Breakdown
Subpar play in all three phases of game leads to lifeless performance in setback to Jaguars
John McClain talks about the loss and what to expect in the final home game.
JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — The Texans stunk it up so bad Sunday they could smell the stench in Georgia.
In the worst loss of Bill O’Brien’s four seasons, the Texans embarrassed themselves on offense, defense and special teams — getting obliterated 45-7 by Jacksonville.
The Texans were outcoached and outplayed by a team they used to dominate. The Jaguars swept the Texans for the first time since 2013, outscoring them 74-14.
They were so pathetic on offense they managed only 186 yards and so atrocious on defense they allowed quarterback Blake Bortles to burn them for 326 yards and three touchdowns.
Afterward, Jadeveon Clowney called Bortles “trash,” — not a good call after you’ve been pulverized by a quarterback who finished with a 143.8 rating against your defense.
Oh, and did we point out how wretched the special teams were? They were whistled for four of the team’s 14 penalties and 127 yards. They were flagged another time, but the Jaguars declined.
O’Brien was asked if he was embarrassed by the performance?
“No question,” he said. “Any time you lose a game like that, you don’t feel real good about it.
“We couldn’t get anything going. Give them credit. We played terrible, and we didn’t coach very well. That’s just not good enough.”
This game was so lopsided Jacksonville coach Doug Marrone called off the dogs in the fourth quarter and called out the reserves, and a fourth-string running back scored the Jaguars’ last touchdown.
‘Didn’t give us a chance’
The Jaguars, who lead the AFC South, elevated their record to 10-4 and clinched their first playoff appearance since 2007.
The Texans’ record plunged to 4-10 with their seventh defeat in eight games.
Playing against the NFL’s No. 2 defense that’s allowed 11.6 points over the last nine games, the Texans were helpless and hopeless.
Making his first start in place of Tom Savage (concussion), T.J. Yates struggled from the first snap. Of the Texans’ 14 possessions, they reached Jacksonville terrain twice and scored once on Yates’ 25-yard touchdown pass to DeAndre Hopkins.
“I didn’t give us a chance,” Yates said. “Nothing worked. I have to be better at everything — accuracy and decision-making — just working the offense. It starts with me.”
Yates, the team’s third starting quarterback this season, finished 12-of-31 passing for 128 yards. He had one interception and a 48.9 rating.
Yates was sacked four times and knocked down nine times.
“Obviously, they’re an incredible defense,” Yates said about the Jaguars, who have surrendered the fewest points in the league (209). “They did a great job covering and rushing the passer and creating some confusion up front.”
Defensive end Calais Campbell recorded two of the four sacks, giving him 14½ for the season, including six against the Texans.
“We knew what we were going up against,” Yates said. “We didn’t execute the things we thought would work against them.
“There were plays to be made, but we didn’t make them.”
O’Brien tried to be kind to Yates, who made his first start since 2015.
“He was under constant pressure, but he hung in,” O’Brien said.
The Texans couldn’t run, block or pass. That’s a recipe for disaster, and a disaster it was.
Getting blown out by 38 points after being competitive in recent losses will bring accusations of quitting.
“I don’t think anybody quit,” O’Brien said. “I was watching that. I didn’t see that. I think they just got us. I know our guys played hard. I don’t like to question that.”
But others will because the Texans weren’t competitive. They performed like they didn’t want to play the Jaguars.
Another indication of how miserable they were on offense.
The Texans were 4-of-16 (25 percent) on third down. The offense was so horrendous the Texans didn’t make an appearance in the red zone.
“We got off to such a slow start offensively, and we couldn’t convert on third down,” O’Brien said. “That just snowballed for the whole team.” Until it became an avalanche. Against a front seven that’s one of the league’s best, the Texans generated only 87 yards rushing. That’s a slight improvement over their 78-yard average in the last three defeats.
Alfred Blue, who came off the bench, led the team with 55 yards on 12 carries, a 4.6-yard average. Lamar Miller finished with 32 yards on nine carries.
Hopkins shows up
Although he downplayed it after the game, Hopkins caught his 12th touchdown pass, breaking the team record he set in 2015. He finished with four catches for 80 yards, including a 40-yard reception.
“It’s a dogfight with that guy,” Yates said in admiration. “He knows he’s going to get the best corner every single game and sometimes an extra guy on top of that.
“Hop was dealing with his toe (injury) all week long but fought through it. He fought the whole game. Every time he lines up against a corner like that ( Jalen Ramsey), it’s a fistfight every single play.”
If Hopkins’ teammates had unleashed a few one-two punches like he did, this dogfight wouldn’t have been over before it started. This mismatch was a knockout from the opening bell.