The Houston Texans are coming into OTA workouts with Brian Hoyer and Ryan Mallett competing to start this season and the two quarterbacks will split first team reps in offseason activities for head coach Bill O'Brien and this comes as the offense has some new weapons with Jaelen Strong and Kenny Hilliard coming in for Arian Foster and DeAndre Hopkins.
The Texans are coming into the offseason after signing both Hoyer and Mallett and now those two will compete to start in Week 1. The Texans used four different starting quarterbacks last season and now O'Brien is looking for more stability. According to NFL.com, Hoyer and Mallett will split reps in OTA workouts this offseason and that could decide who comes into training camp with a leg up for O'Brien. Hoyer signed a deal after playing for the Browns last season, while Mallett signed back after being acquired in a trade by the Texans from the Patriots.
Mallett looked okay in his playing time last year with the Texans, while Hoyer started off the season well in Cleveland. Hoyer opened the season 7-4 for the Browns before faltering down the stretch and the team opted to bring in Josh McCown instead of signing Hoyer. The Texans used Mallett, Tom Savage, Case Keenum and Ryan Fitzpatrick last season and nearly made the playoffs and many felt they could have made it in had they had more consistent play from the QB position.
O'Brien said that both players have something to prove in offseason workouts and both players come in after working with the head coach when he was with the Patriots. Mallett is familiar with the offense for O'Brien after playing for the team last year and working behind Fitzpatrick, while Hoyer could be a bit behind the curve after playing in Cleveland. Last season Hoyer had 12 touchdowns and 13 interceptions last season in 14 games and he comes in after signing a two-year, $10.5 million contract with $4.75 million guaranteed on the deal.
Mallett did not impress all that much last season, but he has a strong arm and that is a good fit for what the Texans want to do on offense. Mallett had two touchdowns and two picks last season and only completed 54 percent of his passes and he will need to show more in OTAs to get the job. The Texans have some other questions on offense, including whether Strong and Hilliard can step up as rookies.
The Texans love what Alfred Blue did last season behind Arian Foster, but they want more depth and now Hilliard could be an option to get some carries. Strong has the chance to play behind Cecil Shorts along with Hopkins and he could be an explosive force on offense. Strong had 157 receptions for 2287 yards and 17 touchdowns in two seasons and he could be a big target for the Texans.
Strong comes in with good size at 6-foot-4 and 212 pounds and if he can stay healthy he could be a great option alongside Hopkins. The team had enough confidence in Hopkins to get rid of Andre Johnson and now Strong could come in and be the second wideout.