The Eagles’ should be able to shut down a seemingly always-struggling Texans rushing game.
The Houston Texans had the worst running attack in the NFL last season, running for a league-worst 1,422 yards. They tied for the league’s lowest rushing touchdowns total with a measly eight trips to paydirt.
It only gets worse from there as the team averaged 83.6 rushing yards per game. Again, the worst mark in the NFL.
The Texans had six runs last season that eclipsed 20 yards. That was the fourth-worst total in the NFL. Their leader in rushing yards? Rex Burkhead… He racked up a grand total of 427 yards and three touchdowns during the 2021-2022 season.
It’s hard to blame the running backs here. The Texans’ offensive line has struggled to open up holes for them and protect the quarterback for quite some time, and running backs cannot get decent yardage without the big guys in the front giving them clearing lanes to run through.
This offseason, they added former Indianapolis Colts running back Marlon Mack who can lay claim to notching a 1,000-yard season a couple of years ago. He’s also two years removed from tearing his Achilles, and that doesn’t bode well for a man playing the game’s most punishing position when he’s lining up behind an offensive front with so many issues.
All that’s been said to say this. Even with the addition of Mack, the Eagles should be able to blow through the offensive line and stop any of the Texans’ running backs from doing a ton of damage. This game should serve as a tune-up for the defense.