(SportsRadio 610) - The biggest Texans’ story of the week involves a player who isn’t even on the roster.
That would be J.J. Watt, who announced his retirement with two games left in his second season with the Cardinals. Watt was a huge story locally and nationally, and rightfully so, because he’s one of the greatest defensive linemen in NFL history.
Meanwhile, the Texans broke their nine-game losing streak with a 19-14 victory at Tennessee. Coach Lovie Smith’s goal is to close the season with a three-game winning streak and a 4-12-1 record, including 4-1-1 in the AFC South.
The Texans host the red-hot Jaguars on Sunday. The game means nothing to Jacksonville as far as its first AFC South title since 2017. The division winner will be determined in the last game at Jacksonville, where the Jaguars entertain the Titans in a winner-take-all confrontation.
Here are observations on the Texans and their last two games against the Jaguars and Colts.
TO WIN OR NOT TO WIN, THAT IS THE QUESTION
Of course, the Texans want to beat the Jaguars and Colts and finish strong. The players are playing hard for Lovie Smith and his assistants.
They came close to defeating the Cowboys and Chiefs before beating the Titans in Tennessee for the second consecutive season. The Texans still have the first overall pick in the draft, but if they win another game, they could lose it. If they win their last two, they could pick fourth overall.
As it stands today, the Texans are 2-12-1. The Bears (3-12), Cardinals (4-11) and Broncos (4-11) are in the running for the first pick. Denver owes its pick to Seattle because of the Russell Wilson trade.
If you’re a Texans fan, are you torn? Finish with a three-game winning streak and lose the first pick, or lose enough to secure the first pick and have your choice of every player in the draft?
The Texans have shown over their last three games, they’re capable of beating the Jaguars and Colts.
Stay tuned.
JAGUARS COULD BE CAUGHT LOOKING AHEAD
Because the Texans game means nothing to the Jaguars when it comes to winning the AFC South title, which they can accomplish at home against the Titans, you just know coach Doug Pederson is working hard to keep the focus on their trip to Houston.
Pederson doesn’t want to rest any players because he wants to continue building momentum. They’ve won five of seven, including their first three-game winning streak since 2017. During that stretch, second-year quarterback Trevor Lawrence has thrown 14 touchdown passes and one interception.
If Pederson needs any extra motivation for his players, he should emphasize the Texans have a nine-game winning streak against Jacksonville. Those nine games have been decided by an average of 12.1 points. Jacksonville has suffered only three one-score defeats in their losing streak.
Another FYI for the Jaguars: They’ve gone 85 games without beating the Texans. Over the last three seasons, the Texans are 10-26-1. They’re 5-26-1 against everybody but Jacksonville.
TEXANS’ OFFENSE CONTINUES TO STRUGGLE
Pep Hamilton’s offense continues to struggle running and passing the ball. Injuries have played a substantial role in the lack of consistent productivity. The Texans are 32nd offense, including 30th rushing and 26th passing.
The running game went south for the winter even before Dameon Pierce suffered an ankle injury that caused him to go on injured reserve. In their last six games, the Texans have averaged 69.8 yards rushing. They’ve had one game with at least 100 yards – 114 in the loss at Dallas. They haven’t averaged more than 3.4 yards a carry during that six-game span.
In the previous six games, the Texans averaged 111.1 yards, and that included games against the Eagles and Giants when Pierce was healthy. During those six games, the Texans failed to reach triple digits rushing one time.
The Texans haven’t netted more than 215 yards passing in their last six games. It can’t be blamed on the offensive line. The Texans have allowed two sacks in their last four games. On one, quarterback Jeff Driskel ran out of bounds rather than throw away the ball. On the other, Davis Mills held the ball too long. The pass protection has been terrific over the last month. In the previous four games, the Texans surrendered 17 sacks.
By the way, the offense has generated at least 300 yards one time during the last six games.
DEFENSIVE ROOKIES CONTINUE TO IMPROVE
Rookies are getting a lot of playing time on defense. Despite losing cornerback Derek Stingley Jr., the third overall pick in the draft, for the last six games, rookies on defense have played 2,824 snaps – second-most in the NFL to the Bears (2,915).
Rookies have played a significant role in two impressive statistics: The Texans have allowed 12 touchdown passes, fewest in the NFL. Opposing quarterbacks have an 84.4 ranking, eighth in the league.
Safety Jalen Pitre should end up with the second-most tackles in franchise history for a rookie. He’s got 126 and trails linebackers DeMeco Ryans (156 in 2006) and Brian Cushing (133 in 2009). Pitre should pass Cushing against the Jaguars. Led by Pitre’s four, rookies have six interceptions. That’s one reason the Texans are ninth in the league with 22 takeaways.
It’s interesting to note that in the loss to Kansas City, linebacker Christian Harris (14 tackles) and Pitre (13) combined for 27 tackles. That’s the most by a rookie twosome in the NFL since 2009.
SPECIAL TEAMS STILL SPECIAL
Special teams coordinator Frank Ross and his players should take a bow. They deserve a lot of credit for their performance during a dismal season. Let’s start with the kicking game.
Ka’imi Fairbairn has connected on 27-of-29 field goals and 21-of-21 extra points for 102 points. He’s kicked 17 consecutive field goals. Fairbairn has missed one field goal from outside the 40. He’s 5-of-5 on 50-plus field goals. He also has 30 touchbacks. The Texans are first in the NFL on opponents’ average field position after kickoffs (22.1-yard line).
Punter Cam Johnston has a 48.5-yard gross average and a 43-yard net. His net average is fifth in the league. He’s put 32 punts inside the 20-yard line, tied for second in the NFL. Contributing to Fairbairn and Johnston having such splendid seasons is snapper Jon Weeks, the senior member of the team who’s in his 13th season and has appeared in more games than any player in franchise history. And he’s never had a bad snap.
John McClain can be heard Tuesday, Wednesday and Friday on Sports Radio 610 and Monday and Thursday on Texans Radio. He write three times a week and does three Houtopia Podcasts for SportsRadio610.com. He also can be read four times a week on GallerySports.com.