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The Houston Texans are 0-4 and quarterback Deshaun Watson has sustained a league-high 16 sacks, but the defending AFC South champions may not be getting an off week against the Jacksonville Jaguars.
Though the Jaguars are tied for the second-fewest sacks in the NFL with four and are tied for the 11th-fewest pressures with 32, Jacksonville features dynamic pass rushers in defensive end Josh Allen and rookie edge defender K’Lavon Chaisson who could get hot against the Texans and pile on Watson’s sack total.
“They do a really good job rushing the passer,” offensive coordinator Tim Kelly said. “They’ve done that since we’ve really been here for seven years now. Obviously with Allen and Chaisson, they’ve got guys that can rush off the edge, they’re big, they’re long, they’re athletic.”
Another key element to the Jaguars’ pass rush is defensive tackle Taven Bryan, who has collected three quarterback hits in the past three games. In four career games against the Texans, Bryan has collected 1.0 sack, one tackle for loss, and four quarterback hits.
“He’s as explosive as an interior lineman as we’ve seen,” said Kelly. “[Linebacker] Myles Jack is a physical player. You’ve got a multitude of guys that can get after the passer and we’ve got to make sure we’re doing a great job protecting for Deshaun, do a better job protecting for Deshaun.”
If the Texans can find a way to keep Watson upright and away from the Jaguars’ pass rushers, it should give the two-time Pro Bowl quarterback more time to survey his targets, go through his progressions, and find the open man. Watson did a better job against the Minnesota Vikings in the 31-23 loss in Week 4 with 300 yards passing, two touchdowns, and zero interceptions. Ball security has improved over the first quarter of the season. Now, the protection and evasion of the pass rush has to elevate to help Houston find a winning streak.