The Houston Texans are the ultimate dark horse in the AFC
By John Buhler
The Houston Texans forced five turnovers vs. the Tampa Bay Buccaneers to clinch the AFC South. Right now, Houston is the ultimate dark horse in the AFC.
It took a boatload of Jameis Winston interceptions, but the Houston Texans found a way to eke out a road victory over the Tampa Bay Buccaneers on Saturday afternoon. With their 10th win on the season, the Texans clinched the AFC South division crown for the fourth time in five years. Now that they’re in, Houston is the ultimate dark horse contender in the AFC going forward.
Admittedly, Houston is one of the most consistently inconsistent teams in the NFL. The Texans may have improved to 10-5 on the year, but we never know what type of team we’re going to get out of them, week in and week out.
Usually, this team is led by the aerial attack connection between quarterback Deshaun Watson and wide receiver DeAndre Hopkins. In most weeks, we can count on this duo being able to stretch the field vertically. However, both former Clemson stars were largely neutralized on Saturday afternoon in Tampa.
Watson completed 19-of-32 passes for 184 yards and an interception, as well as seven carries for 37 yards. Hopkins only had five catches for 23 yards on the day. What carried the team in Week 16 was the defense. Houston picked off Winston four times, including a 27-yard trip to pay dirt by defensive back Bradley Roby. They also forced a fumble and a turnover on downs.
No, this was not one of the Texans’ better games, but a game that a good team finds a way to win. This was not an easy task for Houston, as Tampa Bay was 7-7 entering play on Saturday afternoon, playing pretty well under new head coach Bruce Arians. Even though it was far from pretty, this was a game that makes the Texans the ultimate dark horse in the AFC.
On a given day, they can play like an AFC Championship contender. On other days, they can look like a team that should be picking in the top 10 of the 2020 NFL Draft. Truthfully, they are somewhere in between, as the Texans are good enough to host a playoff game as a division winner and maybe get a win or two this postseason. That’s about all you can ask for out of them.
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This is the sixth time the Texans have made the playoffs in franchise history, all six times coming as the AFC South winner. If the Texans can beat presumably the No. 5 seed at home on Wild Card Weekend, then they might have what it takes to give a team like the Baltimore Ravens a game in the AFC Divisional Round. Anything beyond that would be the icing on the cake for them.