Through 3 games, Ryan Fitzpatrick has been worse than 2013 Matt Schaub. (USATSI)
Through 3 games, Ryan Fitzpatrick has been worse than Matt Schaub in 2013. (Getty Images)

Coach Killers is your weekly look around the league at those performances, decisions and "Wait, what did he just do?!" moments that put the guy in charge squarely on the ol' hot seat. Questions, comments, suggestions? Hit us up on Twitter at @ryanwilson_07.

Ryan Fitzpatrick, QB, Texans

The Texans are 2-1 after dropping their first game of the season Sunday, an uninspired effort against the previously winless Giants. While not wholly responsible for the outcome, Houston's veteran quarterback, Ryan Fitzpatrick, did his part to help stave off victory.

If this sounds familiar, it should; a year ago, another veteran quarterback, Matt Schaub took much of the blame after the 2-0 Texans dropped four straight. Schaub was benched in Week 7 which, it turned out, didn't much matter because Houston lost its final 10 games, too, to finish 2-14.

Schaub has since been exiled to Oakland, and coach Gary Kubiak was fired and replaced by Bill O'Brien, who apparently believed that Fitzpatrick was somehow an upgrade over Schaub.

Look, we used hundreds of words on Schaub's underwhelming performances last season, but here's a not-so-fun fact for anybody willing to make the "Hey, at least Fitzpatrick is better than Schaub!" argument (those people aren't out there, are they?): Comparing the first three games of 2013 to the first three games this season, Schaub was markedly better.

First, the conventional stats:

* Schaub: 85 of 128 (66 percent), 838 yards, 6 TDs, 4 INTs, 7 sacks, 0 fumbles
* Fitzpatrick: 48 of 75 (64 percent) for 634 yards, 4 TDs, 3 INTs, 2 sacks, 2 fumbles (0 lost fumbles)

And according to ProFootballFocus.com:

* Schaub's PFF rating: 4.4 (vs. the Chargers), -0.8 (vs the Titans) and 0.6 (vs. the Ravens). Three-game total: 4.2.
* Fitzpatrick's PFF rating: 0.9 (vs. the Redskins), 1.8 (vs. the Raiders) and -3.2 (vs. the Giants. Three-game total: -0.5.

On Sunday, Fitzpatrick was 20 of 34 for 289 yards, including a touchdown and three picks. The good news: He was on fire in the second half, going 16 of 21 for 200 yards, 1 TD, 1 INT and a 101.2 passer rating. The bad news -- and this has been a recurring theme throughout his career: 4 of 13, 89 yards, 2 INTs, 0.6 passer rating.

There's more: Schaub had two three-interception games in his Texans' career; Fitzpatrick had one in his third game.

And more still: This is Ryan Fitzpatrick's 10th career three-interception game. Not surprisingly, he is 0-10 in those games.

Last, certainly not least:

The Texans' run defense did their part in the 30-17 loss; they allowed 193 rushing yards, including 176 yards (5.2 YPC) from Rashad Jennings. But the NFL is a quarterback-driven league. A team with a franchise quarterback can win with a suspect defense, but the 1985 Bears' D would be lucky to win eight games with Fitzpatrick as their quarterback.

Which is why Houston has nothing to lose by naming Ryan Mallett the starter.

"We're not going to win any games when I play like that, especially in the first half with the turnovers," Fitzpatrick said after the game, stating what was obvious to even those people with no real understanding of football or its rules. "Sometimes interceptions happen, but it was just poor play by me."

Indeed.

And now it's time to see what Mallett can do. Yes, he's been with the team for less than a month, but he played for O'Brien when both were in New England, and even if Mallett knows a small part of the playbook, what's the worst that can happen? He completes 4 of 13 passes for 89 yards with two picks and a 0.6 passer rating? Then what?

Heading into the season, we figured this to be a rebuilding year for the Texans, mostly because they didn't have a quarterback. Maybe Mallett, who is in the final year of his rookie deal, is that guy. That would be one less thing O'Brien would have to worry about in the offseason, but to make that determination Mallett needs to, you know, play.

Panthers run defense

A year ago, Carolina's defense was key to its improbable 12-4 record. According to Football Outsiders, the unit ranked third overall (third against the pass, sixth against the run). And through the first two weeks of the 2014 season, the Panthers' D ranked second (third against the pass, eighth against the run).

Everything changed Sunday night against a Steelers offense that had managed a whopping nine points in its previous six quarter of football. When it was over, Pittsburgh running backs Le'Veon Bell and LeGarrette Blount had rushed for 147 and 118 yards, respectively, and at no point did it appear the Panthers were capable of doing anything about it.

