The Houston Texans (5-3) have won their fifth game in a row in Thursday Night Game and made another step towards playoffs. At 42:23 against the Miami Dolphins (4-3), Houston’s offense was unstoppable in the second run.
Even the start to the season could not have been more different for both teams when the Dolphins won their first three games, while Houston collected three defeats. Since then, however, almost everything has been going in the opposite direction for both teams.
This was no different in the Thursday Night Game when the Texans ran away from the Dolphins in the second run. There were two main reasons for this: The greatly improved protection for Deshaun Watson, who for the first time in his career didn’t take a single bag in a game, and completely devastating coverage breakdowns in Miami’s Secondary.
The first sticking point in the game was an interception of Justin Reid against Brock Osweiler, where Intended Receiver Danny Amendola was clearly held. Watson then threw a 13-yard touchdown pass into the hands of Tight End Jordan Thomas, who later celebrated once again. The Dolphins were not allowed to complain about the half-time lag of 10:14, a fumble return for a touchdown was whistled back with 24 seconds remaining playing time. A call worth discussing.
In the second run the Texans finally rewarded themselves for their strong performance. After a big play by Lamar Miller introduced Thomas’ second touchdown, the Dolphins countered with a double pass where Amendola Kenyan Drake found a 28-yard TD pass. A play last seen at the New York Giants. Houston, however, responded directly with a 73-yard touchdown from Will Fuller, which caused Miami to experience some serious set-up problems for the first time. Further coverage problems could be seen at the first of two Hopkins touchdowns. The Wideout again showed a great performance as well as a fabulous One-Handed-Catch, which was cancelled due to calls between each other.
While Watson had to travel to and from Jacksonville by bus the week before, because he had pain in the rib area, there was nothing more to be seen on Thursday. Watson threw at 16/20 for 239 yards and a season-best performance of 5 touchdown passes. Three of his last four passes found a receiver that went into the end zone.
Watson profited from a strong performance of the much scolded offensive line of the Texans during the game. This dominated against Miami in the tranches and not only kept Watson’s pocket clean, but also created large gaps in the run game. The Texans ran for 188 yards, of which 133 were accounted for by Running Back Miller. Head Coach Bill O’Brien was also able to enjoy touchdowns in all four Red Zone drives.
In Houston’s defense, Safeties tyrant Mathieu and Kareem Jackson stood out instead. Both players had some terrific Open Field tackles and Mathieu destroyed plays during lightnings. J.J. Watt collected a sack and two tackles for Loss.
With the Dolphins one had to state that Brocktober has taken an inglorious end. In his third game Miami’s quarterback had some weak throws in it. The Interception Osweilers should have been taken back, but the pass could have been a supposed overthrow even without Amendola’s obstruction.
It was no big help that the Dolphins arrived with a decimated Receiving Corps. Without Albert Wilson and Kenny Stills, the Dolphins lacked two of their best wideouts. So DeVante Parker came to a rare chance for many snaps. The former first-round pick, who has been involved in trade rumours for weeks, took the opportunity and had the best game of his career. Parker caught 6 passes for 134 yards.
On the defensive side, the Dolphins, as already mentioned, had great problems generating pressure. Watson often had far too much time to scan the field and find his fast receivers. However, breakdowns like those in the second half cannot be excused. Hopkins had 8.6 yards separation on his 49-yard score and Fuller was also so blank on his score that he could walk into the end zone.