Houston Texans: Momentum, miscues and letdown against Chiefs

Sunday was the biggest letdown in Houston Texans playoff history, and that is saying a lot.

The Houston Texans allowed so many touchdowns from the second quarter until the end of the game, the Kansas City Chiefs literally ran out of fireworks to celebrate touchdowns. That is how poorly the final three quarters went for the Texans, especially how everything went well for them in the first quarter.

This loss will be tough for the franchise to overcome, but overall even the first quarter was filled with some luck and momentum as the Texans built a 21-0 lead at the end of the first quarter, and eventually a 24-0 lead in the early stages of the second quarter.

We all know how the Texans gained the big lead with a 54-yard touchdown pass from Deshaun Watson to Kenny Stills, followed by the Texans having a blocked punt by Barkevious Mingo (with the touchdown by Lonnie Johnson), and then after a botched punt return by Tyreek Hill, that led to a Watson pass to Darren Fells for the 21-0 lead.

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Then came a decision where the Texans could have gone for a first down, but opted for a field goal for a 24-0 lead. Then the other shoe dropped, and the Texans looked lost, had zero momentum, made too many mistakes and it was then beginning of the end for the Texans.

The play that seemingly began the downward spiral was the fake punt attempt by the Texans where Justin Reid was tackled in the open field by Daniel Sorensen, and from there the Texans were outscored 51-7 for the rest of the game as the Texans lost 51-31.

A lot of the blame needs to go to head coach Bill O’Brien and the Texans coaching staff, and blame needs to go into the direction of the offense for never really getting on track, and the defense didn’t play well, either.

Though it may be tough to admit, the Chiefs were just the better team, with Patrick Mahomes finishing 23-of-35 for 321 yards with five touchdown passes (four in the second quarter, tying an NFL record) and no interceptions. Mahomes also rushed the ball seven times for 53 yards, averaging 7.6 yards per carry.

The Texans had more yards offensively at 442-to-434, and Watson finished 31-of-52 for 388 yards with two touchdowns and no interceptions. Watson was the second-leading rusher on the Texans in the Divisional Round with six carries for 37 yards and one touchdown, with Watson averaging 6.2 yards per carry.

Deepi Sidhu of HoustonTexans.com quoted J.J. Watt after the game as he put the blame on his shoulders:

"“Somebody has to go make a play to change it, especially when momentum swings like that. We didn’t do that so I put that on my shoulders.”"

Texans pass rusher Watt didn’t seem at the top of his game on Sunday, as he didn’t record a tackle (though he had one pass defensed) and seemed to be step behind each play. Whitney Mercilus had just one tackle and that was it, and those are the two leaders of the defense coached by Romeo Crennel.

But as a team, the Texans were simply just outplayed by the Chiefs, and Andy Reid and the staff of the Chiefs out-coached O’Brien and the Texans and that is a plain fact. Losing a 24-point lead in a regular-season game is bad, but in the playoffs, with an opportunity to host the AFC Championship game, it is inexcusable.

Like it or not, the Texans need to make some changes and take a good look at this roster to see who needs to stay and who needs to play and coach elsewhere in 2020, as the franchise is now 0-4 all-time in the Divisional Round of the playoffs.

The Texans are good at winning division championships, and even won a playoff game this year, but this franchise needs to want and aim for more, because if they don’t, well, there will most likely be more days like today, and more losses in the playoffs.

Next. Texans open with 3 TDs vs. Chiefs in first quarter. dark

What do you feel the Texans need to do this offseason so a game like today never happens again in franchise history?

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