One thing about the New Orleans Saints fans is that they love to party and have fun. Yes, they can be boisterous, but they are passionate about their team. It does not matter about the game’s magnitude; they want to see their team win.
So, it had to feel as if it had rained on Bourbon Street during Mardi Gras when they watched quarterback Ian Book get sacked on the Saints’ two-yard line as time expired to end the game with a 13-10 loss to the Houston Texans.
The player responsible for sending New Orleans fans home upset was none other than defensive lineman Derek Rivers, who has been having a terrific training camp thus far.
“I was just going out trying to play ball,” said Rivers after the game about his game-ending sack. “It was just exciting to finish, and it was cool.”
Rivers, who the Texans signed last December to a two-year deal, elaborated on how the defensive unit was able to get a big stop on the Saints late in the fourth quarter and get the ball back for the offensive unit to set up the game-winning drive.
“It is situational football and that is something coach Smith harps on,” Rivers said. “To be able to go out there and have that situation come up, it was a blessing for that situation to come up. We could not have done it without our back end (defensive backs). If they don’t cover them up, we don’t get more time. It was just a collective play.”
Although Texans defensive lineman Derek Rivers helped seal the victory over the New Orleans Saints with a sack as time expired. It was almost his teammate who would have added a sack to his stat line instead of Rivers getting his second of the game. #Sarge @TheTexansWire pic.twitter.com/CByT1iEUKr
— #SARGE (@BigSargeSportz) August 14, 2022
The six-year veteran is looking to become a regular part of the Texans’ defensive line rotation. His stat line for the game may aid in his wish as he finished the game with two tackles for losses, two quarterback hits, and two sacks.
He has relished the opportunity to learn how to improve himself better from some key off-season free agent signings by the team.
Said Rivers: “It has been one of the first years, praise God, to be able to learn from an older veterans like Mario (Addison) and Jerry (Hughes). We all have been learning from one another and it has been really cool to do that. So to be able to go out there and learn from each other and go put it on tape it has been fun and I am looking forward to it.”
[lawrence-related id=75565,75515]
[mm-video type=video id=01ga9hk9kgb2tf961kb2 playlist_id=none player_id=none image=https://images2.minutemediacdn.com/image/upload/video/thumbnail/mmplus/01ga9hk9kgb2tf961kb2/01ga9hk9kgb2tf961kb2-25ad1f65fbaa88ddf74688a3d3177661.jpg]