The Day After the Day After…when the raw, immediate emotions from the aftermath of a game diminish into the realm of clarity and the proverbial (or literal) hangover no longer haunts the mind. With that,
a review of Week 17:
Attrition hitting the Defensive Line. Houston still possesses the top-ranked defense for scoring and total yards allowed. However, there were signs that some of the injury losses along the defensive interior are having their impacts. With Tim Settle and Mario Edwards out for the season, the Texans are moving further down the depth chart to man the interior of the line. Certainly, it does help to have DEs like Anderson and Hunter, but the Raiders and their limited offensive line were able to have success moving the ball up the middle of the Texans’ defense. Ashton Jeanty, who has not had the desired rookie season, looked like the dominant back he was at Boise State, especially on runs up the middle. Didn’t help that the Texans’ LBs had a less-than-stellar game (more later). However, with teams like the Chargers and Colts next up, who both lean heavily on the run game, Houston will need to shore up that interior defense.
The Most Interesting Defense in the World, continues its trend of allowing one opposing player to go off: For all of the defense firepower that Houston brings to this season, teams will usually have that one player that drives the offense against them. From Puka Nacua, Baker Mayfield, James Cook to Trey McBride, it can be one guy. Sometimes it does not make all that much difference (Trey McBride). Others, it can decide the game against Houston (Nacua). This past Sunday, Jeanty went off for over 180 combined yards and two TDs. After his 50-yard TD scamper, it appeared that the Raiders could ride him to victory. However, for Las Vegas, Jeanty’s touchdown was their last offensive snap. Still, allowing one player to go off like that could also be a potential Achilles Heel for what is normally a stout defense. Ladd McConkey and Jonathan Taylor await, to say nothing of what Houston might see in the playoffs.
TE Cade Stover’s Best Play: TE Cade Stover has had a ying-yang sort of season. Injured early in the year, he’s returned to be a sort-of-offensive knock-off Swiss Army knife. He was the primary “Tush-Push” weapon for Houston, but that has yielded mixed results. Whether he catches a ball or not can vary, as he had some big drops against Buffalo. This game, he managed two receptions for 5 yards, including a key 3rd down reception in the 4th Quarter that lead to the game-sealing TD. However, it was his stone hands that may have helped Houston out at the end of the 1st half. On a 2nd and 5 at the LV 32, Stroud attempted to hit Stover on a short pass. The Raiders’ defender was right on Stover and as Stover tried to bring the ball in, he bobbled the ball and dropped it. Another Raiders’ defender picked up the ball and ran it back for a TD. If Stover had truly fumbled, then Houston is down 14-10 at the end of the 1st half, perhaps a game-altering result. Instead, the refs upheld the incomplete pass call, which was a blessing to Houston, as they kicked a FG to end the half up 13-7. By his bobble, Stover saved a 10-point swing and did enough to allow Houston to get this struggle-win.
‘Tis better to have won and looked bad than not to have won at all: You can’t hide how meh the Texans played. The 1st half was one to forget, especially for Stroud and the offense. The Houston interior did not give Stroud all that much time, and Stroud was airmailing a ton of passes. The defense kept Houston in the lead, but then in the 2nd half, they cracked against a previously moribund Raiders’ offense, allowing Ashton Jeanty to have a career game. However, the offense did just enough in the second half to hold off the Raiders. The last two drives yielded a TD, and a 5+ min drive that killed the clock. It is all about the W. Houston got it, keeping pace with the rest of the AFC playoff field and their playoff chances above 95%.
The Decisive Play
7:50, 4th Quarter: 3rd Down and 8 @ the LV 25 Yard Line: CJ Stroud to Nico Collins incompletion, Defensive Pass Interference on LV S Lonnie Johnson Jr., 23 yard penalty, Ball placed at the LV 2
You could just as easily argue the 3rd and 20 DPI call at the 4:06 mark in the 4th Quarter that Collins drew later in the game that moved Houston out of the shadow of its own goal-line and enabled the Texans to run out the clock. However, this play was maybe more significant, as an incompletion here would force Houston to kick another FG, only increasing Houston’s lead to 19-14 vs. 23-14. Given what transpired the following Raiders’ drive, Houston would be trailing deep into the 4th. If everything held to form, Houston would have marched down the field for a GW attempt, but it is not always a given that such heroics would follow. That the call came at the expense of one-time Houston DB Lonnie Johnson Jr would not surprise many older Houston fans, as Johnson was notorious for getting cooked by other WRs. By getting the DPI call, Houston moved to the 2-yard line. While that hasn’t exactly been Houston’s best place on the field, the team’s performance in such situations has improved over the season. After another penalty by yet another Texans’ alum (Thomas Booker’s offside call moving the ball to the LV 1 yard line), Houston cashed in on a Stroud play-action TD pass to Dalton Schultz, yielding a comfortable 9-point lead..
FUN WITH NUMBERS:
3: Number of seasons that Head Coach DeMeco Ryans has won double-digit games. In all the not-completely-unwarranted handwringing about the Texans’ performance on Sunday, Houston got to their 10th win of the season. With that result, the Texans have three straight seasons with double-digit wins, a franchise record. There is still a chance for Houston to get that third straight division title and playoff berth, although the former seems less likely than the latter.
2: Number of teams that have scored over their season average against the Texans this season. The two instances: Jacksonville scoring 29 (averaging 27.1/game) in their 36-29 loss in Week 10 and the Raiders this past Sunday. The Raiders came into the matchup with the lowest point production in the league (14.0/game) and shortly after firing their highly touted offensive coordinator (Chip Kelly). The Raiders raised their points per game to 14.5 after the trip to NRG. Not what many would expect.
GAME BALLS:
CB Derek Stingley, Jr.: Getting a first ever NFL pick-six on your 4th INT this year. That works.
PK Ka’imi Fairbairn: 3/3 on FGs, to include two 50+ yarders, 2/2 on XPs. More touchbacks this week vs. last, but for the first Texan to score 1000 points in a career, all of which happened in Houston, that is game-ball worthy.
WR Nico Collins: 4 receptions for 59 yards, including the game-clinching 24-yarder. He also drew two DPIs in the 4th Quarter, netting Houston 44 yards, proving that great receivers don’t always need the catches to drive the offense.
SHOULD BE FORCED TO SPORT A MARK DAVIS HAIRCUT FOR ALL OF THE FORMAL FAMILY HOLIDAY PORTRAITS THIS SEASON:
Texans’ LB unit: They did not have a particular stellar day. Jeanty’s long TD plays were aided by poor LB play. Perhaps the loss of Al-Shaair hurt this unit as well. At least the defense didn’t let the Raiders’ TEs hurt them too badly (6 receptions for 43 yards and 1 TD), although the Bowers’ TD saw him beat a LB in coverage.
With this win, Houston won its 7th straight game to move to 10-5. They travel back to So-Fi to play the ex-San Diego Chargers for a Saturday afternoon (3:30 CST) kickoff on the NFL Network. See you there.
