DENVER -- For someone who likes to keep his game plans close to the vest, Houston Texans coach Bill O’Brien did not hesitate when he was asked about his offense without wide receiver Will Fuller.
On Wednesday, after the Texans traded for wide receiver Demaryius Thomas because Fuller tore his ACL in his right knee in Week 8, O’Brien was asked whether "a lot would fall on" wide receiver DeAndre Hopkins.
"It always does," O’Brien said. "I don’t think it’s any secret. He’s the leading target on third down. He’s got a bunch of yards. He’s our No. 1 receiver. We’re not trying to hide him. [Hopkins] knows that. That’s why he is who he is."
Hopkins showed that again in the Texans’ sixth straight victory, a 19-17 defeat of the Denver Broncos on Sunday, with 10 catches for 105 yards and a touchdown. While Houston’s offense had a hard time moving the ball after the first drive, time and time again, quarterback Deshaun Watson went to Hopkins.
“Every week, [Hopkins] comes to play,” O’Brien said. “He’s dealing with a lot of issues in regards to health and he really gives us everything he’s got on Sundays. We move him around and he’s got to learn a lot.
“There’s a lot to learn in our offense based on where we have to put him, especially when we added D.T. [Thomas] this week. We wanted D.T. to stay in one spot for his first week here and move DeAndre around, and Hop did a great job.”
It was no surprise for the Broncos either. Last week, Broncos cornerback Chris Harris Jr. said, "Oh, they’re throwing it to DeAndre [Hopkins]. All you have to do is watch. He’s getting the ball no matter where he is on the field."
Watson completed 17 of 24 passes for 213 yards and two touchdowns. Thomas, in his first game with the Texans, had three catches for 61 yards, all of which came in the first quarter.
Hopkins broke his own franchise record that he set in 2015 for the most receiving yards through the first nine games of any season in Texans history (789). And he has done that while the Texans’ No. 2 and 3 receivers have rotated during the season due to health.
The Texans certainly miss Fuller, who had 32 catches for 503 yards and four touchdowns in seven games and perhaps most importantly, stretched the field for Hopkins. But even though the Broncos knew where the ball was going, Hopkins was able to make plays.
The Texans hope to have rookie receiver Keke Coutee, who has missed two games with a hamstring injury, back after the bye, and that time off should give Thomas more time to learn Houston’s playbook so he can be even more involved in the offense. Thomas said he “kind of messed up on two plays” on Sunday, but he will go into the extended time off with a focus on learning the playbook to fix those mistakes.
But regardless of who is on the field, O’Brien is right. The Texans’ offense goes through Watson and Hopkins.
“He is a guy that any quarterback would love to have,” Watson said. “Being able to go to him and knowing he is going to be in the right place at the right time and make big catches.”