Houston Texans Daily Roundup: 4 days away from possible AFC South championship

The Houston Texans need to win in Week 17 to become AFC South champions for the fifth time in franchise history.

It is time for the Houston Texans to try this for the second time in consecutive weeks, and that is to work to gain a win and earn the AFC South championship for not only the fifth time in franchise history, but to the third time in the past four seasons.

All the Texans need to do is to defeat the Jacksonville Jaguars — or a tie by the Tennessee Titans and Indianapolis Colts — whom they defeated 20-7 on Oct. 21. Jacksonville is last place in the AFC South with a record of 5-10 overall, winning two of their past four games. Houston is 10-5 and have not only clinched a playoff berth, but they have their own destiny in their hands, and could possibly gain a first round bye if they gain a win in Week 17 and have some help along the way.

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Until then, the Texans need to get back to winning on a consistent basis as they’ve had two of their five losses in the past three week. The offense hasn’t played at as high of a level as needed, partly due to injuries and partly due to overall play, lending a hand in those losses.

As for this Sunday, the Texans when facing the Jaguars lead the all-time series, 20-13, winning seven of the past nine meetings. The two losses in that span happened last season. In the win earlier this year, Houston saw quarterback Deshaun Watson got 12-of-24 for 139 yards passing with one touchdown and no interceptions, with the receiving touchdown going to DeAndre Hopkins. That game also saw running back Lamar Miller rush for 22 carries for 100 yards rushing and one touchdown.

Though being thin at wide receiver with Will Fuller and now Demaryius Thomas out with an ACL tear and torn Achilles respectively, the Texans are losing a lot of production at wide receiver. Houston also cut Sammie Coates last week, but having DeAndre Carter has been a huge help. Against the Philadelphia Eagles in Week 16, Carter finished with six receptions for 61 yards with a longest reception of 24 yards in the loss.

As the Texans wait for their Week 17 game, here are headlines about the Texans for Wednesday.

• In the most current ESPN.com Power Rankings entering Week 17 the Texans are ranked No. 7 overall, and as the ESPN article stated, they spoke highly of J.J. Watt writing about him being the non-QB MVP for the team.

"“After missing most of last season, Watt is a legitimate candidate for NFL Comeback Player of the Year. He has 14.5 sacks and has often pressured opposing quarterbacks into making bad decisions.”"

It is tough to argue the non-MVP of the Texans isn’t Watt as he’s really brought a spark of the defense this season following two tough years with injuries. Watt still has one regular season game left this year, and it is a game where is is of great importance he plays up to a MVP level so the Texans can wrap up the AFC South championship.

• John McClain of the Houston Chronicle released his NFL power rankings for Week 17, where he has the Texans 10th in the league, writing the following about the team:

"“The Texans are in the playoffs. They wasted a chance to stay in the No. 2 seed. They have to beat Jacksonville at home to win the AFC South.”"

This Sunday is all about one thing and that is the Texans stepping up and playing at a high level to win the AFC South championship. If the Texans want to become champions they need to play at a championship level and gain momentum for the playoffs.

• Sean Pendergast of the Houston Press gave his top Texans storylines from 2018, including the following about the team:

"“GM Brian Gaine had a pretty solid first draft go round as an NFL general manager, with safety Justin Reid the crown jewel of a solid rookie class.”"

Reid has been an excellent addition to the Texans this season with 83 tackles, one forced fumble and three interceptions. He also has nine passes defensed and most exciting was his 101 yard interception for a touchdown against the Washington Redskins on Nov. 18.

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With the inconsistent play shown at times by the Texans offense, the one constant has been the play of Hopkins who is the highest graded wide receiver in the NFL through Week 16. That is a tough achievement to obtain as Hopkins competes with the likes of Michael Thomas of the New Orleans Saints and Julio Jones of the Atlanta Falcons for the top honor.

The Texans are lucky to ave Hopkins on their roster and it seems with each passing season the Texans wide receiver just keeps adding to his overall game.