DeMeco Ryans wants Texans to play fast, instinctive football against the Saints

Some call it the final preseason game, others call it “Judgment Day,” but everyone understands Sunday night’s encounter with the New Orleans Saints will be some Houston Texans’ last chance to prove they belong on the team.

Whether that opportunity comes on the 53-man roster or the practice squad, most want to either have a job or provide enough game footage as an interview for other teams.

Texans coach DeMeco Ryans announced Wednesday starters will play about two series in New Orleans, and then backups would have a chance to showcase their skills one last time. According to Ryans, the game isn’t the deciding factor on whether or not a player makes the team.

“You still just want to see that cumulative view of guys and what they’ve been able to handle over the course of practice when we do a lot more things in practice,” Ryans said. “We mix up a lot of different calls in practice, so we get to see our players in what they can handle mentally and then get in the game.

“Preseason is about just trimming and just allowing guys to just go play as fast as possible, not a lot of thinking, not a lot of checks. We just want to see how guys operate on game day, and can they play as fast as possible? Can they make plays without having to think? When it comes to game planning, that changes each week, and we’ve seen how guys handle things mentally throughout training camp.”

Ryans also announced that rookie quarterback C.J. Stroud would be starting in the final preseason game, just as he had the previous two. Still, he would not say whether the former Ohio State Buckeye has won the starting position for the regular season. The Texans are the only team in the NFL that hasn’t named a definitive starter to begin the regular season.

“In everybody’s case, we’ll see who earns what, and you’ll see our starters in Baltimore,” Ryans responded when asked if Stroud had done enough to earn the starting position.