The Texans may not be facing Patrick Mahomes this Saturday, if his ankle is still banged up.
The Texans may not be facing Patrick Mahomes this Saturday, if his ankle is still banged up. Photo by Jack Gorman
The Houston Texans play in Kansas City this coming Saturday afternoon, and in my gut, this game is proof that sports PTSD is real.
It’s been nearly five years and four head coaches ago, and yet any mention of the Texans’ going to Kansas City to play at Arrowhead Stadium evokes images of the Texans coughing up a 24-0 first half lead before HALFTIME of that 2019 divisional round playoff game.
The Texans would go on to lose that day 51-31, a day in which the Chiefs literally ran out of fireworks to shoot off after scores. Saturday will be the first time the Texans have played with fans in the stadium since that playoff game. (They played in an empty Arrowhead in the 2020 COVID season opener.)
This Chiefs team is just as successful now (13-1 record on the season) as they were then, but in a much different style. Whatever fireworks they have stored for this game should be more than enough, because, like the Texans, the Chiefs have a hard time scoring, despite the presence of a franchise quarterback. In fact, the Chiefs and Texans are one point apart in total scoring this season.
The Texans don’t have a ton to play for in the standings. There’s an 80 percent chance that they will be the 4-seed in the playoffs. The Chiefs are fending off the Bills, who handed the Chiefs their only loss, for the number one overall seed. It should be a fun atmosphere! Here are four things to watch for:
4. Turnover train
The Texans have been elite in forcing turnovers over the last couple months. In fact, since a three game stretch in weeks 3, 4, and 5, when they forced no turnovers, they’ve forced a robust 25 turnovers. They are third in the league in turnover margin. Given how inconsistent the offense has been this season, they’ve needed short fields to get points, especially against good teams. Patrick Mahomes has been more turnover prone this season, is operating on a gimpy ankle (assuming he plays), and the injuries along the Chiefs’ offensive line make Mahomes a somewhat sitting duck for Will Anderson and Danielle Hunter to either (a) get some strip sacks, or (b) pressure Mahomes into errant throws. The Texans will need this.
3. Nico Collins vs Trent McDuffie
Last week, we were looking forward to a marquee matchup between Nico Collins and Dolphins CB Jalen Ramsey. Collins didn’t put up big numbers (4 catches, 17 yards), but did manage to score two touchdowns, the Texans’ only two touchdowns on the day. This week, it will likely be McDuffie shadowing Collins, which should be an exciting matchup. The good news for the Texans is that the rest of the Chiefs secondary is a little banged up, so perhaps this a game where they can get Tank Dell going, outside of the tricky end around runs and new role in the punt return unit.
2. Lady Luck
The Kansas City Chiefs are 13-1 this season, but with an overall point differential of just +70, which means they are outscoring their opposition by an average of just five points per game, a very low number for a team with such a dominant record. For context, the Lions are 12-2, and their point differential is +177! I point this factoid out about the Chiefs, because this team is both (a) very calm under fourth quarter pressure, but also (b) the luckiest damn team I’ve ever seen. We’ve seen everything from shaky referee calls to balls being snapped off the opposing quarterback’s face to field goals banging off the upright and going through at the gun. The Chiefs are running out of ways to fall ass backwards into wins.
1. Chris Jones, uh oh….
If there is one Chiefs guy who can wreck this game for the Texans, it’s Jones, who is arguably the most dominant interior defensive lineman in football. He will be going against a Texans offensive line interior that just shuffled again for about the fourth time this season. In pass protection, things held up okay against Miami, with Tytus Howard playing fairly well, bumping over to left guard from right tackle.
I am terrified to think what could happen to C.J. Stroud if and when Jones lines up over Shaq Mason. That could get ugly. The bottom line, like we’ve been saying all season long, the protection for Stroud has to be on point, or this will be another offensive clunker.
