- 2 days ago
ITL discusses the Texans signing Foster Moreau and why Lopez believes the move could have a bigger impact on the offense than people realize.
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00:00The Texans made yet another signing yesterday after we were off air.
00:04And maybe this might be too much.
00:07It's possible.
00:08But I think this could possibly be the Texans' biggest offensive acquisition of the offseason.
00:12And no, it is not David Montgomery, the running back, although we will hear from him tomorrow.
00:17No, it is not Braden Smith, the dude who apparently said that he enjoys bloodying dudes.
00:23You talk about a swarm mentality.
00:25The way that he talks about enjoying going and just beating a defender.
00:29Yeah, yeah, yeah.
00:30Sounds great.
00:31Yeah.
00:32Nope.
00:32I am putting up.
00:33Or Blankenship.
00:34No?
00:35Yeah, but that's defense.
00:36I'm talking about on the offensive side of things.
00:37But fair enough.
00:39Is it possible that Foster Moreau, tight end who previously played for the New Orleans Saints, more of a blocking
00:46guy.
00:46He had all of 10 targets this past year in playing 11 games.
00:50He did have an injury that took him out of availability for the Saints.
00:53Is it possible that this could be the Texans' biggest offensive acquisition of the offseason?
00:58I mean, you kind of are in my head.
01:00I think it's absolutely possible.
01:01There's a number of reasons for that.
01:03Now, obviously, David Montgomery, a lot of pelts on the wall.
01:06You know, good running back.
01:07Fits the style.
01:09Here's how I'll describe it.
01:10Would David Montgomery have changed the way you do offense here?
01:15No, they could have got another running back, you know, that maybe they weren't still going to change.
01:20He's just a good one.
01:21And it's a big acquisition.
01:22I'm not trying to downplay it.
01:23Well, I think you would have to do that if they don't get him because I don't know if we're
01:26comparing it to other guys.
01:27I don't know if Foster Moreau is going to beat Trump's head compared to other guys.
01:31Like, his game, they were going to find it one way or another, and they landed on David Montgomery.
01:36Same thing with Braden Smith.
01:38His style of game, downhill, you know, a run-blocking, you know, expert, all that stuff.
01:45Big dude, has the swarm mentality.
01:47Come hell or high water, they were going to find a guy like that.
01:50They landed on him, and I'm glad they did.
01:52But the thing about Foster Moreau that I like is he kind of adds something, you know, something that they
01:58just don't have.
01:59You know, they didn't have, you know, the days of number 57 reporting as eligible are over, you know, because
02:07this is.
02:08No, I think they're over.
02:09Because he's a guy.
02:11He's a guy that doesn't just come into block.
02:14He's got a little bit of ability to catch the ball as well, but he's also the threat.
02:19But, you know, I was telling you guys before the show, say hello to 12 personnel.
02:24That's the biggest thing.
02:25Say hello to 12 personnel.
02:26This is an acquisition that I think is significant because it changes and leans even more heavily into what they
02:32want to be.
02:32Yeah, that's the thing for me, right?
02:34Because I hear what you're trying to say on the, you could get David Montgomery production elsewhere.
02:39I'm not trying to say Diamond doesn't.
02:40What I'm saying is they were going to find a guy to compliment, you know, what he marks.
02:45They were going to find a tackle at some point.
02:47But they needed, this acquisition changes the way they, you know, they do.
02:52Yeah, and I think that they could have gotten another primarily blocking tight end as well.
02:56But the idea that they did get one, I think, speaks to a change that does, as you mentioned, change
03:02this.
03:02The idea of 12 personnel is one that has been, it's not like it's new or novel in the National
03:08Football League,
03:09but it was something that was a big trend.
03:11We talked to a number of people at Super Bowl Radio Row about this, about the nature of adding the
03:15two tight ends on the field
03:16and being able to dictate what a defense does in their personnel.
03:21And then once you force them into certain places, then you can go and you can attack them because you
03:24know what they're doing.
03:25And it didn't feel like the Texans had the capability of doing that nearly as much last year.
03:30And I wonder how intentional, or not intentional, I wonder how much they had intended for that to be.
