ESCAPE TO K.C.
Message from Moon connects with Watson
The night before the Texans’ improbable comeback against Buffalo, quarterback Deshaun Watson received a good-luck text from one of his mentors, former Oilers’ quarterback Warren Moon.
Moon, a member of the Pro Football Hall of Fame, reached out to Watson to wish him luck before the Texans’ Saturday afternoon wild card game at NRG Stadium featuring Buffalo vs. Houston in the playoffs for the first time since Jan. 3, 1993.
On that ill-fated day in suburban Buffalo, Moon learned the hard way what it’s like to not protect a big lead. The Oilers blew a 35-3 advantage in the third quarter and lost 41-38 in overtime — still the biggest’ comeback in NFL history.
Watson, the protégé, experienced the excitement of leading a come-from-behind victory after trailing by 16 points in the third quarter to send the Texans to the next round at Kansas City.
The Texans’ 22-19 overtime
victory, exorcised some demons for a lot of Houston fans who’ll never forget that Buffalo disaster 27 years ago.
“It’s big,” Watson said about getting the text from Moon. “I appreciate him for sure.”
Since they met at a college football banquet in Orlando, Fla., while Watson played at Clemson, Moon has been willing to offer advice.
“For him to take time out of his day, to take time out of his life and hit me up randomly to give me advice is special,” Watson said. “Whenever we see each other in the offseason, he always comes up to talk to me.
“For me to be able to look up to someone like that and for him to pave the way for a lot of us young quarterbacks coming up, I don’t take that for granted.”
And nobody takes Watson for granted, either.
After the Texans played an awful first half and fell behind 16-0 in the third quarter, Watson ignited the comeback.
“It was finding that one spark,” Watson said about the rally. “They had the momentum. They gave their best shot that first half. We knew exactly what they were going to do in the second half. All we had to do was find a rhythm and get back in that routine.”
Coach Bill O’Brien and his assistants helped transform the Texans on both sides of the ball in the second half. They’re hoping the Texans play better from the start in the next game at Kansas City, where the Texans won 31-24 on Oct. 13.
The Chiefs (12-4) represent a tougher test than the Bills. The Texans hope they don’t have to pull off another incredible rally to reach the AFC Championship Game for the first time as they did against Buffalo.
Down by 16 points with a lot of fans heading for the exits,
Watson jump-started the rally by running for a 20-yard touchdown and a two-point conversion. Then, he threw a 5-yard touchdown pass to Carlos Hyde and threw another two-point conversion pass to DeAndre Hopkins.
Watson saved his best play for overtime — ESPN’s top play of the day on Sports Center. Watson got away from cornerback Siran Neal and outside linebacker Matt Milano, both of whom drilled him. Somehow, Watson was able to spin out, and right before getting hit again, threw to running back Taiwan Jones on the right side for what became a 34-yard gain.
On first down, O’Brien sent out Ka’imi Fairbairn, whose second field goal, a 28-yarder, was the game-winner.
Now it’s Buffalo that has to suffer through the offseason and the painful lessons from what it feels like to blow what should have been a safe lead in a playoff game.
It wasn’t just the Texans’ offense that erupted. After allowing a touchdown on Buffalo’s first series, Romeo Crennel’s defense kept the Bills out of the end zone the rest of the game.
“Guys are always going to compete until that last whistle,” Whitney Mercilus said after recording a sack, knocking down quarterback Josh Allen three times and forcing a fumble.
When talking about the Texans this season and their six come-from-behind victories, including their conquest of Buffalo, O’Brien’s favorite word is “resilient.” It best describes the character of a team that’s won nine games by seven or fewer points.
“That was some tough sledding there for a long time,” O’Brien said about falling behind 16-0. “These guys are very resilient. I think that shows you the heart of this team. There's a lot of character in that locker room.
“You've got a good group of guys who really care about each other. They care about trying to do the right thing.”
Sunday’s playoff game at Arrowhead Stadium will be another test of the Texans’ character. It’ll be Watson vs. Patrick Mahomes for the second time this season, talented young quarterbacks the Texans and Chiefs traded up to get in the first round of the 2017 draft.
After losing to the Texans, the Chiefs went 8-2, including seven victories in their last eight games. Watson will be playing against a defense that’s allowed 11.5 points per game during the Chiefs’ six-game winning streak.
“You win or you go home,” Watson said. “You’ve got to put all the chips on the table. And you’ve got to be gritty. Regardless of what the score is or how you play, as long as you come out with the winning score, that’s all that matters.”