Tag: Texans vs. Patriots

Texans DE Will Anderson Jr. Named AFC Defensive Player Of The Week

Will Anderson’s performance in Sunday’s win over the New England Patriots has earned him the league’s highest defensive honor in Week 6.

 

Houston Texans coach DeMeco Ryans said he sensed that Will Anderson Jr. was about to pop off Sunday against the New England Patriots.

“I felt his mindset in pregame warmups,” Ryans said following a 41-21 victory at Gillette Stadium. “So, knew it was going to be a really good day for him.”

Ryans was right. Now, the NFL is taking notice.

Anderson was named AFC Defensive Player of the Week for his performance in Week 6, the league office announced Wednesday. The reigning Defensive Rookie of the Year earned his first career Player of the Week honor after racking up three sacks against rookie quarterback Drake Maye.

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“Massive game for him, to be able to get after the quarterback the way he did,” Ryans said. “Just a reall productive day by him, and he stayed after it. I loved his energy from start to finish.”

Sacks were the headline of Anderson’s performance in Foxborough, but it doesn’t tell the whole story. The former No. 3 overall pick finished with eight tackles, including four tackles for loss and added one pass breakup, which led to an Eric Murray interception.

His sacks and tackles for loss both ranked first across the NFL last week, while his tackles led the team and tied for the most among defensive linemen league-wide. Entering Week 7, Anderson leads the NFL with nine tackles for loss and ranks fifth in sacks with seven.

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Anderson’s honor marks the second time this season and the ninth occurrence in franchise history a Texan has been named Player of the Week in back-to-back weeks. The accolade stands as the 60th time a Texan has been named Player of the Week and the 21st time a defensive player has garnered the honor.

Houston has now claimed Player of the Week honors in four of its first six weeks, the most in the NFL and most in team history through Week 6.

Texans Wire’s Player Of The Game: RB Joe Mixon

For the second time in three games, Joe Mixon rushed for over 100 yards en route to a Houston Texans’ win.

Maybe losing Nico Collins wasn’t a death sentence for the Houston Texans’ offense.

Maybe Joe Mixon is just getting warmed up.

Mixon, who missed three games with an ankle injury, seemed to prove that he’s not slowing down after a seven-year run with the Cincinnati Bengals after rushing for 102 yards and a touchdown in Sunday’s 41-21 win over the New England Patriots.

The 2021 Pro Bowler also tacked on 30 receiving yards and scored on a 10-yard touchdown pass from C.J. Stroud in the first quarter.

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“He’s got great vision, hits it as hard as he can, just a great feel for the game, a great feel to set his blocks up,” Texans quarterback C.J. Stroud said. “When our O-line is blocking the way they did and he’s setting up blocks, it’s a recipe for success.”

While Cincinnati believed Mixon’s best days were behind him, Houston has been reaping the benefits of a newfound spark in the 28-year-old. Sunday marked Mixon’s second 100-yard rushing performance in three games and second outing with at least 130 total yards.

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After what looked like a slow start, Mixon broke free in the second quarter with a 57-yard run to set up Houston inside New England’s 20. He also turned on the jets in the third quarter to go untouched for a 20-yard touchdown.

“I felt a big weight off my shoulders,” Mixon said. “Missing time and going out there with my brothers, going out there competing and obviously trying to do whatever we can to come out with the dub. It’s a hell of a feeling. I know the player that I am and I’m just happy that I’m able to showcase that right now.”

As a unit, the Texans averaged 6.9 yards per attempt. Mixon averaged 7.8 yards and 4.3 yards after contact. He was leading the NFL in rushing yards before suffering an ankle injury in Week 2’s win over the Chicago Bears and ranked third in yards per attempt.

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Performances like Sunday’s leaves little doubt that the Texans’ offense isn’t among the league’s more explosive units when at complete strength.

“I’m just happy everybody trusted in the scheme and everybody’s technique,” Mixon said.

Since Mixon didn’t miss a beat in his return, he’s Texans Wire’s Player of the Game for Week 6 and joins kicker Ka’imi Fairbairn as the only other multi-recipient of the award.

The Texans travel to Lambeau Field to take on the Green Bay Packers in Week 7 at noon CT.

Recap: Texans RB Joe Mixon scores 2 TDs in blowout win over Patriots

The Houston Texans improved to 5-1 for the first time since 2012 after securing a 20-point win over the New England Patriots

How do you like them apples?

