Houston Texans: Three must win games to secure a first round playoff bye
By T.A. Mock
The Houston Texans appear to be headed back to the playoffs. Here are three must-win games in order to secure a first-round bye in the playoffs.
Well, the Houston Texans did it. They made NFL history Monday night by becoming the first time to start a season 0-3 and rip off eight wins in a row to become 8-3. They did it in terrific fashion, thrashing the Titans on prime time, 34-17, and even that score doesn’t show the amount of disparity in this game.
Monday night show both a dominant offensive and defensive performance. The offense, led by decisive passing from Deshaun Watson and excellent running by Lamar Miller, carved up the entire Titans defense all night long. The defense, powered by a tremendous pass rush, virtually locked down the entire Titans offense outside of a few big chunk plays.
Miller’s night, much like the entire team’s night, was historic. He ripped off a 97-yard touchdown run becoming only the third player in NFL history to have two 97+ yard touchdown plays. He also became the fourth player to have two 90+ yard touchdown rushes. He has two of six longest touchdown runs in NFL. Lastly, he is the only player to have two 93+ yard touchdown runs.
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Demaryius Thomas also had a successful game, reeling in his first two touchdown receptions as a member of the Houston Texans. Christian Covington was another guy that shone on Monday night, notched two and a half sacks. All in all, it was a great team performance and, honestly, the best game the Texans have played all year long.
However, there are still plenty of skeptics who believe this team is not for real. Will they be able to compete with the Rams, Saints, or Chiefs in the playoffs? Maybe not but, they have shown time after time they can compete with anyone they face off against this year. I mean, you don’t win eight games by accident.
So, the Houston Texans still have work to do to prove themselves worthy of the playoffs and possible Super Bowl contention. All five games left on the Texans schedule are winnable so, winning out is definitely within the realm of reason.
All five remaining games are important to securing respect and recognition. All five games could be needed to gain a first-round bye in the playoffs. However, these three games are the most essential to the team making playoffs and potentially securing the elite first-round bye.