The last time the Panthers' allowed a 100-yard rusher? Week 2 of the 2013 season, when C.J. Spiller went for 103.

Bell's 81-yard sprint late in the third quarter was a microcosm of the Panthers' night. In the screenshots below, you can see the Steelers center and left guard double-teaming defensive tackle Colin Cole while the right tackle and right guard double-teamed Star Lotulelei. The double-teams were so effective, that the Panthers' defensive tackles were pushed back into linebackers Thomas Davis and Luke Kuechly (yellow arrows).

(NFL Rewind)
(NFL Rewind)

The result: Both linebackers had to reposition themselves to "see" Bell (blue squiggly lines above), and when they did it left a gaping hole in the middle of the field. Bell hit it hard and 81 yards later, he was finally tackled by safety Thomas DeCoud.

(NFL Rewind)
(NFL Rewind)

Here's the play in its entirety (via Bleacher Report):

"It's something that, if you don't get corrected, can fester," Panthers defensive coordinator Sean McDermott said of the effort. "We have to play more physical, make sure we are getting off blocks, use our hands and play tough defense. Give them credit, they came in and did a good job. We didn't play or coach up to our abilities."

With the offense in flux -- Cam Newton and just about every other skill-position player not named Kelvin Benjamin is injured -- the defense needs to be dominant. Otherwise, they won't come close to replicating last year's success, and 8-8 might not even be a realistic goal.

Browns being the Browns

There's no way the Browns should have lost to the Ravens Sunday. In fact, you can make a case that this team should be 3-0. (And this is where we point out that we couldn't have been more wrong about Brian Hoyer. In the preseason, we proclaimed that the Browns would enter their Week 4 bye with an 0-3 record, and when they took the field again in Week 5, Johnny Manziel would be the starter, for now and always. Hoyer's done more than enough to keep the job. Sorry, Brian!)

But because God hates Cleveland, he's seen fit to give them one win in three tries and that's just the way it's going to be. Because there's no other explanation for this series of plays: Early in the fourth quarter, with the Browns leading 21-17, the Ravens, facing a fourth-and-1 from the Browns' 21, decided go for it...

(CBSSports.com)
(CBSSports.com)

Fantastic fourth-down stand, followed by the Browns' offense marching down the field only to stall when Hoyer, no doubt possessed by the ghost of Browns' quarterbacks past (and Dan Orlovsky), got the bright idea to throw a forward pass after he was a good five yards beyond the line of scrimmage.

Yeah, that's illegal. Not satisfied, God also thought it would be funny, ironical to block Billy Cundiff's field-goal attempt.

Seven plays later, the Ravens scored a touchdown. After two Browns' three-and-outs, the Ravens put together a six-play drive that led to three more points and, ultimately, the win.

Titans defense against pass-catching QBs

There's no shame in getting tricked by trick play. That's why it's called a 'trick play.' But the Titans knew that a) Bengals wideout Mohamed Sanu was a very good passer and that b) there was a chance he would target quarterback Andy Dalton at some point during the game.

We know the Titans knew this because coach Ken Whisenhunt admitted as much afterwards.

"We repped that play in practice," Whisenhunt said. "Part of being a pro, whether it’s you getting the rep or not, when it shows up in (the game) exactly the way you ran it (in practice), you have to make the play."

Cornerback Blidi Wreh-Wilson must've been unclear on that last part because he did everything but make the play.

"I just saw the toss and I saw the quarterback rolling out and no one was on him," Wreh-Wilson said. "I just went to go make a play on the ball when I should have taken probably a smarter angle and then just made the play on him. I had the play stopped, diagnosed. I just had to make a play and I didn’t make it.

"At the end of the day, I have to find a way just to eliminate the touchdown. Deciding between making a play on the ball or the man, that’s where things got a little tricky for me. I was trying to pick a place to hit him where it would basically eliminate a penalty. When the ball was up in the air, I should have just hit him and that should have been the end of it. Hit him and eliminate the possibility of a run after a catch."

So, coach Whisenhunt, what was Wilson thinking?

"I couldn’t tell you," Whisenhunt said. "He’s a young player, but youth is not an excuse. I’ll be the first one to tell you, once again, this league is about making plays."

Take your pick...

While both were self-inflicted, we're not sure which is worse:

Cam's capris ...

... or Tulloch's season-ending discount-double-check sack celebration...