Houston Texans coach Lovie Smith has seen the improvement from rookie running back Dameon Pierce over the first two games.
Pierce took 11 carries for 33 yards in the 20-20 tie with the Indianapolis Colts in Week 1 at NRG Stadium. As the Texans prepared for Week 2, Smith indicated he wanted the fourth-rounder from Florida to be more involved in the Texans’ Week 2 tilt with the Denver Broncos.
“Our commitment to him, getting him more carries — what we saw this past week I think is what we’ve seen throughout,” Smith told reporters Wednesday. “Guy gets the ball, he’s a tough guy to bring down.”
Pierce carried 15 times for 69 yards, a 4.6 yards per carry. The Texans weren’t able to continue feeding Pierce as the offense struggled to pickup first downs with just 15 throughout the 16-9 loss to the Broncos at Empower Field at Mile High.
One of the themes the Texans have been working working with as they seek to improve their 0-1-1 record is “finish.” According to Smith, he hasn’t had to talk much about finishing with Pierce.
Said Smith: “Talk about finish, we as a football team need to finish. I haven’t said that an awful lot to Dameon. He finishes plays. What we want to be, that toughness, extra effort, all those things you talk about, that’s exactly what we see from him every time he gets the ball.”
The Texans take on the Chicago Bears Sunday at 12:00 p.m. Central Time at Soldier Field. The Bears give up 189.5 rushing yards per game, the most in the NFL, and are tied for the sixth-most yards per carry surrendered at 5.1. Week 3 could be an opportunity for Pierce to turn dirty yards into chunk plays when he finishes.
