The Miami Dolphins are set to host the Houston Texans on Sunday at 1 p.m. at Hard Rock Stadium.

Miami and Houston have had similar starts to their 2021 campaigns, as they’ve both lost their seven straight games and spent time without their quarterbacks.

It’s probably safe to say that the Texans would not be struggling as much if Tyrod Taylor hadn’t been injured in Week 2. However, they did also get a chance to view their rookie quarterback and see what he can do with their limited weapons.

To help understand a little bit more about the Texans, we spoke with Mark Lane of the Texans Wire. He answered six questions for us ahead of Sunday.

How does Tyrod Taylor being active change the Texans offense?

Mandatory Credit: Scott Galvin-USA TODAY Sports

ML — The former 2015 Pro Bowler is able to use his mobility to pick up cheap yards, but also to scramble around and wait for big plays to develop downfield. They open up the downfield passing for Taylor, whereas with Davis Mills they seem to have him bottled up. In theory, with Taylor, he can use the pass to open up the run. The best rushing game for Houston was Week 1 when Mark Ingram had 21 carries for 86 yards and a touchdown. Defenses know to stuff the run with Mills under center and challenge the rookie to beat them. Houston has an appearance of being two-dimensional.

What has been the Texans biggest struggle on defense?

Mandatory Credit: Jenna Watson-IndyStar

ML — Their safeties. Quarterbacks know they can win with the deep ball over the top if they go to whichever side Lonnie Johnson is on. Although he leads the team with three interceptions, Johnson has struggled at times with defending the deep ball. Most everything else has improved on defense. The run game isn’t as porous. They are getting sacks and takeaways. They have trouble stopping the big plays in the passing game.

Last week was the Texans’ first without Mark Ingram. Will someone finally take ahold of that top RB spot?

Mandatory Credit: Trevor Ruszkowski-USA TODAY Sports

ML — I think David Johnson could take hold. He still has a little something. Phillip Lindsay just isn’t built for this offense, not with the offensive line as makeshift as it is. What they ought to do is just give the carries to second-year back Scottie Phillips and let the youngster develop.

How would you evaluate Davis Mills’ play in his first six starts?

Mandatory Credit: Troy Taormina-USA TODAY Sports

ML — That he did nothing to stave off the drafting of a quarterback. However, the quarterback class is so bad for 2022 that sticking with Mills and giving him another year to develop may be the best option. If Mills is the future, they are going to have to surround him with weapons because he doesn’t have the innate talent like a Lamar Jackson or Justin Herbert to lead an offense on his own. He doesn’t seem shell-shocked and he does seem to brush off bad plays and still give it a shot. The thing is he’s basically backstroking through the Everglades every time he takes a snap.

What do the Texans need to do to start heading in the right direction?

Mandatory Credit: Maria Lysaker-USA TODAY Sports

ML — They need to settle on a real head coach. David Culley is a nice guy who is in over his head. I understand that they gave him the job so as to not burn out or overwhelm a different rookie coach. The more I have cogitated upon the situation, I believe general manager Nick Caserio brought in Culley to keep the focus on football and provide for a less stressful locker room as they work through the unfortunate awkwardness of the Deshaun Watson situation. But Culley is terrible on game days. Other than that, Houston just needs to get to the offseason so they can start the draft process.

Can we get your predictions for the game?

Mandatory Credit: Marc Lebryk-USA TODAY Sports

ML — The Texans’ offense comes alive with Brandin Cooks and Nico Collins making big catches to open up the running game, which surprisingly is successful. The Dolphins aren’t so quick to go down either, and it takes an extra session to decide who will get their second win of 2021. However, that is not to be decided in this game as both Miami and Houston can’t decide a winner after 70 minutes of game play. 27-27 tie.