There is an added level of difficulty preparing to face a quarterback that has barely played for his current team. However, that is the situation the Houston Texans are dealing with as they prepare to play the New York Giants.
New York will be starting J.J. McCarthy, whose only tape with the team is from the fourth quarter last week. McCarthy also has 10 games of experience during his time with the Minnesota Vikings, who drafted him No. 10 overall back in the 2024 NFL Draft. Texans defensive coordinator Matt Burke broke down how they are preparing to tape on McCarthy and what some of his tendencies are.
“Obviously, he came in, did a really good job sparking them to a little bit of a comeback and getting them back in that game last week. Another person who made a lot of big plays,” Burke said. “Then just trying to go back a little bit just to see what he likes to do and what he's comfortable with and sort of what his strengths are just from generic tape. Obviously, not schematically. That's a little different from what they're doing in Minnesota. So yeah, we've gone back and tried to see just where we think there's always a little bit of projection. We always kind of go back to, let's make sure we're doing what we need to be doing. But really athletic, gets out, made a few plays with his legs, both scrambling and then obviously buying time in the pocket. That's another factor we've got to account for.
Houston is coming into this game with a 2-4 record but has won its past two games. Meanwhile, New York has not won a game since Week 4 against the Arizona Cardinals. The Texans are trying to gain ground in the AFC South race with a win, while the Giants would still be in first in the NFC East with a loss, as they are the only team in their division with a winning record.
"Even early in the season in New York, they were putting them in some packages to run some quarterback runs and stuff. That’s another thing that we're sort of trying to make sure we're on top of. We’re trying to go back and just make sure we're crossing all our T's and dotting our I's to make sure we have a good sense of what we're about to face.”
The Texans kick off against the Giants at noon.
This article originally appeared on Texans Wire: Texans DC Matt Burke on preparing for Giants QB J.J. McCarthy