A tie counts as a half-win, half-loss in the NFL, but the Houston Texans have been taking much more of the loss end of their 20-20 tie with the Indianapolis Colts than the standings allow.
According to Pete Prisco from CBS Sports, the Texans dropped three places to No. 29 in their power rankings following their stalemate with their AFC South rivals in Week 1 at NRG Stadium.
They got a tie against the Colts, but that had to feel like a loss after they blew a 17-point lead. There were some good things, but that had to sting. The decision in overtime to punt is rightfully one that has to be questioned.
No doubt the decision to punt should be scrutinized, but coach Lovie Smith provided an explanation after the game why he decided to punt on the fourth-and-3 from the Colts’ 49-yard line rather than go for it.
“If you miss it right there and they had stuffed us on the play, they have one play and they’re in position,” said Smith. “It’s not like we were playing our best defense at the time. We were drained. We were gassed a little bit. That’s how it goes.”
Quarterback Davis Mills was similarly fading, despite having a decent outing with 23-of-37 passing for 240 yards and two touchdowns.
The Colts had both of their timeouts remaining at that point in overtime. Indianapolis could have easily gotten into field goal range to give Rodrigo Blankenship a chance to win the game.
As for how the tie impacted the Colts, they also dropped three places in the power rankings down to No. 14.
Across the rest of the AFC South, the Tennessee Titans dropped two spots to No. 16 following their loss to the New York Giants at home. The Jacksonville Jaguars also dropped three spots, but remain a slot ahead of the Texans at No. 28.