Why Texans' Tytus Howard 'loves' new right guard spot, says Cole Popovich is creating 'nasty, underestimated' line

• 
• 
• 
• 
• 

HOUSTON - Tytus Howard broke the huddle and took a different path to the line of scrimmage, stepping to his right and getting into his blocking stance.

Instead of lining up where he has in the past, at left guard, right tackle or left tackle, the Texans' versatile offensive lineman shifted to his new position.

Recommended Videos

Right guard is where the Texans' former first-round draft pick and veteran starter now plies his trade as a blocker protecting star quarterback C.J. Stroud and opening holes for running backs Joe Mixon and Nick Chubb.

Having primarily played left guard and right tackle in the past with a stint at left tackle as well, Howard playing an entirely different position is just part of the major changes instituted for an overhauled offensive line.

The real test for an offensive lineman is in live game reps, but, so far, Howard looks and feels comfortable as the Texans' new starting right guard. It was a position of instability last season as Shaq Mason's play regressed and he was released and former second-round pick Juice Scruggs didn't solidify the spot

"I love it, man," Howard told KPRC 2 as the Texans wrapped up their offseason schedule with a full-team minicamp. "Just getting these reps in, Probably the first time I got a chance to get this many reps in at guard before the season started. So, I'm doing the best I can do to get the technique down. And the coaches have been doing a tremendous job helping me with that."

With this latest move, Howard is displaying his positional flexibility again. He's played left guard, right tackle, left tackle and, now, right guard. He has played every spot but center. Could he do it?

"If I had to, if I had to," he said. "The more you can do .. I'm a guy who can play at every spot on the offensive line. I can play at a high level at every spot. I just gotta keep working and continue to get better. I feel like this year is gonna be my biggest year.".

During the NFL scouting combine, Texans coach DeMeco Ryans emphasized that there would be a reset of the line after a disappointing season last year.

Now, the dramatic changes of the offseason are on full display. The Texans' offensive line configuration might as well be written in pencil, considering their plan to have a lot of competition to find the ideal combination and discover the best five.

The Texans' first-string offensive line at minicamp included left tackle Cam Robinson, signed to a one-year, $14.5 million contract in free agency, left guard Laken Tomlinson, a former Pro Bowl selection, former New England Patriots center Jake Andrews, Howard at right guard and second-year right tackle Blake Fisher. Massive rookie Aireontae Ersery worked in at left tackle and right tackle.

Only Howard and Fisher were starters at the end of last season as the Texans allowed Stroud to be sacked 52 times during the regular season and 13 more times in the playoffs, including eight sacks and 14 quarterback hits in an AFC divisional round playoff loss to the Kansas City Chiefs.

The Texans traded five-time Pro Bowl left tackle Laremy Tunsil to the Washington Commanders in a move largely based on financial reasons, but he was also prone to false starts.

The offensive line has been characterized as the biggest question mark on the defending AFC South champions' roster. How all of the changes work out will have a large hand in determining whether this team can make a long playoff run. To say they're hungry to prove themselves is a vast understatement.

"We've got a chip on our shoulders and people underestimate what we're going to be this year, but, you know that's their problem," Howard said. "When that first game comes and we come off that ball and hit them in the mouth, like they're gonna be, 'These these guys are for real.'

"We've been putting that work in here right now and we're gonna continue to put that work and training together. Every day isn't gonna be perfect. But I'm telling you when that game one comes and they see what the offensive line is about, we're going be ready."

The Texans fired offensive coordinator Bobby Slowik and offensive line coach Chris Strausser, hiring former Los Angeles Rams tight ends coach and passing game coordinator Nick Caley as offensive coordinator and promoted assistant line coach Cole Popovich to offensive line coach and run game coordinator.

Popovich is heading into his third season with the Texans. A former Fresno State starting offensive lineman, Popovich broke into the NFL as a coaching assistant in 2016 before being promoted to assistant running backs coach working with Sony Michel then being named co-offensive line coach when Scarneccia retired.

Howard has one word for the stamp Popovich is placing on the offensive line: "Nasty."

Popovich left the Patriots in the offseason for personal family reasons related to mandatory NFL Covid-19 vaccine regulations and coached high school football in Franklin, Massachusetts. He was then hired at Troy University as their head offensive line coach before joining the Texans and winning two consecutive AFC South division titles as part of Ryans' first two seasons in Houston.

"You gotta play with a lot of grit," Howard said. "When offensive lines are physical that don't take (expletive) from nobody and they just establish, the dominance up front, he exemplifies that every morning, every day on the field And you want that in the coach because you're only gonna rub off on the offensive line and he holds us to a high standard."

Both Popovich and Caley are big believers in legendary retired Patriots offensive line coach Dante Scarneccia, who was known for his hard-nosed, fix-it, get-it-right approach protecting star quarterback Tom Brady.

Inside the Patriots' meeting rooms and practice fields, offensive coordinator Nick Caley and Popovich interacted for years while gaining knowledge from legendary coach Bill Belichick and one of the top offensive line coaches in Scarneccia.

At the time, Caley was the Patriots' tight ends coach working with All-Pro Rob Gronkowski. And Popovich was a rising coach who helped replace Scarneccia when he retired after more than three decades in New England.

Now, the two longtime friends are collaborating on an important task for the defending AFC South champion Texans: fixing a reconfigured offensive line.

How Caley and Popovich implement a sounder plan to keep Stroud healthy and standing will go a long way toward upgrading an offense that dipped to 22nd in total offense and 19th in scoring last season for a Texans squad headlined by its aggressive defense led by Ryans.

