Following a 2024 season in which their offense suffered a surprising setback, the Houston Texans opted to move on from previous offensive coordinator Bobby Slowik and tasked Nick Caley with the job. It’s unreasonable to think that Caley or anyone else could come in, implement a new offense, and see positive results over night. But multiple nights have passed since Caley arrived, and the Texans offense continues to struggle during training camp.
While some in Houston will panic, it’s important to remember that camp is only a week old, and as Nick Caley works with his players, there is bound to be a learning curve. New concepts, fresh installs and a re-worked offensive line mean there are chemistry and continuity issues the Texans will need to overcome, and Caley isn’t worried that it hasn’t consistently come together yet.
“I think it’s everything,” Caley said August 1, per Aaron Wilson of Click2Houston. “I think it’s timing. I think it’s anchoring a little bit more at times in the protection piece of it. Being able to play more on time. I got to do a better job myself of getting some more quick options there early on, too. I think it’s collectively, it’s everything. It’s not just one person. It’s never just one person or one facet. I just think we got to continue to all evolve and get better, collectively.”
As the Texans offense continues to evolve and get better, it maybe just as noteworthy as the offense’s struggle to find cohesion to mention that Houston’s defense proved to be one of the best units in the NFL in 2024, and the majority of that group is back for the 2025 season, with sights set on removing the “one of the” qualifier before “best unit in the NFL.”
Texans Defensive Giving Offense Headaches
For as much talent as there is on the offensive side of the ball in Houston — C.J. Stroud, Nico Collins, etc. — there’s even more on the opposite side. The Texans defense features a half-dozen players who could potentially be All-Pros in 2025, and that’s not remotely an exaggeration. And with that talented group already firing on all cylinders early in the summer, it’s made for some ugly afternoons for the Texans offense.
Thus far, though, Nick Caley has taken every punch from Houston’s defense right on the chin, and he’s still smiling at the end of the day.
“Oh, it’s fun. It’s competitiveness. That’s what you love,” Caley said of his group’s battles with Houston’s defense. we’ve got to make sure that we’re trying to clean up the things that we can control to give ourselves an opportunity to compete against them. But it makes us better. It’s what you expect out of this unit and it’s what we expect from ourselves is to go out there and compete, too, and battle. It’s as hard of a look as we’re going to see down after down.”
Caley went on to say that he looks at these practice sessions as “iron sharpening iron,” and if by October, the Texans offense has rounded into shape, we’ll know that their experience of going up against a stacked defensive unit paid off. But until that point comes, it’s understandable that questions about this group’s ceiling would remain.
C.J. Stroud, Nico Collins Speak on Nick Caley’s Demeanor
Even as the Texans defense continues to get the better of the offense, nobody in Houston is panicking. Not Nick Caley, and not either of his stars, Stroud or Collins. In their limited experience with their first-year offensive coordinator, both Stroud and Collins have already come to recognize that Caley’s enthusiastic demeanor is likely the right fit for this group.
“Nick is a fiery young coach who loves to yell and run around,” Stroud said. “I love it. He brings juice to the building every day. So, I’m excited to work with him every day and try to build a relationship. He’s done a good job relating to the players and always asking us what we want, how we want to do things and making it player owned. I love that of him.”
Nico Collins, who knows a thing or two about playing for an enthusiastic coach — Jim Harbaugh at Michigan — is on-board with Caley’s approach too.
“Man, you can tell by his enthusiasm every day,” Collins said. “He’s a great coach. You can tell in the meetings. He talks about the plays, the install, just explaining the install, just his grit, his mind behind it, his energy, dog. You can feel it. He gets you pumped up to go out here and play.”
Over the last few days, the Texans offense has put forth better showings. Is it Houston’s offense is finally getting a grasp on Nick Caley’s system? Texans head coach DeMeco Ryans has an idea:
“You see things evening out more when you put the pads on,” Ryans said, per DJ Bien-Aime of ESPN.com. “Defense kind of had the advantage there early on. We weren’t in pads. Defense was making a lot of plays. Now just see things balancing themselves out. Offense is making plays daily.”
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