One of the biggest surprises from the Houston Texans’ season opener was the fact that running back Dameon Pierce didn’t receive the most touches. Instead, it was Rex Burkhead who got the bulk of the carries.
Speaking to reporters Wednesday morning, Texans head coach Lovie Smith made it clear that Pierce needs to play a bigger role on offense.
“We need to get Dameon more touches,” Smith said. “That’s what we need to do.”
Pierce finished Week 1 with 11 carries for 33 yards. He also had a six-yard reception.
Smith said the coaching staff in Houston will learn from its mistakes in Week 1.
“Some of the other things we did in the game, looking on the offensive side of the football, I understand how many plays Dameon Pierce played,” he said, via the team’s official transcript. “The plan of course was for him to get more. You get into the game and situations make you go a little bit different direction. You learn from those mistakes like that, mistakes of those situations that you look at the day after.”
The Texans selected Pierce in the fourth round of this year’s draft.
NFL fans should expect to see more of Pierce this weekend when the Texans take on the Denver Broncos.