"Cole as our offensive line coach to lead that room, just having one voice to lead it, I feel really strong about that," coach DeMeco Ryans said. "Cole helped a lot of our young players when it came to developing. He had a really great relationship with a lot of guys, and I think very highly of Cole and what he's able to do.

"I think him having a prior relationship with Nick as well, and them being able to work together and them to hit the ground running instantly, I think that also lead to my decision, and I know we'll be better for it."

The Texans restructured Howard's $56 million contract this offseason, lowering his base salary to $1.17 million and converting the original scheduled salary into a $14.33 million signing bonus, per a league source.

Howard was due a $14 million base salary, in 2024 and the Texans converted $12.875 million of that figure into a fully guaranteed signing bonus. His new base salary is became the minimum $1.125 million, and his salary cap figure is down from $18.705 million to $8.405 million. The base salary is fully guaranteed for skill, injury and salary cap.

The Texans added voidable years in 2027 and 2028 for Howard of $30 million each year.

His new salary-cap figure for 2025 is $11.581 million, down from $23.045 million. The deal creates a salary-cap savings of $11.64 million.

Howard is due $16 million this year overall, including the signing bonus and base salary and a per game active roster bonus weekly of $29,411, up to $500,000. Howard now has another voidable year in 2029 added to his original deal of $30 million.

Howard, 29, is one of the most experienced linemen on the Texans' roster. He is embracing a leadership role.

"I'm all in on that," Howard said. "I'm doing the best I can do to transform my body, transform my daily habits, all that to show the younger guys the right way to do it.

"I'm looking forward to that challenge of being that leader in the group. And I want to be a guy that the guys look up to and they're like, 'Hey man, Tytus is doing it the right and I want to do it that way.' So I'm gonna look forward to it. "

One of the reasons why the Texans had so many issues was a lack of clear communication and scheme plans for blitzes and stunts. That was particularly glaring in a road loss to the Green Bay Packers. Against the Tennessee Titans, the line was overwhelmed by the powerful charge of interior defensive linemen Jeffery Simmons and T'Vondre Sweat during a regular-season upset loss at NRG Stadium. The Baltimore Ravens' speed off the edge and stunts gave the Texans a lot of issues during an embarrassing 31-2 loss on Christmas.

Cohesiveness was in short supply for the Texans. And Caley is determined to change that, immediately.

"With the offensive line, the quarterback, obviously the halfback, you got to be able to see the game through the same set of eyes," Caley said. "You got to be going in the same direction, and you got to be tied together. That's starts with communication.

"It starts with protecting inside out and establishing a pocket, the depth of the pocket, the width of the pocket, and that extends, obviously, in the tight ends, receivers, when you're chipping and stuff like that. But, it does, it really starts inside out, and it starts seeing it through the same lens. We all have to be coordinated in that."

Among the factors in Strausser's dismissal, besides him leaning toward retiring from coaching over the past few years, was an unwillingness to listen to input from players and staff, according to league sources.

"Having one voice with Cole Popovich, Cole is a good offensive line coach," Ryans said. "The thing for me is having an offensive coordinator and offensive line coach in Cole and Caley, they've worked together before. They've spent a lot of time together.

"The flow of information, it sped up drastically. We're not trying to see how we're going to do things. We know how we're going to do it, and now our players will get that communication clearly and direct and now our guys can go out and execute exactly what we're coaching."

Addressing the dramatic offseason move and the overhaul of the offensive line, Ryans strongly denied reports of a toxic culture within the position group. While the Texans struggled mightily to protect Stroud, there wasn't dissension in the ranks with the players.

"I think our guys in that room they competed, they battled," Ryans said. "It didn't go always how we wanted it to go, but there was nothing toxic in the room. Those guys showed up to work every day and those guys were a tight group.

"They went out to dinners throughout the week. I don't know where that report came from, but it's very incorrect. There's nothing in our building and nothing that I stand for as head coach of the team that we bring in the right people we bring in good guys and all those guys are great guys."

Howard smiled when the inaccurate report was referenced.

"I don't know where that came from," Howard said. "We didn't have a toxic group, as far as the players and stuff like that. We didn't have a toxic group. I feel like the guys on the group has always been close since I've been here.

"It's just a matter of the type of style of offense we've been in or the type of coaching we get. I feel this coaching that we're getting right now is one of the best coaching I've had since I been in the league. It's attention to detail. Everybody getting coached the same way and that's the type of stuff we need right now."

The Texans want to solve pass protection problems that held back the offense last season. Stroud was sacked the second-most of any NFL passer overall, up from 38 sacks when he was named NFL Offensive Rookie of the Year two seasons ago.

Caley's playbook, with roots from Sean McVay, Josh McDaniels and Bill Belichick could change the equation.

"I love it," Howard said. "It's an oline friendly offense. They give us a chance to come off the rock and get double teams and move guys off the ball. And that's only gonna open up the pass game because we're gonna be able to protect."

The Texans surrendered 54 sacks as a team last season. It was a rough deal all-around for Stroud as he was under heavy duress for the majority of the season as his interceptions increased from five picks to a dozen and his yardage and accuracy decreased.

With the exception of Tunsil, there were continuity, performance and health issues throughout various parts of the season with the offensive line as well as tight end Dalton Schultz allowing three sacks to the Chiefs in the playoff defeat.

"I think it all starts up front obviously and it's really all 11," Caley said. "We all have to be in sync and I think protections starts with communication, trust and cohesiveness up front and really having clear rules in the protection system. We're going to be going through that process.

"Obviously, I have a history with Cole dating back to my time in New England when he was our offensive line coach and I coached the tight ends. So, I have a really good working relationship and level of trust with Cole. He is a very good football coach and I'm excited to go through this process with him."

Aaron Wilson is a Texans and NFL reporter for KPRC 2 and click2houston.com