The Houston Texans are champions.
In an ugly game with an occurrence of seven total turnovers, the Texans escaped Tampa Bay with a 23-20 win over the Buccaneers. In doing so, they are the AFC South champions, and will host a wild-card playoff game at NRG Stadium, likely against the Buffalo Bills.
The Texans won shorthanded, with inside linebacker Benardrick McKinney and outside linebacker Jacob Martin out. Shortly into the game, wide receiver Will Fuller followed, suffering a groin injury.
With the injuries, the Texans had to adjust. That reflects on their snap counts. Let’s take a gander at them from their 10th win of the 2019 campaign.
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Observations
Offensive line
- Chris Clark got the start at right tackle, as he usually does, but he played more than the 50/50 split that he tends to. Clark played 79% (52) of snaps. Meanwhile, Roderick Johnson, who he usually shares the position with, played in 26% (17). Johnson saw a bit more snaps after left tackle Laremy Tunsil sustained a late-game injury.
- The Texans don’t seem settled on Zach Fulton at right guard. Houston momentarily played backup Greg Mancz at the position, who saw a 21% (14) snap-share.
Secondary
- No surprise here: Houston has Bradley Roby as their No. 1 cornerback, who played all 73 defensive snaps. It’s his second-straight week of doing so. He started the game with a pick-six.
- The Texans appear to be nearing their cornerback trio for the playoffs. Roby is the No. 1. Gareon Conley plays on the outside as the No. 2 receiver. Meanwhile, Vernon Hargreaves plays most of his snaps inside but will rotate with Roby. Conley saw 92% of snaps (67), while Hargreaves got 71% (52).
- Long-time starter Johnathan Joseph is slowly being phased out of the defense. He played a season-low 8% snap-share (6). That didn’t stop him from getting his first interception of the season.
- Safety Justin Reid momentarily left the game, but he played in 96% (70) of snaps. Backup safety Mike Adams played one snap to fill in. Jahleel Addae saw his highest snap-share since Week 12, getting 32% (23) and also recording the game-clinching pick.
Front-seven
- Linebacker Zach Cunningham missed just one snap.
- In the absence of Benardrick McKinney, the Texans rotated inside linebackers, with Tyrell Adams and Peter Kalambayi earning snaps. Adams saw the majority with 66% (48), while Kalambayi got 36% (26). Adams came up with a big forced fumble in the first half.
- Against a pass-happy offense, D.J. Reader saw just 55% (40) of snaps. Rookie pass-rusher Charles Omenihu matched that total, as both led the Texans in defensive line snaps.
- Nose tackle Eddie Vanderdoes continues to receive a snap-share. He saw 25% (18), mostly being a run-stuffer in the interior defensive line.
- Though Jacob Martin was out, outside linebacker Brennan Scarlett did not get an increased snap share. His 44% (32) is a decrease from the week before. That’s likely due to the Texans opting to get pass-rush, playing Barkevious Mingo, Omenihu and Whitney Mercilus more off the edge.
Offensive skill positions
- Deshaun Watson was the only offensive skill position player to play the whole game. He did so despite going into the medical tent for a presumed foot injury. A testament to his toughness.
- DeAndre Hopkins played 98% (65) of offensive snaps, marking the end of a two-game stretch of playing an entire game.
- Despite playing one of the NFL’s best rush defenses, the Texans opted for the runner tailback in Carlos Hyde over the pass-catching one in Duke Johnson. Hyde saw 59% (39) of snaps as compared to Johnson’s 44% (29). Hyde had a lowly performance, recording 27 yards on 1.59 yards per carry.
- The Texans chose to not play tight end Jordan Thomas.
- Though he dealt with muscle cramps, Kenny Stills played most of the game, seeing 85% (56) of the snap-share. He wound up leading the Texans in receiving with 57 yards.
- DeAndre Carter acted as Will Fuller’s replacement after he went down with the groin injury. He played in 44% (29) of the snaps, catching a clutch 39-yard bomb. Carter has grown into a Bill O’Brien-favorite and is likely to continue to grow into a receiver in his offense.
Next week, the Texans will host the 8-7 Tennessee Titans. They can control their rival’s playoff aspirations with a win. However, if the Kansas City Chiefs win in the game before, they may opt to stick with the fourth seed and rest some of their key players for the game.
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