Brian Hoyer was brought in to be the new Houston Texans quarterback, but his tenure as a starter has lasted just one week. Ryan Mallett, who relieved Hoyer in the 27-20 loss to Kansas City in Week 1 and led two fourth quarter scoring drives, will start Sunday against the Carolina Panthers, Texans head coach Bill O'Brien confirmed Thursday.
Ryan Mallett will start for Texans in Week 2
After just one game, Mallett will replace Brian Hoyer under center.
Troy Taormina-USA TODAY Sports
On Monday, O’Brien said he wouldn’t announce who was starting before the game. “You’ll have to wait until the first offensive play of the Carolina game to see who the quarterback will be,” O’Brien said.
But O’Brien changed his mind, saying “When Ryan went into the game, he added a spark to our team.”
It's still surprising that he moved on so quickly from Hoyer, who won the job due to his consistency during training camp. Hoyer, though, didn't show that consistency against the Chiefs. His stats don't look horrible at first glance -- he was 18-of-34 passing for 236 yards and a touchdown -- but he turned the ball over twice in the red zone and struggled badly against the Kansas City pass rush. That brought Mallett into the game, and he made the final score respectable by throwing a touchdown pass to DeAndre Hopkins and leading the Texans to a field goal.
Mallett finished 8 of 13 for 98 yards in the final six minutes, and although it was with the game out of reach and the Chiefs playing conservative defense, it was apparently enough to earn him the start against the Panthers. Mallett has been in this position before, so he isn't worried about starting with just one week of first-team reps.
“I believe in myself, and that’s all that matters,” he said after Sunday’s game.
Mallett would be going from one familiar position -- he started his career behind Hoyer on the depth chart in New England, although both were behind Tom Brady -- to another. He started last season as Houston's backup, but took over the starting job when Ryan Fitzpatrick was benched.
Mallett started twice, beating Cleveland and losing to Cincinnati, before a torn pectoral muscle ended his season.
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