03:37Because this offense last year, let's be honest, I don't think it blew anybody away.
03:41And I don't know that anybody is looking at Nick Haley as any level of genius.
03:45But I do wonder how much any potential of seeing some genius from your play caller was hampered by a
03:51tight end,
03:51you know, a tight end core that was severely injured and limited in what it could do, right?
03:57You lost Brevin Jordan before you even got to the season.
04:00You lost Cade Stover for a long period of time within that, and he is probably your best blocker.
04:06And then you had Dalton Schultz, who was battered and bruised a lot through the season,
04:09but he is not an in-line blocker.
04:11So I wonder how much, especially after Dalton Schultz at Super Bowl talked about how much time on task they
04:17had
04:17with multiple guys on the field, how much having a guy like Foster Merrill that you could put in line
04:22and actually really and truly trust him to block.
04:24And still be a complimentary receiver in a pinch.
04:26I wonder how much that opens up for the possibility of offense.
04:29We saw the Rams, right?
04:30Maybe that gives you a little bit more Rams-like stuff because we, you know,
04:33I think it was Ariante Urshry was actually on a podcast talking about how, you know,
04:38Nick Casario from the Patriots system, the offense is basically Patriots.
04:41I wonder how much of the Rams' influences were supposed to be kind of those big sets,
04:45which I guess the Panthers, sorry, the Panthers, the Patriots do as well.
04:48But I wonder how much of that would have shown up where you see a more robust offense
04:51because they can get to some of these other things where you actually get to big personnel
04:55as opposed to putting out an offensive lineman who sometimes holds his own
05:00and sometimes doesn't and then doesn't have a threat to catch the football.
05:02I think what it does more than anything, it gives Nick Cayley and the offensive staff
05:06the ability to put in plays in that given week's game plan that they didn't even bother with before.
05:14In other words, you've got some plays, some options offensively that you didn't even consider
05:21when Blake Fisher was your tight end.
05:23He wasn't going to catch any balls.
05:25He wasn't going to be, you know, any threat.
05:27The defense wasn't going to, you know, keep an eye on him at any point.
05:31Well, now, you know, you can use some of those plays.
05:33You can have that threat.
05:35There will be an eye kept on him.
05:37I think that's what I'm talking about.
05:38Like, it kind of gives you just another twist to what you're already doing that you just didn't have.
05:44Yeah, and a fair point that comes in, right, from the 9-7-9,
05:48there's a game where you run the ball four times in a row from the one-yard line and can't
05:52score, right?
05:53So that's a very good case to be made for David Montgomery,
05:57who was an absolute bowling ball in the red zone and getting that ball and reaching pay dirt.
06:02That's going to be huge.
06:03And we talked about that when they ultimately traded for him,
06:05and that's not to be forgotten within this.
06:08What that also made me remember is you resorted to going and pulling your defensive tackle
06:12to get in that fullback, to go down as a fullback and try and create space.
06:16And at some point, that ended up kind of biting you in the keister.
06:18I wonder how much Foster Moreau can give you some of that feel as well, right?
06:23And what's interesting is you talk about his ability to kind of catch out of the backfield,
06:27and he only had seven catches.
06:28But he's been relatively productive as a receiver.
06:31I was like, I know that if you're looking at, you know, the pro football reference or whatever,
06:34you would laugh in our faces for that.
06:37But look a little bit deeper.
06:38He's had seasons where he's been more effective.
06:40He had injuries this past year.
06:42And even if you just look at this past year where he did not do a ton,
06:45the things that he was asked to do are things that it looked like Dalton Schultz did, right?
06:49Those little leak outs into the flats where you get the ball to the tight end.
06:52He's done that.
06:53A lot of those, you know, sitting down in the zone in the middle of the field
06:57and just quick pitch and catch.
06:58He's done that.
06:59And I wonder how much Dalton Schultz having to do that last year was a –
07:03you didn't really have any other options.
07:05Yeah.
07:05Because they didn't do a ton of throwing the ball to Dalton Schultz down the field.
