What was the good, bad, and ugly from the Texans 32-27 defeat?
There are many times lately when I have the feeling we are living in the stupidest possible timeline. Sunday was another one of those days as the Houston Texans somehow lost 32-27 to the lowly Tennessee Titans. It was a game where the Titans tried a number of different times to lose the game and the Texans just refused to take it from them. In fact, they gave it away to them at the last minute when one of the most reliable kickers in football missed the shortest field goal of his career.
However, we are getting ahead of ourselves here. We have to start with the numbers because the numbers usually tell most of the story. The numbers tell a story that the Titans really had no business losing this game. They physically dominated it for most of the game. We will get to the good, bad, and ugly later.
The Key Numbers
Total Yards: Texans 260, Titans 369
Total Plays: Texans 54. Titans 66
Rushing Yards: Texans 17/40, Titans 33/132
Passing Yards: Texans 37/220, Titans: 33/237
Sacks: Texans 8, Titans 4
Turnovers: Texans 2, Titans 3
Penalties: Texans 11/89, Titans 6/35
Time of Possession: Texans 25:27, Titans 34:33
The Titans possessed the ball for nearly ten more minutes than the Texans and averaged a little more than 5.5 yards per play. The Texans on the other hand averaged a merely 4.8. Keep in mind that the Texans added eight sacks. So, really the Titans moved the ball even more than those total yards would indicate.
However, we are getting to that. Suffice it to say that during this 2-3 stretch of the season, the Texans have been +7 on the turnover ratio IN THEIR LOSSES. I could bold that and convert it into 36 point font and I still can’t emphasize that enough. This was a shockingly bad football game from a team that wants to advance in the playoffs. The Indianapolis Colts lost to the Detroit Lions, so the Texans still have a commanding lead in the division, but this is a crushing loss to a bad football team.
The Good
Only one unit had a good day. Ka’imi Fairbairn kept it from being a great day by missing a chip shot field goal at the end of the day, but he still managed to chip in two field goals on the day. Both of those were of the 50+ yards variety. However, this was a day that saw an 80 yard kick off return and a fumble recovery in punt coverage.
You could credibly claim that the special teams single-handedly kept the team in the game. When you remove the first touchdown (starting inside the Titans 20) and the pick six then you have to look at the offense totally differently. Still more on them later. If we are mentioning good things we should probably mention the defense.
NFL rules stack the deck for offenses. Chicks dig touchdowns and they dig quarterbacks. They even dig the ones that balance themselves on mayonnaise jars. The days of defenses routinely shutting out their opponents are done. It’s an unsustainable model to winning. The defense made enough key plays at the right time to give their offense a chance to win the game. Sometimes you just have to tip your cap to your opponent.
In particular, I don’t think Will Anderson or Danielle Hunter can play any better. Sure, would it kill you to get a strip sack for six? In all seriousness, having two ends with multiple sacks on the day is usually a recipe for victory and we will excuse them if they do their best “Leon” impersonation in the locker room.
The Bad
It is time to openly ask the question; is there something wrong with C.J. Stroud? We have to ask the question because the performance warrants it. I cannot sell myself as even an amateur analyst without asking the question. I also have to acknowledge that the answer is not easy or simple. The offensive line surrendered four more sacks and remain on pace to allow the second most sacks in franchise history. That plays a part.
Also, no quarterback is going to look good when there is absolutely no running game. That may be on the offensive line again. However, we have to note how difficult it to protect when the defense doesn’t have to respect the run. There is one more major facet we have to look at, but that will come in the next section.
Unfortunately, it isn’t nearly as easy as blaming the offensive line. There is more going on here than that and Stroud has to take some responsibility. How much responsibility? That is in the eye of the beholder. There have been too many bad throws to ignore. Do some come because he is rushed? Yes. Do some come because he is hearing phantom footsteps? I’m sure also yes. There might also be some old-fashioned bad throws. As much as we might like Stroud (and I think most of us do) I cannot give him a pass on things I would have criticized Davis Mills or any other quarterback for. This was not a good effort from him today.
The Ugly
Forgive me for sounding obsessed, but I am done with Bobby Slowik. Yes, I am well aware that I said the exact same thing last week. You walked into half time with a 20-17 game. You had one touchdown drive of any length and a touchdown largely from a busted special teams play. You also had a field goal resulting from the same kind of red zone malaise that you have suffered from all season long.
Half time was the time for coaches to shine. Matt Burk and DeMeco Ryans got the opportunity to change up the defense after they were torched for 20 points. The defense gave up one huge play to a tight end for a touchdown. Other that that they virtually held the Titans offense to basically nothing. In other words they did their job. They even got a key pick six to somehow keep the team in the game.
Your offense added a whole field goal on their own. Congratulations Bobby. Yes, Fairbairn should have given you a field goal at the end, but in fairness the special teams gave you the other field goal when they recovered a fumble in Titans territory. So, they really added nothing to the effort in the second half. Zip. Zero.
I’d chalk it up the Stroud having a bad day or the offensive line breaking down in a key moment, but this has happened all season. The offense just seems to wait around for the defense to make a big play. However, that’s not the sad part. The sad part is that he might be more responsible for Stroud’s regression than anyone in that building. Maybe a new offensive coordinator fixes it. We at least hope that can be the case, but this is a change that will need to happen in January. You can’t realistically do it in November. You have to ride that dead horse to the finish line. Make no mistake, that horse is decomposing before our very eyes.