Expectations were low for the Texans coming into the 2021 season and they’ve lived down to them since beating the Jaguars in the season opener.
They’ve been outscored by 91 points during their current five-game losing streak and Sunday’s 31-3 loss to the Colts featured many of the mistakes that have fueled their current skid. They had a false start on their first offensive play, turned the ball over three times, and broke down defensively several times.
Improving the talent on the team during the season isn’t realistic, but wide receiver Brandin Cooks thinks the team can do more to make sure they aren’t beating themselves as frequently as they’ve been doing in recent weeks.
“We’re an undisciplined team,” Cooks said, via Aaron Wilson of SI.com. “I’m being very honest with you. From all of us, we’ve all got some type of accountability in that. We’re undisciplined. It’s just the truth. It’s about everyday life choices. It’s about, deep down inside, individually, do you want to be that or not? It’s as simple as that. We can’t make our teammates, we can’t make anyone else do that. You’ve got to do it by yourself. I’m not surprised as far as why it’s been going on. It’s been going on since Game One, and we still haven’t fixed it. That’s an individual thing. You can’t make anyone be disciplined. You’ve got to want to be disciplined. Do you want to be that or not? It’s as simple as that. Success is not a gimmick. Discipline is not a gimmick.”
Veteran running back Mark Ingram echoed Cooks’ critique of the team’s discipline and they’ll be hard-pressed to turn things around before next Sunday’s road date with the undefeated Cardinals.