The Buffalo Bills have some juice in their backfield. To complement the ageless Frank Gore, rookie Devin Singletary has made his mark in his inaugural season as a slippery threat. The Houston Texans, ahead of their wild card matchup with Buffalo, are all too aware of that.
“He’s a very, very good, dynamic player,” Texans coach Bill O’Brien said of Singletary on Friday. “He’s got good quickness, good speed. That one-two punch with him and Frank Gore, that’s a tough deal. That’s very challenging. Frank Gore is one of the best ever do it. Singletary’s come in here very explosive, so it’s a big challenge.”
Singletary, who measures in at 5-7, 203-pounds, evaded, juked and spun his way out of tackles en route to 775 yards and two touchdowns on 5.1 yards per attempt in 12 games. He tallied 29 receptions for 194 yards and touchdowns as well.
According to Pro Football Reference, Singletary recorded 2.4 yards after contact on average in 2019. He totaled 20 broken tackles on the season. The Florida Atlantic product makes up for his lack of size with his footwork, quickness and creativity as a runner, equating to a hard tackle.
“We’re going to have to do a good job of being disciplined up front, we’re going to have to tackle,” O’Brien said in conclusion. “We’ve got to tackle well in this game. I think tackling is going to be a big part of the game.”
The Bills’ offense isn’t a particularly lethal one. However, Singletary, as a rookie, will keep the Texans’ defense on its toes. Considering Houston recorded the 10th-most missed tackles in 2019 (117), the defensive front seven will have to step-up if they want to contain Singletary.
The Texans will host Singletary and the Bills at NRG Stadium on Saturday at 3:35 pm CT. The winner of the matchup goes to the next round of the playoffs.