NFL’s Texans take control of AFC South
But Houston’s inconsistencies don’t bode well for playoffs
Houston overcomes inconsistencies, slipping past Titans to snag their division.
NASHVILLE, Tenn. – Deshaun Watson and his teammates kept repeating the mantra.
“Turn the page,” the Texans told themselves. “Turn the page.”
They recited it throughout the week as they worked to forget an embarrassing loss to Denver and focus on a crucial AFC South matchup against the surging Titans.
So when two goal-line interceptions thwarted a pair of statement plays Sunday at Nissan Stadium, Watson and his teammates kept reminding themselves, “Turn the page.”
“You’ve got to be able to turn the page, take care of the next moment and focus on the next task at hand,” Watson explained after his team survived its bout with Tennessee 24-21 to take control of the division with two weeks and one more meeting in Houston with the Titans remaining on the regular-season schedule. “We have a great locker room of guys that are mature, and you have to be able to turn the next page and focus on what’s next.”
Indeed, the Texans do possess said mental makeup and maturity. However, because of their inability to avoid potentially crippling mistakes in the first place, and season-long struggles to find championship-caliber consistency, real concerns remain about this team as the postseason looms.
These areas of weakness seem to threaten the chances of the deep playoff run the Texans believe they have in them.
Sunday’s game perfectly illustrated the Dr. Jekyll-Mr. Hyde ways of this team.
The way they opened the game against Tennessee – methodically moving the ball downfield with balance and little resistance – the Texans seemed primed to handily defeat their hosts.
Having moved the ball 67 yards, Watson looked to connect with Carlos Hyde in the
front corner of the end zone, but Kenny Vaccaro came out of nowhere to pick off the pass and foil that shot at a gameopening statement.
Watson and Co. did manage to put the early gaffe behind them, eventually taking a 14-0 lead into halftime. However, late in the third quarter, while poised to re-establish a twotouchdown lead following a Tennessee score, another Watson pass was tipped at the goal line and intercepted in the end zone. The Titans then took the ball the length of the field to tie the score with 13 minutes to play.
Suddenly, the Texans found their mettle tested again.
And twice more they responded, outscoring Tennessee 10-7 to capture the victory, improve to 9-5 and regain sole possession of first place in the division.
The players drew encouragement from their ability to handle adversity. They confirmed the internal beliefs that the debacle in Denver would not derail them, and they proved to themselves that even
when things don’t go exactly according to plan, they can overcome such transgressions.
“We’re capable of executing in a much different way,” said wide receiver Kenny Stills, who had two touchdown catches. “We know we don’t have to play these close games if we don’t hurt ourselves.”
But that’s the big question
about this Texans team as it heads toward the final two games. Are they actually good enough to avoid self-inflicted wounds and handily defeat the elite teams of the AFC?
On one hand, the answer seems like a resounding yes. That’s certainly what you’ll get asking any member of the locker room. They’ll point to a road win at Kansas City and a home victory over New England.
But their season’s resume also features that blowout loss to Denver, a hapless performance against Baltimore, a split with Indianapolis and a defense that statistically ranks among the bottom third of the league. And considering all that, the Texans make it hard for you to truly believe in them.
They definitely deserve credit for the way they responded to a high-pressure situation and beat the Titans (winners of six of their seven previous games) to avoid ceding control of the division to their hosts. But ball security and inconsistencies on defense kept Tennessee in that game more than any Titans’ heroics.
It’s hard to know what to make of them because of the lack of consistency. They’re clearly not as good as the team that thumped the Patriots. But they’re clearly better than the squad that got thumped by the Broncos. But, are they special enough? Special at all?
Watson makes you want to say yes. So, too, do the weapons he has on offense, notably Stills, DeAndre Hopkins, Will Fuller and Carlos Hyde. And as they feed off of their young quarterback’s talents and confidence, players and coaches believe they always have a chance.
But, that defense … the necessary heroics on that side of the ball just don’t come with the level of frequency that championship contenders produce.
Houston’s defense did hold bruising back Derrick Henry, who entered the game averaging 149 rushing yards in his last four outings, to just 86 yards. But the same unit offered little resistance to Ryan Tannehill, who led his team downfield to score and pull within three points with a 75-yard drive that didn’t even take two minutes.
In the next two weeks, it’s important the Texans figure out how to eliminate the inconsistent play on both sides of the ball. They can certainly contend with any team in the conference when they play mistake-free football. But as Sunday’s performance, and the season as a whole, has shown, that’s a big if.
Now it’s time to prove themselves. Yes, they can quickly recover from many missteps. But their margin for error is slim. When facing elite squads, they may quickly find themselves in holes that are too large to escape.