-year quarterback stepped in as the starter during Thursday's practice when Deshaun Watson suffered a non-contact knee injury. Savage had less than two days of first-team reps heading in to the game, but says his understanding of the game was enough to operate the offense effectively.
"I'm really confident in myself," Savage said. "I really do believe that I'm a starting quarterback in this league and I do believe that I can throw the ball really well and accurate, and that's never been an issue for me. I know that I just got to go out there and do it. I think there's a lot of times where you just got to give these guys shots and give them a chance to actually catch the ball and not throw it out of bounds."
Savage will get a full week of practice heading into the Texans Week 10 matchup with the Los Angeles Rams. Head coach Bill O'Brien wants Savage to put the loss behind him, especially with eight games remaining.
"Play loose, play free, let it rip," O'Brien said. "Go out there, have some fun. Don't worry about anything other than making the right reads, getting us into the right play and let it rip."
The Texans and Rams will kickoff off their Week 10 game at the L.A. Memorial Coliseum on Sunday. Kickoff is set for 3:05 p.m. CT on CBS and SportsRadio 610.
Check out shots from Wednesday's practice as the Texans prepare for Sunday's game in Los Angeles against the Rams.
