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 7
Penalties…YIKES!!! 10 Penalties for 80 yards. After seeing the Giants rush for 188 yards, that is the next number that jumps out at you reading the box score. This game was in Houston, with an experienced team, facing a Giants team that hadn’t looked all that great in their last
two games. Of Houston’s flags, 4 were of the mental mistake variety (3 x False Starts, 1 x Encroachment). Additionally, 3 of the penalties were offensive holding, which cost Houston 31 yards of rushing offense. The consistent lack of discipline points the finger squarely at the coaching staff. This with at least 3 flags declined, so the flag numbers could have been even worse. Bad enough when this was in Year 1 with a relatively young team. In Year 4 of the Ryans regime, with an experienced team, and at home…inexcusable, and to borrow the McClain catchphrase “pathetic”.
If the Defensive Line can’t take control...The driving force for Houston’s defense is the defensive line. With Danielle Hunter and Will Anderson Jr., the theory is that they should be enough to disrupt an offensive line, with the resulting impact aided the rest of the defense. However, the Giants offensive line basically negated their impact. Will Anderson Jr was a practical non-factor. While Houston sacked McCarthy 3 times, only one of those sacks came from the defensive line. Half of that total (1.5), came from defensive backs blitzing, as the final 0.5 of a sack came from a blitzing LB. If you need your defensive backfield be the catalyst of getting pressure/sacks, then this defensive scheme is not having a great day. Additionally, the Texans came into this game with a top 5 rushing defense in yards allowed/game. However, the defensive interior could not lock down the Giants’ rushing attack, especially in the 4th quarter and OT, when Houston surrendered 101 yards on the ground alone. Went from allowing less than 82 yards/game to now allowing over 98 yards/game on the ground.
Home is not where the heart is: Under Ryans, the Texans entered the 2026-7 season with an 18-8 home record (2-0 in playoff games). In the previous three seasons, Houston lost no more than 3 games at home in a season. They’ve already exceeded that total this year. At best, Houston will end the season at 4-4 at home…at best. They still get all three division rivals at home, along with the Ravens, so there is potential for the home crowd to get something for their money. This will be Houston’s worst home record since 2022 (0-7-1), but unlike that time, Houston should be able to win at least one home game…right?
THE CRITICAL PLAY:
8:23 in OT; NYG Ball @ NYG 28; 2nd and 1; RB Cam Skattebo 42-yard run up the middle.
Perhaps it was inevitable. The Texans had momentum coming into the extra frame, having just tied the game, as well as just missing out on a possible INT ball on the Giants’ final regulation drive. However, the Texans went a quick 3-and-out, punting the ball back to the Giants, who set up shop at their 19-yard line. A quick McCarthy pass got the Giants to a favorable 2nd and 1. The Giants lined up in a run formation, and McCarthy went with the handoff to Skattebo. The Giants line, aided by FB/TE Ricard, who lined up as the 2nd TE on the right side of a 3-TE set on the Giants’ right side of the line, blasted through the defensive front of the Texans. The Texans did not have a body covering the second level beyond the DL, and Skattebo had perhaps the best running lane of his pro career. From there, it was a foot race between Skattebo and the Texans’ secondary. Lassiter finally brought him down, but by then, the Giants were well within FG range. Even with their struggling kicker, it is hard to imagine that they would miss. Since Houston busted on its first OT possession, the Giants were likely going to win. Singletary’s nifty 30-yard run on the next play resolved the questions about how the Giants would clinch.
FUN WITH NUMBERS:
2-0: JJ McCarthy’s record at NRG/Reliant Stadium: Combining his college and pro career, he’s played two games in Houston. This past Sunday, and when he was the starting QB for Michigan when they won the 2024 National Championship over Washington. Still has never thrown at TD in Houston, but he’ll take the combined 30 for 46 for 392 yards with no INTs and no loses.
7: Number of NFL teams since 2002 that started 2-5 and made the playoffs: If you still hold out hope, you can look to this. One of those was the 2015 Texans, who started 1-4 and 2-5, and managed to win the AFC South with a 9-7 record. They hosted another team that season (Kansas City) who also started 2-5. It did not go well.
GAME BALLS:
WR Xavier Hutchinson: All of the WRs on the Texans’ roster, and the most versatile one in this game ended up being Xavier Hutchinson. On the final drive, he ran for a 1st down on a jet sweep-type play, was slated to throw a WR pass and then caught the game-tying TD pass. Go figure. His final line: 3 receptions for 17 yards and 1 TD, 2 rushes for 12 yards, 3 kickoff returns for 74 yards.
WR Tank Dell: Not bad when your first game action in almost 2 years after a devastating injury saw you take a pass you weren’t the primary for 43 yards to set up a tying score late in the 1st half. Also sparked the 4th quarter tying drive with his 14-yard punt return. Final line: 1 reception for 43 yards, 1 rush for 2 yards, 1 punt return for 14 yards.
Giants FB/TE Patrick Ricard: He followed Harbaugh from Baltimore to East Rutherford. Good pickup. He logged no stats in the standard box score, but his blocking from the FB and the TE positions sprang the three biggest runs of the game for the Giants: the fake tush-push 3rd Down run from Skattebo for 19 yards, and the two big runs in OT combining for 72 yards and clinching the win. This game needs to lead off his future contract negotiations.
SHOULD BE FORCED TO LISTEN TO JOHN MCCLAIN RAMBLE ON ABOUT THE BAYLOR COACHING SEARCH WHILE DROPPING HIS TRADEMARK “PATHETIC” DESCRIPTION ABOUT THE TEXANS ON REPEAT ALL WEEK.
DC Matt Burke/Defensive Backs Coach Dino Vasso. Words I would not have uttered to start the year, but this pair might be sacked come Black Monday. The secondary once again was picked apart, this time by a known mercurial QB. Yes, Pitre and Blankenship were out for this game, but the communication between DBs in respective zone coverages seemed lacking, with the Giants able to rack up some explosive plays in the Texans’ defensive backfield. It is far too late in the season to be suffering comms break-downs. Throw in a defensive line that could not take advantage of a newish QB and LBs that allowed themselves to be shut down by Giants’ blockers, and you have a recipe for what you saw Sunday. Yes, Ryans is calling the plays, but whatever is going on in practice is either not translating onto the field (bad), or the performances from practice are translating to what is happening on the field (worse).
OC Nick Caley/HC DeMeco Ryans:Actually, let’s put the offensive coaches as well as the overall coaching staff on this one. The offense was a bit too stubborn trying to get Marks going with the running game when turning Stroud loose might have worked out better, even given some of the pressure the Giants put on him. Ryans, well, this game had all the hallmarks of a trap game (back from big overseas win with a bye week coming), and he let the team step right into it without hesitation.
Giants PK Dominic Zvada: Lost in all the hubbub about Skattebo and McCarthy was the fact that the Giants PK did not have a very good day. He missed two FGS in the 1st Half which might have salted this game away well before OT. Even accounting for one being a 56-yarder, the kicks were in a stadium with the roof closed. Zvada has been mercurial at best this season, and this game won’t help his cause.
At 2-5, the Houston Texans now enter their bye week. Not sure how restful or fun it will be, but it is on the schedule. Will everyone on the roster at the end of this game make it to the game in two weeks? Stay tuned.
