Could Comeback Win over Colts Be Turning Point for Brock Osweiler, Texans?

Entering Sunday night's home game against the Indianapolis Colts, the high-priced, revamped Houston Texans offense had scored an NFL-low 82 points in five games. The Texans' $72 million quarterback, Brock Osweiler, came into Week 6 ranked in the bottom 10 in the league in terms of completion percentage, interception rate, yards per attempt and passer rating.

For three-and-a-half quarters against the Colts, it was more of the same. 

When Osweiler and the Texans took the field down 23-9 with 7:04 to play in the fourth quarter, there didn't appear to be much hope for an offense that had scored just 22 points in its last seven-and-a-half quarters of football and just 49 in the last four weeks.

At that moment, a struggling Osweiler had completed just 12 of 24 passes for 102 yards. He also had an interception and a fumble, and his 2016 passer rating had plummeted to 67.6. 

On paper, Osweiler—who signed a four-year, $72 million contract with $37 million guaranteed during free agency—was the league's second-worst qualified passer, ahead of only Ryan Fitzpatrick of the New York Jets (64.7).

And then everything changed.

Starting at that 7:04 mark, Osweiler proceeded to complete 11 of 13 passes for 122 yards and two touchdowns on consecutive scoring drives to tie the game. Throw in a game-winning field goal in overtime, and a Texans team that was averaging just 16 points per game to start the year scored 17 in a 15-minute span to triumph over its rivals and take a firm lead in the AFC South.  

Category	First 52 minutes	Final 15 minutes
Completions	12	13
Attempts	24	15
Comp.%	50.0	86.7
TD	0	2
INT	1	0
YPA	4.3	11.1
Passer rating	44.1	152.6

The comeback victory wasn't all on Osweiler. The Houston running game was extremely effective, and the pass protection was superb. But that had been the case all night. Running back Lamar Miller had a key 10-yard run in overtime and a pair of huge gains on screens late in the game, but Miller also averaged 5.5 yards per carry in the first half and was finding running room consistently. And Osweiler had time in the pocket most of the evening.

The difference between the first 52 minutes and the next 15 was that something changed in Osweiler, who no longer missed the open receivers he couldn't hit for much of the first six weeks of the season. He suddenly found a groove, just in time to prevent another skewering on Monday.

Had this game been 52 minutes long, Osweiler's inability to live up to that massive contract would have been one of the hottest sports radio topics in the country. Critics would have attacked the desperate Texans for mortgaging their future to add a fifth-year former second-round pick with an uninspiring passer rating of 86.0 in a measly seven career starts.

Fifteen throws don't turn anyone into a franchise quarterback, just as the first 212 throws of Osweiler's Houston career weren't enough to conclude he was a bust. The jury is still out. But late on Sunday night, Osweiler and the Texans bought themselves some much-needed time. They forced skeptics to put their pitchforks away, at least for another week. 

And you do have to wonder whether we just witnessed the turning point for Osweiler, the Houston offense and the Texans altogether. 

After all, Miller finally found his groove, and it has to be a good sign that the Texans were able to deliver on offense without being carried by star receiver DeAndre Hopkins or receiving any sort of contribution from injured wideout Will Fuller.

But perhaps more importantly, Osweiler does seem to have a knack for coming up big at key junctures. You may recall he led the Denver Broncos to a comeback victory over the undefeated New England Patriots last season, going 4-of-5 for 86 yards on two scoring drives late in the fourth quarter and in overtime. He's now 3-0 in overtime games and has led four comeback victories in 13 NFL starts.

If Osweiler has woken up and the Houston offense has finally taken off, the timing couldn't be better. Things looked bleak when the Texans lost superstar defensive lineman J.J. Watt to injury in September, and their 3-2 record felt like a bit of a mirage. But 4-2 feels right considering the way things ended Sunday, and they can now build on that in a Monday Night Football matchup with Osweiler's former team, the Broncos, in Week 7.

Then and there, we'll get a feel for whether Houston's late offensive eruption Sunday night was a flash in the pan or a sign of what's to come. But in the meantime, there's a heck of a lot more hope surrounding Osweiler and the Houston Texans.

Brad Gagnon has covered the NFL for Bleacher Report since 2012.

Follow @Brad_Gagnon