The Houston Texans gained their third win of the season, repeating a feat they achieved back in Week 1, by defeating the Jacksonville Jaguars in Week 15 by a 30-16 score, giving them the regular-season sweep against Jacksonville.
The Texans have swept the Jaguars four straight seasons, equaling eight consecutive wins against their AFC South rival. Houston’s defense kept the Jaguars (2-12) to only one touchdown and three field goals, while the Texans (3-11) earned the win with two touchdown passes from quarterback Davis Mills to wide receiver Brandin Cooks, plus a 98-yard kickoff return for a touchdown by Tremon Smith and three field goals.
Though this win hurts the Texans in the draft order, it showed they are able to still compete and win games against opponents they should defeat on a given Sunday. Mills finished the game 19-of-30 for 209 yards with two touchdown passes, one interception, and he was sacked just once in the Week 15 win.
The biggest receiving target was Cooks, who caught seven passes for 102 yards and two scores, with a best reception of 43 yards against Jacksonville. Cooks averaged 14.6 yards per reception as he was targeted 10 times.
Texans: Even the running game chipped in some on offense in Week 15
Rex Burkhead carried the load in the rushing game for Houston, finishing with 16 carries for 41 yards. Burkhead grinded out the rushing yards as his best run was eight yards. It was also good to see wide receiver Phillip Dorsett have two receptions for 43 yards, including a huge gain of 33 yards with one of his two receptions.
The Texans‘ defense kept the Jaguars from having a 100-yard rusher, and they didn’t allow Trevor Lawrence to throw a single touchdown pass, but he also didn’t throw any interceptions.
On defense, Garret Wallow, Chris Smith, and Derek Rivers stepped up big-time with one sack each. Wallow, plus teammate Tavierre Thomas, each led Houston with 11 tackles in Week 15 vs. the Jaguars.
Houston had fewer total yards than Jacksonville (281-296) but averaged 4.9 yards per play compared to the Jaguars at 4.5 yards per play. All in all, it was a solid win for Houston, as Mills continued with some progression as a rookie quarterback starting in the NFL, and the Texans added another win to their season total.
Next for the Texans is a Week 16 game against the Los Angeles Chargers as they are now 3-11 overall, while LA is 8-6 on the season.