Now that the Houston Texans have brought in Wade Phillips to revamp their miserable defense, the transition from a 4-3 defense to 3-4 defense can begin. This transition is definitely easier said than done because each defense requires different types of players which forces guys like Mario Williams and Brian Cushing to take on new roles which can negatively affect their performance.
Phillips spoke to John McClain of the Houston Chronicle about his plan for Mario Williams.
“When they did stand him up, he took that false step every time, and that made him late on his rush,” Phillips revealed. You don’t want him late on the rush. That’s just fundamentals, something you have to work on. That’s what happens when you have a player who’s not used to standing up stand up. I don’t think you need to stand Mario up. He comes off the ball so well with his hand on the ground I don’t know that you’d ever want to stand him up.”
Turning Mario Williams into Julius Peppers isn’t going to be all that easy so Phillips is smart to play to the strengths of his players. Williams is one of the leagues best pass rushers so allowing him to do what he does best should make things much easier for their under performing secondary.
McClain’s adds that the Texans are likely to go with Mario Williams and Antonio Smith at defensive end and use Earl Mitchell as their nose tackle.
As we’ve already said, this is a tough transition to make in one year but the NFL labor situation makes it even harder for Houston and their players.
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