- The Houston Texans’ defense scored two touchdowns in a 30-6 wild-card victory over the Pittsburgh Steelers.
- Quarterback C.J. Stroud overcame two lost fumbles and an interception to lead the offense.
- The Texans will now face the New England Patriots in the divisional round.
PITTSBURGH — Stating the obvious here, the Houston Texans’ defense is championship caliber – to the point they may carry the entire roster to northern California themselves within the next month.
That also means the pressure is on quarterback C.J. Stroud and the other side of the ball, because not supporting what has developed into one of the most simultaneously suffocating and crushing units in recent memory would be to waste a potentially deep postseason run in a weaker AFC field.
DeMeco Ryans’ unit scored twice in Houston’s 30-6 rout of the Pittsburgh Steelers in the wild-card round Monday, Jan. 13, at Acrisure Stadium. The concerning part is that Stroud’s carelessness with the football, which resulted in two fumbles lost (five fumbles total and several issues with the snap) and a red-zone interception, kept the Steelers in the game for more than three quarters despite the Texans’ defense ultimately surrendering the fewest points and yards in team postseason history.
‘Bad plays happen, turnovers happen in a game,’ Ryans said. ‘We bounced back and didn’t let that affect us the rest of the game.’
The defense was credited with 12 hits against Steelers quarterback Aaron Rodgers, whom they sacked four times.
Ryans liked that the offense finished the game strong regardless of prior mistakes. Stroud still displayed his flashes of greatness. There was the first third-down throw of the game to Christian Kirk for 36 yards and a third-and-15 completion to Kirk for 46 yards on the final play of the third quarter, which flipped the field and led to a Ka’imi Fairbairn field goal that made it 10-6.
‘He didn’t waver,’ Ryans said of Stroud. ‘You can easily go in the tank, but he didn’t waver. That’s who he is. He is a resilient young man who’s able to bounce back. Anybody can go in the tank (after) you drop the ball a few times. You keep battling. Like, the game isn’t over.’
In Ryans’ third season (and Stroud’s), the Texans are 3-0 in wild-card games. They are the second head coach-quarterback duo since 1950 to make it to the divisional round in each of their first three seasons in the NFL. They will try to avoid going 0-3 in that round Sunday on the road against the New England Patriots (3 p.m. ET, ESPN/ABC).
‘It was an outstanding defensive performance, one of the best that I’ve seen versus a really talented offense, talented quarterback who has played at a high level for a long time,’ Ryans said of facing Rodgers. ‘So, I’m proud of our defensive performance. I think this is the best performance we’ve had in our team history, so I’m proud of our guys for that.’
The dam eventually broke with less than 12 minutes in the fourth quarter when Rodgers dropped back and Will Anderson Jr. curled around the edge to his blind side. The 2023 No. 3 overall pick dislodged the pigskin while demolishing Rodgers, and Sheldon Rankins picked it up and ran 33 yards for a touchdown to make it 17-6. Calen Bullock intercepted Rodgers with the game already out of reach but housed it 50 yards to make it 30-6.
‘I think our defense has played like this all year,’ Stroud said. ‘They’ve held us up. I think this is one of the best performances I’ve ever seen. It’s crazy to think the last three wild-card games I’ve played in they’ve always had a pick six and some type of two-turnover game. When you have a defense like that it’s really, really encouraging.’
The offensive line, a sore spot for the past two seasons that has clouded Stroud’s development, held up against a Steelers’ front that could have been more disruptive. Instead, the blockers gave Stroud plenty of time and were difference-makers in the run game. Rookie Woody Marks went for a season-high 112 rushing yards on 19 attempts, while Nick Chubb ran hard for 48 yards on 10 carries. Stroud completed 21 of 32 passes for 250 passing yards, and six different receivers caught at least two passes, with Kirk leading the way (8 catches, 144 yards, 1 touchdown). Nico Collins’ concussion will be something to monitor leading into the matchup against New England.
The line was instrumental in sustaining two lengthy touchdown drives. The first was a 14-play, 92-yard sequence in which the Texans rushed seven times for 55 yards and took 7:01 off the clock. Marks’ 13-yard touchdown with 3:43 left in the fourth capped a five-minute, 51-second possession. Stroud’s efficiency on third down – the Texans started the game 7-for-9 – was another positive. Stroud said every teammate has a high standard of accountability.
‘It’s not just on C.J., not just on me,’ Stroud said. ‘I’ve been on teams like that, where there is a lot of the pressure (on me). Everybody is, ‘I could have done this better,’ I could have done that better.’ I think it does start with me. I got to take care of the football. Other than that, I thought I played a good game.’