Battle Red Blog
The Houston Texans have begun the season 0-2 after coming into the season with lofty expectations. Unlike the first game, there will be some coaching decisions that come under the microscope in this one. In particular, the Texans had second and goal from the one and came away with zero points. Those lack of points ended up being the difference in the game. Obviously, if he had known then what he knows now he would have kicked the field goal. Hindsight is always 20/20.
There were more positives in this one as the Texans almost pulled it out in the end. The ending was reminiscent of 2023 when the Texans seem to come down to the last two minutes with the lead in nearly every game. They were able to hold off their opponents more often that season. They weren’t able to do it on this night. It is true that they played two likely playoff teams, but they still find themselves in last place of the AFC South.
This game might get me to bust out a cumulative stat I used during the dark days. Essentially, I tracked the net difference between rushing yards and rushing yards allowed. This one was one-sided for much of the game. C.J. Stroud had 27 yards on four carries. So, the running backs had 57 yards on 15 carries. I suppose it’s not terrible, but it does deserve a special comment. DeMeco Ryans has made great pains to talk about how he wants to play a physical brand of football. You can want in one hand and pee in the other and see which one fills up first.
The total sum of what you do is the truest measure of your devotion. The Texans defense made some physical plays and the Nick Chubb touchdown was impressive, but by and large they were outmuscled on both sides of the ball for much of the night. If you looked at the box score you would be led to believe the score was more lopsided. It wasn’t. We can look at why in the good, bad, and ugly.
Frank Bush should get a lifetime contract to coach special teams for the Houston Texans. They routinely have one of the best units in the NFL and they made several key plays throughout the game that made the game a lot closer than what it should have been. Jaylin Noel was a revelation returning the ball. He had two big kickoff returns in the first half that gave the offense solid field position and returned a fourth quarter punt deep into Bucs territory.
Add in the blocked punt...
