AFC Wildcard: Texans vs. Chiefs Recap
Brian Hoyer single handedly destroyed every Houston fan’s spirit and soul as he delivers crushing blows to his own team
It was a momentous matchup between the red hot Kansas City Chiefs and rising Houston Texans. The stadium was loud and alive, ready to deliver the help behind J.J. Watt and DeAndre Hopkins.
The Texans kicked off to start game and Kniles Davis ran untouched for 106 yards and a touchdown. Kansas City took a very quick 7-0 lead 11 seconds into action.
On the ensuing kickoff, the Texans took the field from the 20 yard line. Houston Texan quarterback Brian Hoyer looked like Hoyer and misfired on 2 straight passes to open receivers and it was a lightning quick 3 and out.
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The Chiefs methodically got 3 first downs and drove the ball seemingly easily on the Houston defense on their first drive of the game. Outside linebacker Whitney Mercilus then stepped up and sacked Alex Smith to force a 3rd and 13 situation. Chief’s quarterback Alex Smith gifted the Texans on the critical play and overshot a wide open receiver and Houston forced a punt.
Hoyer took the offense back out there and tried to establish the ground game, but they were forced into a 3rd and 8 situation and Hoyer threw another terrible pass and it was right to pro-bowl safety Eric Berry to place Kansas City on the 33 yard line going in to score. It put amazing pressure on the defense with practically no rest.
The Houston defense responded in amazing fashion and inside linebacker Brian Cushing was able to pick off an errant pass on a deflection to breathe life once again into the packed stadium and the team themselves.
They gave Hoyer a perfect opportunity to redeem himself and he had the ball going in from the 18 yard line. They once again went nowhere quickly and got another 3rd and long situation.
Fortunately, superstar wide receiver DeAndre Hopkins made his first catch and it resulted in a first down. The offense finally had some movement and life, and Marcus Peters was called for pass interference to give Houston a chunk of yardage and another first down. Hopkins was then targeted again and made an 11 yard catch for yet again another first. The Texans kept the drive going and advanced into Kansas City territory, it looked like Hoyer was responding which was a great sign for Houston.
Right on cue, Hoyer fumbled the ball untouched. He gave the ball right back to Kansas City, ruining any chances they had of scoring.
The Chiefs quickly got into Texan territory on an 18 yard completion and it looked like they were going to easily get into scoring range. They got into a 3rd and 4 situation, and the Chiefs were forced into a field goal try. The defense kept the Texans in the game just like so many others this season. Kansas City took a 10-0 lead with 12:50 to play in the second quarter.
They started the next drive by feeding the ball to DeAndre Hopkins, but were quickly forced backward after a sack by the Chiefs. It resulted in another 3rd and long situation, and Hoyer threw the pass too low for a completion. They were yet again forced to punt after minimal production.
The Texans again gave up a field goal identical to the last. The Chiefs took a 13-0 lead.
DeAndre Hopkins once again set the tone with another great catch on the sideline, and Alfred Blue broke loose for a huge 50 yard run. They got down to the 4 yard line in a 3rd and 2 situation and were able to gain enough yardage for a first down. J.J. Watt was then inserted at quarterback in the wildcat formation, but was unable to gain any yardage as the Chiefs knew precisely what was coming.
Hoyer then once again pulled a classic Hoyer, and threw another interception at the one yard line. He ruined the great drive and any chance at points.
Kansas City then was forced to punt very quickly after a 3 and out, another superb display by the Texan defense to keep them in the game.
DeAndre Hopkins led the Texans out on offense with another chance to cut into the 13-0 deficit with 2 minutes to go until halftime. But Hoyer tossed his 3rd interception of the first half, and 4th turnover. He needed to be benched, and benched immediately.
Houston then attempted to stop the Chief’s attack and get the ball back for one last desperate attempt at points before the half. They accomplished just that, and forced a punt with 31 seconds left to play in the first half. They just kneeled the ball out and went into halftime down 13-0.
Hoyer surprisingly came out again to start the second half. They were able to get a first down after a quick screen play on 3rd and 6 to Jonathan Grimes. Hoyer almost threw his 4th interception of the game on just a horrible pass, but it was dropped and the drive continued. Alfred blue continued to have an awesome game and had a quick 17 yard burst to get into Chief territory. They quickly were forced into a punting situation after a couple Hoyer misfires and a screen to Hopkins that went nowhere.
Alex Smith broke just out of reach of J.J. Watt and scampered for 64 yards, but the Texans were gifted by a holding penalty to neutralize the gain. The bad turned worse as J.J. Watt limped off of the field and then rookie cornerback Kevin Johnson went down. J.J. Watt tried to reenter the game, but it looked like he tweaked his groin again and he stayed down on the field. The nightmare for Houston was realized.
They quickly gave a touchdown up to the Chiefs, and fell behind 20-0 with 4:35 remaining in the 3rd quarter.
Nate Washington promptly dropped the first pass of the next drive, and then Hoyer threw a duck into the turf trying to connect with DeAndre Hopkins. The drive resulted in another quick 3 and out after Hoyer held the ball forever and threw an incompletion on 3rd and 10.
The Chiefs continued to take full advantage of the banged up Houston defense and drove down into the red zone easily. The Texans could have held them to a field goal, but Jared Crick was called for a boneheaded penalty after he hit an offensive player after the whistle. The Chiefs took a 27-0 lead heading into the 4th quarter.
The Texans did get some movement on their next offensive series, and drove into field goal range. There was an opportunity to score a touchdown, but Ryan Griffin dropped the easy completion. They had to go for it on a 4th and 7, and Hoyer fumbled the ball again and they were stopped after a turnover on downs.
Brian Hoyer quickly threw another interception, his 4th of the game to seal the deal. He is pretty god awful, and thankfully the Texans can draft a number of quarterbacks in the upcoming draft.
The Chiefs then tacked on another field goal with around 5 minutes left and took a 30-0 lead to finally seal the deal. That was the final.