Joe Mixon returned to his Pro Bowl form with a 102-yard rushing performance while scoring two touchdowns as the Houston Texans bested the New England Patriots, 41-21, at Gillette Stadium.

With the win, the Texans join the 2012 roster as the only team in franchise history to begin the season 5-1. That season, Houston started 11-1 before securing a division title at 12-4.

Fully healthy, the Texans could surpass the marker with 13 wins.

Mixon, who missed three games with an ankle injury, proved he was back at full capacity during the second quarter when he broke free for a 57-yard gain. The former Bengals star found his way into the end zone on a 10-yard touchdown pass from C.J. Stroud.

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Stroud might have thrown an interception during the second quarter, but he also threw three touchdown passes to coast out to a 21-7 lead entering the third quarter.

Stefon Diggs took over as the new No. 1 target with Nico Collins on the injured reserve, hauling in a team-leading six catches for 77 yards and a score.

Tank Dell, who last season served as Houston’s No. 2 weapon during his season, posted a season-high seven receptions for 57 yards and a touchdown in the first quarter.

The Patriots offense finally found life behind Drake Maye, the No. 3 overall pick in last year’s NFL draft. After failing to score more than 20 points in four of their first five games, New England scored a season-high 21 points thanks to three touchdown passes from the North Carolina product.

Maye finished 20 of 33 for 243 yards and rushed 38.  He was intercepted twice, sacked four times and caught up a fumble that led to Diggs’ touchdown.

Houston’s secondary will need work, but the pass rush was potent. Will Anderson Jr. recorded three sacks, improving his season total to 5.5. Pro Bowl counterpart Danielle Hunter striped-sacked Maye during the opening drive of the third quarter, leading to a 14-point swing in favor of Houston.

Pressure from the front seven led to success on the back end. Maye overthrew DeMario Douglas and was intercepted by Calen Bullock. Later on, Anderson popped a pass in the air, which landed in the arms of Eric Murray.
Mixon wasn’t the only running back making highlight plays in his return.

Dameon Pierce, who missed four games with a hamstring injury, ripped off a 54-yard touchdown run in the fourth quarter to extend Houston’s lead to 20.

Peirce finished with 76 yards and averaged 9.5 yards per run.

The Texans remain on the road next week as they travel to Lambeau Field to take on the Green Bay Packers at noon CT.

Watch: Texans WR Stefon Diggs shows off No. 1 mentality with TD vs. Patriots

Stefon Diggs is picking up the pace as the Houston Texans top new target with Nico Collins sidelined.

Well, that was fast.

Two plays after Danielle Hunter’s strip-sack against New England Patriots quarterback Drake Maye, the Houston Texans extended their lead to 14 with a C.J. Stroud 10-yard touchdown pass to Stefon Diggs.

Diggs, who currently leads Houston in receptions (5) and receiving yards (65), is expected to take over as the new No. 1 option with Nico Collins on the injured reserve. For the third game, he’ll likely finish as the team leader in both catches and receiving yards.

Stroud’s ugly interception is the one blemish on what has been a positive day for the offense in Foxborough. He’s 16-of-24 for 158 yards and three touchdown passes entering the fourth quarter.

All three of Stroud’s touchdown passes have come against man coverage so far. Tank Dell beat Jonathan Jones for a 2-yard score on the opening drive. Joe Mixon’s flat route secured a 14-0 lead at the end of the first quarter.

Diggs, best known for his superior route-running skills, beat second-year cornerback Christian Gonzalez with a cut inside.

With a win on Sunday, Houston would improve to 5-1, marking its best start since 2012.

Watch: Texans DE Danielle Hunter pulverizes Patriots rookie QB Drake Maye

Danielle Hunter destroyed Drake Maye to give back the ball to the Houston Texans.

After losing momentum at the end of the first half, the Houston Texans regained it three plays into the third quarter.

Pro Bowl defensive end Danielle Hunter defeated his block and unloaded on New England Patriots rookie quarterback Drake Maye, forcing a fumble that eventually would be recovered by Mario Edwards Jr.

The Texans would extend their 14-7 lead with a 3-yard touchdown pass from C.J. Stroud to Stefon Diggs.

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Hunter recorded his first sack since Week 2’s win against the Chicago Bears. Houston has three sacks against New England, with Will Anderson Jr. providing the other pair in the first quarter.

Hunter has 2.5 sacks for Houston this season after signing a two-year, $49 million contract with the team in free agency. He replaced Jonathan Greenard, who signed on to Hunter’s replacement with the Minnesota Vikings.