07:08And I wonder if you have a Foster Moreau on the field who can do some of those things,
07:13does that free up Dalton Schultz to be more of a downfield pass catcher,
07:17more of that kind of threat,
07:19which brings us a little bit closer to the C.J. Stroud experience that he wants to have,
07:23brings us a little bit closer to a Dalton Schultz that feels like he's making more of an impact on
07:27the game,
07:29right?
07:29I wonder if that helps slot him into a place where he could be even more deadly on the field
07:34or just more dangerous generally.
07:36And again, I think that if that is the case,
07:38this could again present the opportunity to be a big-time addition to your offense.
07:43Yeah, because Nick Kaley is happy with this acquisition, as I mentioned,
07:46because there are going to be more options, Nick Kaley and the offensive staff,
07:50more options offensively just in terms of plays he can run.
07:53C.J. Stroud has to be happy with this because of the same reason
07:56and you've got a guy that can block on that edge.
07:58And even Blake Fisher wasn't real reliable as a blocking tight end.
08:01But the happiest person is Dalton Schultz.
08:04I feel like the happiest person with this is Dalton Schultz
08:07because of what you just said, he's going to be able to do.
08:10He's not going to be on any islands as often as he was before.
08:14You have the complementary personnel.
08:16He can maybe run, do some things that we saw him do more of when he was with the Cowboys,
08:21you know, stretching the field, up the field, down the sideline, those kinds of things.
08:25No, this is really good for the offensive approach.
08:29Yeah.
08:30Now, probably a lot to say that it is absolutely the biggest offensive acquisition
08:36because having a guy like Brayden Smith, especially if he's playing right tackle, right,
08:40where you feel like you have locked down, you're passing down.
08:43You're not.
08:44C.J. Stroud isn't looking over his shoulder in that way.
08:46Or, you know, if Brayden Smith plays guard or if they add another guard, right,
08:50making sure the interior is stronger is super important,
08:53especially if you're going to continue to run the football.
08:55But I think that if you can help expand what this offense is and create more threats,
09:00that possibility of not having to just, you know, constantly run into brick walls at times
09:05or what it felt like brick walls at times,
09:07if you can have some different things that dictate to defenses how they line up,
09:11I think that you can make, you know, the likes of Nico Collins and Jayden Higgins more impactful
09:16because if you're making them have to come in with an additional linebacker
09:21as opposed to, you know, somebody who can play as an actual nickel,
09:25can you change the dynamics of what's happening there?
09:27Are you forcing somebody, a bigger player, to have to run with Dalton Schultz or whatever?
09:31Like, I think that these are opportunities and tools that you open up.
09:35So maybe not the player himself because it would be absurd for me to put Foster Moreau up
09:39against Brayden Smith in particular and say which one of these dudes does their job better.
09:44I'm going with Brayden Smith, right?
09:45If I do that with David Montgomery, I'm going with David Montgomery.
09:48But the idea that there's more cards on the table for your offensive play caller,
09:53especially in a season where you came off where having an offensive play caller,
09:57being able to push and pull buttons and create things for an offense,
10:01it felt like it was bigger than any other season prior this past year.
10:04No, I totally agree.
10:05And you know me, I've been kind of on this tight end kick for a while now
10:09because they didn't really have, they had Dalton Schultz who could do a little bit of the blocking,
10:15but obviously you don't want him to make a habit of it.
10:17And we found out why, especially a year before this past one.
10:20And then you had a blocking tight end in Stover and you had a receiving tight end in Brevin Jordan.
10:25This is really the first time that they've got a true, you know, versatile blocker who can also catch the
10:31ball.
10:31And we mentioned, you know, that he didn't have a great receiving year last year.
10:35No, and I could get into some of the crazy numbers.
10:37Like his completion percentage over expected was not as good as you needed.
10:41But for the four years before that, I mean, he was used.
10:44He had 44 targets in 2021, 54 in 2022, 25 in 23, and 43 in 24.
10:52So they did target 43 to 50 whatever targets.
10:56That's significant for a guy that can be your second tight end.
11:00Yeah.
11:01Now, second tight end is what you said.
11:03I know someone on the text line said he's a third tight end.
11:06And before I even move forward on that, the idea that, oh, four years before last year was really good.
