Ryan Mallett has been a Texan less than a week.
But he’s already climbing the depth chart, and will be their backup to starter Ryan Fitzpatrick this weekend.
Granted, he’s only passed a rookie (Tom Savage) in his short time in Houston, but his familiarity with the scheme being put in by head coach Bill O’Brien and quarterbacks coach George Godsey gave him a leg up anyway.
“The foundation of what he knows is very similar to what we had in the three years in New England,” O’Brien said, via Brian Smith of the Houston Chronicle. “He was drafted in [2011] when I was there. We spent the rookie year together and then I went to Penn State. [In 2012] and ’13, he stayed and was attentive in meetings. It’s obvious since he’s been here.
“Just the transition of Ryan coming in to this offense, certainly we do things, some things a little bit differently than what they do, based on our personnel. . . . But the foundation of it is very similar, so he’s been able to pick [it] right up.”
While Fitzpatrick has shown himself to be a completely capable backup at times, there’s little reason to believe Mallett won’t get a chance to move up a chair at some point this season.
And if/when he does, the Texans might see if they have a quarterback they can win with, or whether they finally have to address it this offseason.