Buffalo Bills fans may think that they have the better roster.
Most could assume that with a quarterback like Josh Allen at the helm, their roster would be impenetrable against any contender entering the 2026 season.
They might be right in theory, but games are won on the field between four quarters and three hours of play. The game doesn't care about stat lines. It has little time for talent and it scoffs at the idea that just because of one player that team can't be stopped.
Because his fifth time at Reliant Stadium against the Houston Texans, Allen only knows what it's like to be stopped. He's 0-4 against Houston, dating back to his wild-card round appearance in 2019 when Bill O'Brien and Deshaun Watson were running the program.
History says
that he'll drop another game when the clock strikes zero on Sunday afternoon.
“Those guys are gonna be ready to play,” Allen told reporters. “They got after us last year; there’s no secret about it.”
Every superstar has its kryptonite. For Allen, it's the Texans, a team he's 1-4 against all-time and have never beaten on the road.
Call Reliant Stadium a labyrinth of terror for the 2024 NFL MVP. Over his 12 quarters inside the home built by Cal and Hannah McNair, Allen is 67 of 127 for 722 yards with a touchdown, two interceptions and a lost fumble.
His career QB rating of 94.4 has dropped to 66.13 whenever asked to go up against DeMeco Ryans' front. And in the two games since Ryans took over as head coach, the defensive line has eaten him alive, totaling 11 sacks and 19 QB hits, including eight QB takedowns last season on Thursday Night Football.
"They've had some really good defenses in the past and it's no different now," Allen said of last season. "But obviously wanna go out there, wanna play the best that I can play, and wanna help our team win a football game, and that's all, obviously, what it comes down to.
"They're gonna make it tough for us."
Overall, Allen has only had one decent outing inside the walls of Relaint. That came back in 2019, when he guided Buffalo to a 16-0 lead in the first half, largely thanks to some trickery with then-offensive coordinator Brian Daboll dialing up a pass from Jon Brown to his quarterback in the first quarter.
He threw for 264 yards, ran for another 91 and didn't have an interception, but Allen's sack in the fourth quarter gave life to the Texans late. They rallied to score 19 points and take a late lead. The then-second-year quarterback guided a drive to set up a Stephen Hauschka 47-yard field goal, sending the game into overtime.
Ka'imi Fairbairn would win it several minutes later on a game-winning field goal.
The next two times, Allen only found the end zone once. He was contained behind the line of scrimmage and barely made plays with his legs. His completion percentage dropped to 46 percent and his inability to connect outside of an explosive play or two resulted in the Texans walking away unscathed.
Even before Allen arrived in Orchard Park, Buffalo had a Texans problem when asked to travel down south. The Bills' last win over Houston came on Nov. 19, 2006, when J.P. Losman connected with Peerless Price for a 15-yard score in the final seconds of the fourth quarter to secure a 24-21 victory.
Allen, who could be on his way to winning another MVP with a strong season, was just 10 years old. Twenty years later, he'll look to end the losing streak for the Bills, though Will Anderson Jr. might have something to say about it.
“I’m feeling like Sunday is going to be that AFC championship-type feel,” Anderson said.
This article originally appeared on Texans Wire: Why has Bills QB Josh Allen struggled to win vs. Texans on the road?
