The 2018 season was more of the same from the Houston Texans.

Houston’s football franchise made yet another first-round exit from the NFL playoffs. If that wasn’t enough of a sting, the loss came at the hands of division rivals the Indianapolis Colts. However, initially, there was much promise for next season after the Texans’ playoff run came to an end.

A young offense loaded with potential, a strong defensive front, and some key players in the secondary, Houston was a few pieces away from being a legitimate contender. However, general manager Brian Gaine has been content to sit back and allow some key players to walk away, all while filling the holes with some underwhelming talent.

For starters, Gaine let veteran cornerback Kareem Jackson walk without even offering the safety/corner hybrid a deal. Jackson was coming off one of the most impressive seasons of his career. However, for whatever odd reason, Gaine saw it fit to let the 30-year-old sign with the Denver Broncos. To add even more insult to injury, “The Honey Badger,” Tyrann Mathieu, was also allowed to find a new home.

Mathieu opted to sign with the Kansas City Chiefs in free agency. With that being said, two of Houston’s most productive members of an already struggling secondary were allowed to walk. Yet a 34-year-old veteran in Jonathan Joseph, who has been inconsistent in recent seasons, was recently signed to a two-year extension back in March of last year.

Promising young defensive lineman Christian Covington was also lost in free agency, signing with the Dallas Cowboys no less. Mix that with the fact that Jadeveon Clowney and the Texans were unable to come up with a long-term deal, forcing the front office to use the franchise tag on the former 2014 No. 1 overall pick, some big problems could be coming for Houston’s pass rush

Considering Clowney wants to be paid Khalil Mack and Aaron Donald money — despite having nowhere near the same amount of production as they did for their respective teams — it’s possible the South Carolina product produces a situation similar to that of Le’Veon Bell. To put things short, there’s a very high possibility Clowney has played his last game in a Texans uniform.

The Texans haven’t been completely silent in free agency. They did make the much-needed move of cutting former first-round pick Kevin Johnson from the roster. Injuries plagued the young cornerback’s career since he entered the league. Making the move to free up the roster spot for someone who would actually see the gridiron was long overdue.

Houston attempted to plug up the holes left behind by Jackson and Mathieu by signing former Cleveland Brown Briean Boddy-Calhoun, ex-Denver Bronco Bradley Roby, and Tashaun Gipson, formerly of division rivals the Jacksonville Jaguars. Calhoun started eight games for the Browns last season, a career high in his young NFL tenure. He posted 44 tackles with no interceptions and just two passes defended in the 2018 season.

ESPN 97.5 personality Cody Stoots noted shortly after the signing that, from someone he trusts who covers the Broncos in Denver, Roby was described as “inconsistent.” However, the “crazy athletic” 27-year-old shows potential to improve:

From someone I trust who covers the Broncos on new Texans CB Bradley Roby Inconsistent

Crazy athletic

Potential to improve

Thrived being around Talib and Harris — Cody Stoots (@Cody_Stoots) March 12, 2019

The most promising signing of the bunch comes out of Jacksonville with Gipson. He averaged 41 solo tackles, 5.6 passes defended, and 2.9 interceptions per season in his seven-year career. However, it’s entirely possible those numbers were bolstered as a result of playing alongside a talented defense in Florida.

While Houston seems to simply be filling the holes that they’re creating for themselves, the rest of the AFC South continues to get better. The Colts, who pretty much owned the Texans last season, added wide receiver Devin Funchess to their roster on a $13 million one-year deal, giving Andrew Luck another big target to throw to. The Jaguars have also been extremely active in free agency.

They seem to have found their quarterback in former Super Bowl winner Nick Foles. Jacksonville recently signed the ex-Eagles signal caller to a four-year deal worth $88 million. He also has a shiny new toy in former Kansas City Chiefs receiver Chris Conley, who also signed with Jacksonville.

However, the most impressive of the bunch has been the Tennessee Titans, whose front office has been making moves like a team who is ready to win now. They added veteran quarterback Ryan Tannehill to their ranks as a safety net for the injury-prone Marcus Mariota. Tennessee has also reinforced their offensive line with the addition of left guard Rodger Saffold, formerly of the Los Angeles Rams. The Titans’ defensive front will also now feature veteran pass rusher Cameron Wake, who signed a three-year deal with the team this offseason.

The AFC South will be a lot more competitive than seasons’ past in 2019, and the Texans haven’t gotten any better. Instead, they’ve gotten worse, losing top-tier talent in place of unproven commodities banking purely on potential.

Finally, we look ahead to the teams on Houston’s schedule for 2019. The Texans will face teams such as the New England Patriots, Denver Broncos, Carolina Panthers, Atlanta Falcons, Kansas City Chiefs, Los Angeles Chargers, Baltimore Ravens, and New Orleans Saints next season. That’s a huge step up in competition from what was one of the easiest schedules in the league last year.

During their nine-game win streak last season, the Texans only won four of those games by more than one possession. A lot of the team’s success last season was based purely on luck. See the missed field goal opportunity from the Broncos in Houston’s 19-17 win in Denver, or a last-second pick six to barely scrape by Buffalo in Week 6, who were led by the worst backup quarterback in football, Nathan Peterman.

Not to mention the fact that the Washington Redskins nearly edged Houston out with Colt McCoy at quarterback after Alex Smith went down with a broken leg. Next season will be a rough time for Texans fans. The competition only gets better, the roster is getting weaker, and led by a head coach who is only two games above .500 in his head-coaching career in the NFL — and who refuses to abandon his out-dated run-heavy offense — Houston will have a much worse season in 2019 than they did in 2018.