Ryan Mallett missed Houston Texans practice on Thursday, three days after he was beat out for the starting quarterback job by Brian Hoyer. No reason was given for Mallett’s absence, though head coach Bill O’Brien did say the former Arkansas QB was expected to be at practice on Friday.
Now we know what happened.
According to the Houston Chronicle’s John McClain, Mallett overslept.
Ryan Mallett missed practice cause he overslept but showed up later for meetings. Will b at practice Friday, business as usual.
— John McClain (@McClain_on_NFL) August 27, 2015
Texans will never admit it, but I guarantee U Mallett will be fined for oversleeping and missing practice. That's got to drive coaches crazy
— John McClain (@McClain_on_NFL) August 27, 2015
As McClain notes, Mallett did save his bacon somewhat by attending meetings later in the day. Still, this is pretty pathetic for a guy who was trying to make a case for being the starting quarterback and leader of the team.
In a conversation televised by “Hard Knocks,” O’Brien told both quarterbacks that the starting job would be fluid even though Hoyer was getting the initial nod. He encouraged Mallett to keep working hard and preparing because he could end up with the job before long. Missing practice isn’t helping his cause.
