Ryan Mallett got benched Sunday, but he'll retain the starting quarterback job.
Houston Texans coach Bill O'Brien announced Monday that Mallet will keep the starting gig, despite the quarterback's poor performance in the team's 48-21 blowout loss to the Atlanta Falcons.
"He's our starting quarterback," O'Brien said. "Like all of us, he knows that he has to play better. We all have to do better. He's got to do a better job of throwing the ball more accurately, be more controlled in the pocket, don't turn it over, get us into the right play. But that's who we'll start against the Indianapolis Colts."
Mallett completed just 12 of 27 passes (44.4 percent) for 150 yards and one interception as the hapless Texans fell down 42-0 before the quarterback was yanked deep in the third quarter.
As Around The NFL's Chris Wesseling noted Sunday, Mallett struggles anticipating throws, which leads to forced passes in tight windows that often end up deflected, dropped or intercepted. He is also frustratingly inaccurate and has no touch on passes. In his fifth season, with five starts under his belt, Mallett has displayed a big arm and little else to suggest he's an starting-caliber NFL quarterback.
Brian Hoyer entered the game and led the Texans on three scoring drives to make the blowout seem less lopsided on the scoreboard against Falcons backups and soft coverage. It was the same recipe Mallett used to yank the starting job from Hoyer after Week 1.
This time O'Brien won't make a change.
The coach added that the short week before Houston's home date with the Colts played a part in sticking with Mallett.
Short week or long week, the truth remains: the Texans still don't have a quality quarterback.
