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Schlereth: Texans ‘still one competent QB’ from winning title

Sep 23, 2016, 8:31 PM | Updated: 9:10 pm

How things may have been different had the dominoes fallen in a different direction. If Peyton Manning hadn’t injured his foot last season. If Brock Osweiler hadn’t been replaced in the Denver Broncos final game after filling in for Manning down the backstretch.

If the John Elway and the Broncos were able to wrap up their “Plan A” option in Osweiler this offseason instead of letting him depart to Houston.

Osweiler and the Texans laid an egg on the road for Thursday Night Football against the New England Patriots, losing 27-0 to a team with a rookie starting quarterback.

“I don’t know how many people had a schadenfreude minute, or maybe an hour or so, but I’m sure there are plenty of Broncos fans out there that are basically saying, ‘Good riddance to you Brock. I’m glad we didn’t sign him,’” Mark Schlereth, co-host of “Schlereth and Evans,” said Friday morning.

Osweiler, who had been eyed as the future replacement for the retiring Manning before signing a four-year, $72 million contract with the Texans in the offseason, mustered just 196 yards against the Patriots on 24-of-41 passing and an interception.

And a major reason for Osweiler’s struggles Thursday, Schlereth said, was that New England didn’t feel threatened by the Houston quarterback on third down.

“The New England Patriots said, ’If you can cram it down our throats, keep drives alive, and run the ball on us, we have faith in you. But we don’t believe in third down situations that Brock Osweiler is going to rip us apart,’” Schlereth said. “And you know what, they were right.”

Osweiler ended the night with a quarterback rating of 29.1, far behind his Patriots counterpart Jacoby Brissett (62.1), who threw for 103 yards on 11-of-19 passing.

The game had been billed as a battle of unbeaten teams who have playoff, or Super Bowl, aspirations. But after, Schlereth said that label might need to be adjusted for Houston.

“They’re still, as their owner said, Bob McNair, one competent quarterback away from winning a championship. You know what? They’re still one competent quarterback away from winning a championship,” Schlereth said.

Follow 104.3 The Fan digital content producer Johnny Hart on Twitter: @johnnyhart7.

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