The strip sack was the second turnover, Houston created in New England territory.

The first was Calen Bullock’s interception, which resulted in zero points after Kai’imi Fairbairn had a rare missed field goal.

With a win, Houston would start off the season 5-1, marking its best record since 2012.

Where does C.J. Stroud rank among starting QBs in Total QBR?

Houston quarterback C.J. Stroud remains one of the top passers in QBR rankings entering Week 6.

Despite overall offensive limitations this season, Houston Texans second-year quarterback C.J. Stroud isn’t slowing down. A week after throwing for over 300 yards in a victory over the Jacksonville Jaguars, Stroud sliced and diced the Buffalo Bills’ secondary with a 331-yard outing en route to a 23-20 win.

With that positive performance, Stroud rose from No. 11 to No. 9 in ESPN’s Total QBR rankings this week. ESPN gave Stroud a 78.4 Total QBR rating against the Bills, his best of the season.

Stroud’s traditional passer rating against Buffalo was 97.6, which actually represented one of his lower ratings of the year. It’s still a promising look, but far from the standard for the second-year target.

Unlike a traditional passer rating, the Total QBR “incorporates all of a quarterback’s contributions to winning, including how he impacts the game on passes, rushes, turnovers and penalties,” according to ESPN.

The metric also considers scenarios that a traditional passer rating overlooks and  looks at “a team’s level of success or failure on every play to provide the proper context and then allocates credit to the quarterback and his teammate to produce a clearer measure of quarterback efficiency.”

Through five games, Stroud’s thrown three interceptions and been sacked 14 times. Two turnovers came in the 34-7 loss against the Minnesota Vikings in Week 3.

Here’s a look at where Stroud stacks up against the NFL’s other starting quarterbacks entering Week 6.

NFL QBs ranked by Total QBR entering Week 6

  1. Josh Allen: 77.6
  2. Joe Burrow: 73.6
  3. Jayden Daniels: 73.2
  4. Andy Dalton: 67.1
  5. Lamar Jackson: 67.1
  6. Kyler Murray: 66.4
  7. Brock Purdy: 66.0
  8. C.J. Stroud: 64.4
  9. Baker Mayfield: 64.0
  10. Derek Carr: 63.6
  11. Geno Smith: 63.5
  12. Daniel Jones: 61.3
  13. Jalen Hurts: 59.3
  14. Sam Darnold: 58.7
  15. Dak Prescott: 56.8
  16. Patrick Mahomes: 55.8
  17. Kirk Cousins: 55.2
  18. Matthew Stafford: 53.8
  19. Trevor Lawrence: 53.2
  20. Anthony Richardson: 49.3
  21. Aaron Rodgers: 49.1
  22. Justin Fields: 48.0
  23. Jordan Love: 46.1
  24. Jared Goff: 44.8
  25. Bo Nix: 43.1
  26. Justin Herbert: 41.8
  27. Gardner Minshew: 41.1
  28. Jacoby Brissett: 38.9
  29. Caleb Williams: 36.3
  30. Will Levis: 27.3
  31. Tyler Huntley: 23.5
  32. Deshaun Watson: 21.0

Nix and the Broncos will host the Los Angeles Chargers in Week 6.

Texans receive update on DL Kurt Hinish before Patriots game

Kurt Hinish will need another week before making his debut for the Houston Texans.

Kurt Hinish still isn’t ready to make his 2024 debut for the Houston Texans.

The Texans updated their injury report and ruled Hinish out for Sunday’s matchup against the New England Patriots. He will not travel with the team to Gillette Stadium on Saturday afternoon.

Hinish, a third-year defensive tackle out of Notre Dame, was placed on the injured reserve after training camp with a calf injury. Houston chose to begin his 21-day recovery window last week, but he’s been limited at practice.

Thursday marked the end of the first week that Hinish was a full-time participant in practice, but the Texans are being cautious with his return.

Last season, Hinish finished with 22 tackles, two tackles for loss and a sack. Running back Joe Mixon will travel with the Texans, meaning there’s a strong chance he’ll play tomorrow.

Kickoff is scheduled for noon CT.

Texans preparing for standout performance from Patriots CB Christian Gonzalez

Christian Gonzalez might be the x-factor for the New England Patriots against the Houston Texans on Sunday afternoon.

