When the Houston Texans drafted Dameon Pierce in Round 4 of the 2022 NFL draft, the sense was the former Florida Gator would eventually take over as the lead running back in offensive coordinator Pep Hamilton’s scheme.
It didn’t take long; Pierce seized the reins as the starter in preseason and started all 13 games he was available for Houston last year. Pierce generated 939 rushing yards and four such touchdowns along with a miscellaneous “Angriest Run of the Year” at the NFL Honors.
The Texans’ running back stable behind Pierce consisted of Rex Burkhead, Dare Ogunbowale, and Royce Freeman. Houston upgraded the depth in free agency by signing former Buffalo Bills runner Devin Singletary.
Coach DeMeco Ryans told reporters at the NFL owners meetings in Phoenix that he was enthused to have Pierce and Singletary in the same backfield.
“Excited to have both those guys,” said Ryans. “Dameon has shown a lot from his rookie season. He’s shown that he’s a really good player, and being able to add Devin there with him to have sort of that one-two punch to have those guys balance each other out, I think it’ll be really great addition for us.”
Singletary generated 4.7yards per carry along with 3,151 rushing yards and 16 touchdowns. As a pass-catcher, the former 2019 third-round pick hauled in 145 passes for 971 yards and four touchdowns.
Said Ryans: “Excited for what Devin can bring. He’s hungry to show that he can do more, so excited to have him in Houston.”
Despite Pierce’s best efforts, as his rushing yards were the third-best among rookies last year, the Texans were atrocious running the football. Houston could only get 3.7 yards per carry, the second-lowest in the league, and generate 86.8 rushing yards per game, also the second-lowest in the NFL. With a one-two punch of Pierce and Singletary, along with better blocking up front thanks to the return of left tackle Laremy Tunsil and the acquisition of right guard Shaq Mason, Houston’s rushing production could regress towards the mean.
