Tough road to travel
Defense will try to keep playoff odds from sinking against Packers’ Rodgers, the third of four straight quality QB foes
Packers’ Aaron Rodgers is latest quality QB to hurdle.
GREEN BAY, Wis. — Aaron Rodgers is the third of four consecutive quarterbacks who form a Murderer’s Row the Texans have to confront in their pursuit of another AFC South title.
When the Green Bay Packers host the Texans on Sunday at Lambeau Field, Rodgers will try to do what Oakland’s Derek Carr and San Diego’s Philip Rivers did — carve up the Texans’ secondary and ignite his team to a victory.
In the past two games, Carr and Rivers ransacked the Texans’ defense for three touchdown passes apiece, and the Texans suffered back-to-back losses for the first time this season.
Their failure to at least contain Carr and Rivers left the Texans with a 6-5 record that reduced their division lead to one-half game over Tennessee (6-6) and one game over Indianapolis (5-6).
Now the Texans are clinging to their precarious AFC South lead with two more road games against Rodgers and Indianapolis’ Andrew Luck.
Defensive coordinator Romeo Crennel has devised another game plan for an elite quarterback. After practice last week, he was asked what it’s like to coach four consecutive games against Carr, Rivers, Rodgers and Luck?
“There’s some sleepless nights because all of those guys are really good,” Crennel said. “You know what they’re capable of.”
That fearsome foursome of quarterbacks has combined for 91 touchdown passes and 32 interceptions this season.
“(We’re) just trying to slow them down because you can’t totally stop those guys,” Crennel said. “If you can slow them down, then maybe they don’t score as much as they usually score.”
That philosophy worked well against Rivers. The Chargers scored 21 points, down from their 29-point average, but the Texans’ offense mustered only one touch- down in the 21-13 defeat.
Now they play Rodgers and Luck in back-to-back road games before they return to NRG Stadium against Jacksonville and Cincinnati for their last two home games.
“It’s a very tough stretch (because) these guys are excellent quarterbacks,” coach Bill O’Brien said. “They’re all unique.”
A one-of-a-kind challenge
The Texans haven’t had much of a pass rush before they lost defensive end Jadeveon Clowney for the Green Bay game. He’s out with elbow and wrist injuries.
Even though he was unable to sack Carr or Rivers and has only three for the season, Clowney has been outstanding against the run and has forced a lot of quarterbacks out of the pocket and has done well in disrupting their timing with their receivers.
Obviously, playing without Clowney benefits Rodgers and the Packers’ offense.
“Rodgers is one of the most unique quarterbacks, in my opinion, to ever play the game,” O’Brien said. “He brings an athleticism to the position that’s very difficult to defend. He can maneuver in the pocket like no other quarterback I’ve seen.
“When something breaks down, he doesn’t just fly out of there. He may just move to the right or to the left or backward or forward and make more time for him on the play.
“He’s a great scrambler. He can make every pass imaginable. He can do it with both feet off the ground or with both feet in the ground. He’s just a great player. Our team is excited about the challenge, but they know that it’s a big challenge.”
The Texans are ranked fifth in defense, 19th against the run and fifth against the pass. They will have to play outstanding defense against Rodgers to have a chance to break their losing streak.
Crennel was asked what the defense has to do to keep Rodgers from “going crazy” against them?
“I would hope that he would go crazy, and then they wouldn’t put him on the field,” Crennel said, laughing.
The Texans were fit to be tied in 2012 when Rodgers threw six touchdown passes against them at NRG Stadium. Obviously, they don’t want a repeat performance.
“Aaron has been doing it a while and has tremendous ability, as well as being able to make all the throws and throw accurately,” Crennel said. “He has a great knack of feeling the rush in the pocket and being able to avoid it.
“When he avoids it, he’s got enough speed that he can run for the first down or make the big throw down the field. Trying to defend all of those things makes it a little more difficult.”
Jordy Nelson caught three touchdown passes in the Packers’ 2012 victory. He’s still Rodgers’ favorite target.
“He’s got a handful of weapons, a lot of different tools he can use,” Crennel said. “It’s just a matter of how they decide to use them.
“It’s a total package we have to defend, so we have our work cut out.”
The Texans are playing solid defense despite not recording a lot of sacks or forcing a lot of turnovers.
The Texans have forced only 10 turnovers. Only four teams, all with losing records, have fewer takeaways.
They have only 20 sacks, including four in the past five games. Outside linebacker Whitney Mercilus leads the team with 4½ sacks. Forty-one players have more.
‘We’re in the hunt now’
One reason the Texans rank so high in defense is because they are usually excel in tackling, and they are third in first downs allowed, seventh on third down and tied for eighth in red-zone defense.
They haven’t allowed a quarterback to throw for 300 yards. Carr (295) had the most yards against them. No other quarterback has thrown for more than 255 yards against the Texans.
If they hope to avoid a three-game losing streak, they have to play well against Rodgers. Winning in December is essential for teams planning to make the playoffs.
“To be successful come January, you have to be able to win in December,” nose tackle Vince Wilfork said. “(In December) everything comes together, and you kind of put all your eggs in one basket.
“You kind of understand where you are as a team. After Thanksgiving, football normally gets very interesting because you have teams that understand if they have shot or don’t have a shot. It’s like a chess match.
“The past couple years, we’ve been in the hunt. We’re in the hunt now. We understand that. We have to play well.”