Stefon Diggs knows talented cornerbacks. He’s faced ample over his 10-year NFL career, including several New England Patriots stars like Stephon Gilmore and J.C. Jackson.

It’s early in his career, but Diggs knows second-year cornerback Christian Gonzalez could be one of the best he faces all season.

“He’s very impressive,” the Houston Texans receiver said. “He got hurt last year. I was in Buffalo last year, so I watched him—great hips, a strong guy, too. Coming out, he was one of the top picks, obviously. He was impressive in college.

“I’ve been in the league a long time. I done seen a lot of corners, so he’s definitely a hell of an athlete.”

The 6-foot-1 defensive back has lived up to the billing as a first-round pick. Despite being limited to four games as a rookie, Gonzalez didn’t allow a touchdown in coverage and held quarterbacks to a 45.2 percent completion percentage.

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So far, Gonzalez hasn’t shown any signs of rust or decline through five games. He has one interception while holding opposing quarterbacks to a 65.2 passer rating and receivers.

Receivers are averaging just 8.3 yards per catch against him. He allowed one touchdown in coverage against three pass deflections.

“All the traits are off the charts with him, size, length, corner. Just seeing his instincts showing up, his ability to make plays on the football,” Texans coach DeMeco Ryans said.  “You can see leading a lot of one-on-one matchups and he’s able to make plays in those situations.

“He’s doing a really good job for them.”

With Nico Collins on the injured reserve for four games, Diggs will likely draw Gonzalez in coverage. If not, Tank Dell will match up in what could be a long day for the second-year target.

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The Texans feel content about their receiving room this season, but most of the damage has come from Collins. Houston must turn to its depth in John Metchie III and Xavier Hutchinson, too.

Last week, Hutchinson caught three passes for 31 yards. Metchie’s caught one pass for a gain of seven through three games.

Gonzalez is going to create problems for Houston’s passing game. Diggs must step up, but someone else will have to take over as a constant No. 2.

“You can’t replace (Collins) but at the same time, we’ve got a room full of guys that are hungry, that want to go in, that want to get their ops,” offensive coordinator Bobby Slowik said.

Kickoff from Gillette Stadium is scheduled for noon CT.

Texans vs Patriots injury report: Latest updates, news for Week 6

All the latest updates and news on the Texans’ injury report ahead of their Week 6 game vs. the Patriots

Here are the full injury reports for the Houston Texans and New England Patriots ahead of their Week 6 matchup at Gillette Stadium:

Houston Texans (4-1)

Did not practice

  • CB Kamari Lassiter (shoulder)
  • DB Jimmie Ward (groin)
  • WR Robert Woods (foot)

Limited participation

Announcers set for Texans vs. Patriots Week 6 game

The Texans will have two familiar faces on the call Sunday when they take on the Patriots.

The Houston Texans (4-1) will travel eastbound to face off against the New England Patriots (1-4) in a matchup where a new era of football could be underway in Foxborough.

The Patriots are turning to No. 3 overall pick Drake Maye after struggling on offense behind Jacoby Brissett. Internal expectations are for him to remain the franchise signal-caller beyond the three seasons of the Mac Jones reign.

All in all, the Patriots hope Maye is the new Tom Brady.

The Texans’ Week 6 game will air on CBS at noon CT. Kevin Harlan (play-by-play) will lead the broadcast with the help of Trent Green (analyst). Evan Washburn (sidelines) will serve as the on-field broadcaster.

Houston is coming off a 23-20 win over the Buffalo Bills, where Ka’imi Fairbairn needed to secure a 59-yard field goal as time expired to break a 20-20 tie. C.J. Stroud threw for 331 yards and a touchdown pass to Nico Collins but never found consistency in the second half.

The defense held Josh Allen in check, allowing just 131 passing yards and a 49-yard touchdown pass to Keon Coleman. After an intentional grounding call, Houston forced a three-and-out from Buffalo’s 1-yard line to set up Fairbairn in exceptional position.

Meanwhile, New England has struggled to generate points behind Brissettt. Currently on a four-game losing streak, the Patriots have scored over 13 points over their last three games. They’ve scored 20 or more once this season, but it came in a loss against the Seattle Seahawks.

After a 2-1 start, the Texans have won two straight games in close-call fashion. They might be undefeated at home, but Sunday could be a trap outing with Nico Collins now on the injured reserve.

Houston will look to keep its win streak alive while pushing toward the best start in franchise history since 2012. The Texans will also look to hit the over once more as the favorites after winning last week for the first time while favored.