The LabThe fingerprint of every playbook

Houston TexansScheme DNA

Most deep shots, most middle of the field in the league. Their closest twin is Commanders (75% alike), then Packers and Colts. 486 offensive snaps read, 422 of them charted.

League map Texans verdict JSON

Deep shots15.1%84th percentile · league 11.5%

Middle of the field26.5%84th percentile · league 21.0%

Shotgun rate68.7%81th percentile · league 61.5%

Early-down pass rate55.2%81th percentile · league 50.6%

Bottom lineTheir loudest habits: deep shots (15.1%, 84th percentile), middle of the field (26.5%, 84th percentile), shotgun rate (68.7%, 81th percentile).

How to read this chart

The flower:: each petal is one play-calling habit, labeled around the edge. Petal length is the team's rank among the 32 (long = does it more than most; for tempo, long = fast). The dashed ring is the league middle.
The bars:: the same habits as a list: the bar is the rank (the tick in the middle is the league middle), then the real value and the percentile (90 = more than 90% of teams). Jargon: pass rate over expected = how much more or less they throw than the situation predicts; RPO = run-pass option; men in the box = defenders near the line against the run.

Offense

The playbook

Pass rate over expected−0.3%77

Early-down pass rate55.2%81

Shotgun rate68.7%81

No-huddle rate4.5%42

Pre-snap motion55.9%36

Play action21.3%32

Screen rate6.6%19

RPO rate4.3%39

Deep shots15.1%84

Middle of the field26.5%84

Outside runs22.6%42

Tempo38.1s48

Defense

The defense

Blitz rate25.3%26

Five-plus rushers25.3%26

Men in the box6.7877

Stacked boxes14.4%87

Pass rate faced−0.4%81

Deep shots allowed12.0%68

Defensive twins: Steelers (82%), Rams (81%), Lions (81%).

Twins

Offenses most like theirs

Solid shape: Texans · outline: the twin

Bottom lineTexans and Commanders, 75% alike. Both take more deep shots and line up in shotgun more than most of the league; Texans and Commanders differ most in throws over the middle (26.5% vs 21.8%) and no-huddle rate (4.5% vs 8.5%).

How to read this chart

Each card is one twin:: an offense that calls games like Texans. The colored shape is Texans's fingerprint, the white outline the twin's. Where the two match, the habits match.
The %: is how alike the two are across all offensive habits: 100% would be identical, 0% the most different pair in the league.

#1 twinCommanders75%Both take more deep shots and line up in shotgun more than most of the league; Texans and Commanders differ most in throws over the middle (26.5% vs 21.8%) and no-huddle rate (4.5% vs 8.5%).

#2 twinPackers74%Both take more deep shots and throw more over the middle than most of the league; Texans and Packers differ most in deep shots (15.1% vs 18.3%) and RPO rate (4.3% vs 7.0%).

#3 twinColts68%Both pass more on early downs and throw fewer screens than most of the league; Texans and Colts differ most in deep shots (15.1% vs 10.6%) and throws over the middle (26.5% vs 20.5%).

Run game

Where they run

Arrow size = share of carries · color = EPA per carry

Bottom lineTheir favorite lane: middle, 23% of runs, +0.06 EPA per carry.

How to read this chart

Seen from behind the offense:: the line at the bottom is the line of scrimmage, with seven running lanes from the left end to the right end.
Arrow size: and the % above it = share of the team's runs that go there.
Arrow color: = how well those runs work, in EPA per carry (expected points added: above zero helps the offense). Green works, grey is average, red hurts.

Pass game

Where they throw

Share of targets · EPA per throw

Bottom lineMost targeted zone: short right, 33% of throws, +0.26 EPA per throw.

How to read this chart

The field from the quarterback's eyes:: left, middle and right; the bottom row is short throws, the top row deep throws.
Each box: shows the share of throws that go there (more solid = more throws) and its color the EPA per throw: green helps the offense, grey is average, red hurts.

Formation Tell

What the formation gives away

How to read this chart

Two dots on one line from 0% to 100%:: how often they throw when the quarterback is under center, and how often from shotgun, on neutral downs.
The gap between them: is what a defense learns from the formation alone: a wide gap means the alignment tips run or pass.

Under center31%pass rate, neutral downs

Shotgun76%pass rate, neutral downs

A 45-point gap: middle of the pack offenses in the league (9 of 32). See all 32 →