Battle Red Blog
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 Wild Card Weekend:
So, about that defense?: In the “Well, No [KITTEN] Department” Houston’s playoff success would ride on its defensive success. It would take them a couple of drives to settle in, punctuated by allowing two receptions for 42 yards to DK (aka DJ) Metcalf, returning from a two-game suspension. In the 1st two drives, the Texans allowed 88 yards and 3 points. After that, 87 yards on 8 drives, with 21 of those on the final drive when the game was all but over, with only 3 points allowed, and that on a drive that started inside the HOU 20. Not coincidently, DK (aka DJ) Metcalf became “MIA” Metcalf, as he did nothing else after those first two drives. The Steelers only got 63 yards from their running game, which was so instrumental in taking down Baltimore last week. Forcing Rodgers into a pass-only mode against that pass rush is asking for trouble, and Pittsburgh got all the bad trouble they could ask for, as those final 8 drives yielded 4.0 sacks, 8.0 TFLs and 2 turnovers directly converted into defensive TDs. It was a total team effort, with the DL hounding Rodgers, the LB shutting down the running game and limiting the TE play and the secondary preventing any significant passing damage. Pittsburgh had its worst playoff point total since 1996 and its lowest playoff yardage total since 1947 (175 total yards).
The Big Game Penalties Didn’t Really Materialize: For the game, Houston had 6 accepted penalties for 44 yards. In previous big road games under Ryans, the Texans racked up the flags like they were at a post-Christmas clearance sale. Yet, in this game in one of the more hostile road venues for teams, the team did not fall prey to as many key penalties as they have in the past. Houston only logged two false start penalties, normally a common feature on the road. There was a big DPI on Pittsburgh’s second drive that yielded 3 points, but given the circumstances, Houston played a relatively clean game, penalty-wise.
Streak-busting: A lot of streaks, good and bad, came to an end Monday Night:
Some streaks that still survive:
A Night When Special Teams Didn’t Stand Out, but Didn’t Have To: With two of the better special teams units going at it, if figured that these units...