11:11That means he'll get back to that.
11:12That's a dangerous proposition.
11:14That always is.
11:14But what I'm saying is his skill set was used and they threw the ball to him.
11:19But what does it say about Kate Stover in your mind?
11:22Because Kate Stover, I vividly remember, maybe not this time of year.
11:26Actually, it might have been around this time of year, give or take a couple of months, a month or
11:30two,
11:30where we had John Harris on and he was talking about this.
11:33He felt like this would be the year that Kate Stover came on.
11:35And unfortunately, it felt like it was the opposite.
11:37It felt like this was a year that crystallized some level of feeling that Kate Stover was not going to
11:41be the, you know,
11:43blocking a blocking tight end who could also get out here and catch the football for you.
11:47He felt disappointing towards the end of the year once he had come back from injury.
11:51How much of that is the injury?
11:52I don't know.
11:53But does this feel like a level of acknowledgement that they might be needing to move on from someone like
11:59a Kate Stover?
12:00Well, I don't know about moving on just yet, but I do believe, I do think it's a sign of,
12:05you know,
12:05they're looking for more of a proven deal, you know, with a complimentary tight end.
12:10It puts pressure on Kate Stover, the old, you know, everybody's in competing mode type thing.
12:17It absolutely is a message.
12:18And I would consider Moreau, at least going into the camp, you know, the second tight end.
12:23I mean, I absolutely will.
12:25Who's odd tight end out in your mind?
12:26Or do you carry four?
12:27Right now, we're very far out.
12:29I'm the guy who's like, I don't really love 53-man talk.
12:32And here we are in March.
12:33And I'm like, well, who's the odd man out?
12:35But, I mean, that is a thought.
12:37Well, there's a competition now.
12:37Because there is a competition.
12:39And maybe that's ultimately the idea.
12:40Get competition and see if the cream rises to the top, rather, in that way.
12:45But it's clearly Dolton Schultz of Foster Moreau.
12:47And then Kate Stover, Brevin Jordan, maybe even stylistically you're dictated upon that.
12:52Is the value of the athletic tight end and Brevin Jordan worth more than having another guy that you could
12:58put in line
12:59and feel comfortable about getting in there and blocking?
13:01I don't know.
13:02But I'm intrigued at the very least.
13:05And, yes, I see you on the text line saying that, yeah, good pickup.
13:08However, not even in conversation for most important.
13:11Fair enough.
13:11But I did want to try and at least make the case that this is more than just a depth
13:16guy who can block.
13:17I feel like he changes the dynamic of what you can do offensively.
13:20No, he absolutely does.
13:21And I go back to just the options that they want to have offensively, philosophically, are expanded now.
13:30Because of what he can do on the field.
13:32Absolutely.
13:32Now, do this change the fact that – do y'all still feel like they need to go out and
13:37draft a tight end if he's right there?
13:39Ooh, that would be interesting.
13:42Because then that would be a definite message.
13:43I wouldn't say need by any means.
13:45However –
13:46Because we were talking about tight end as a need in the draft.
13:49Right.
13:50I don't think that they need to.
13:52But this, again, you're in a place where you are as close to best player available as you could be.
13:56You're getting there, right?
13:57At least – especially if you add a starting guard, right?
13:59If all of a sudden we find out that – here we go, Joel Batonio wants to play next year,
14:03and he is the starting guard for the Texans next year.
14:05I go, okay, you're free to just move around the cabin, so to say.
14:09Just get some ballers.
14:10You're free to – hey, who do you like on this?
14:12And get them.
14:12And if it happens to be a tight end, we'll figure that out, right?
14:15But I think that that's the good part of it, right?
14:18Is that you're not beholden, and it does feel like he's a dude that can handle that.
14:22Because, again, you might need to get a tight end still because it was last year an indication of a
14:27downfall, right?
14:28Are you going to get back to two, three years ago of what Foster Moreau was?
14:32Yeah.
14:32That's still a question to some degree, but I like the idea of, at a pretty reasonable rate, getting a
14:37dude in there that I think adds your capability to bring 12 personnel back.
14:41I love it.
14:41In a real way.
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