(SportsRadio 610) -- If there is any area the Texans should be expected to improve this season, it's the running game.
Houston was notoriously bad at both defending the run, and running the ball offensively. The Texans ranked last in run DVOA, according to Football Outsiders, which measures efficiency.
But they've made a lot of changes this offseason. You may have heard about some of them.
The running back group looks different -- David Johnson is still here, but the Texans added 26-year-old Phillip Lindsay (Pro Bowler in 2018), Mark Ingram (three-time Pro Bowler) and former Patriots back Rex Burkhead.
They also hired former Ravens assistant David Culley as the head coach, and brought in another former Ravens assistant in tight ends coach Andy Bischoff.
Both coaches know what a productive run game looks like, and they have more players to make it happen.
In addition to the running backs and coaches, Houston signed former Seahawks center Justin Britt in free agency, and traded for former Patriots right tackle Marcus Cannon, which could lead to Tytus Howard playing right guard.
These are guys adamant about running the football, not much different from the Ravens' mentality when Ingram, Culley and Bischoff were there.
Don't be surprised to see three tight ends line up in a bully formation, with two of them set up in the backfield. It's part of what Baltimore has done in thrashing the Texans over the past two seasons.
Texans offensive coordinator Tim Kelly said earlier this week he's been picking the brains of the new coaches, and he also is challenging himself to call more run plays to help the rhythm.
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Bischoff said everything the Texans do starts with the foundation of Kelly's offense. But as Culley mentioned earlier this offseason, these coaches were brought in to improve what Houston does schematically.
"The building here has been completely open to ideas," Bischoff said. "Tim is a great leader that way in terms of acknowledging some of the things that we had success with. ... From Campy (offensive line coach James Campen) to him, to anybody else, there’s a real appreciation for what we did and there’s talent in our room to be able to do some of those same things. Certainly excited to implement those things as we move along.”