Houston Texans: The surefire formula to beat the Colts in round one

What needs to be done to win on the offensive side of the ball

Helpful Tip #1: Win the Turnover Battle

Here’s a little stat for ya I heard from a radio show or something, possibly 610. Out of all Houston Texans points scored this season, 27% of them come off of turnovers. That’s over a quarter of your points right there.

If the Houston Texans defense doesn’t force turnovers, then it’s even more imperative that Houston Texans offense doesn’t commit them. Andrew Luck will take advantage of any opportunity given to him, and it’s important that we don’t give him a chance from the offensive side of our team.

Fortunately, Deshaun Watson has done an excellent job limiting turnovers the final 10 weeks of the season, only throwing two interceptions and both of those came in the same week. Plus, isn’t it true that your chances of winning a game increase when you win the turnover battle in general?

Helpful Tip #2: Don’t commit stupid penalties

PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE HOUSTON TEXANS STOP MAKING STUPID OFFENSIVE PENALTIES! Things like false starts, 12 men on the field, or illegal formation are basics that shouldn’t be committed if every man on the team is on the same page. To be frank with you, this crap should’ve been fixed by like Week 5. You’re in the playoffs and you will face the consequences of these simple penalties.

That means you Julie’n Davenport, #70, formerly the most penalized player in the league, now the third.

These penalties are what can turn a 2nd & 5 to a 2nd & 10, 3rd & 10 to a 3rd & 20, or even worse a 4th & 1 to a 4th & 6. They make drives much harder to continue to move the chains and build momentum for your team, which brings me to the most important thing needed from this side of the ball.

The Main Ingredient: Time of Possession and Finishing Drives

The best way to beat any team is to beat them at what they do best. The Colts dominated the time of possession on offense against the Titans, and it led to the Titans missing the playoffs.

If the Houston Texans are dominating time of possession, and actually getting a few touchdowns instead of a clump of field goals, then that will give them a huge advantage. How might you win this battle exactly might you ask? How about fewer offensive penalties and fewer turnovers!? Great idea!

How to explain that best? A 3rd and one is better than a 3rd and 6, punting the ball and giving the Colts worse field position is better than a turnover at that exact spot, and limiting dumb penalties and avoiding turnovers builds momentum and makes it a lot easier to finish a drive successfully or even convert that crucial 3rd or 4th down.

See how it all pieces together?

Finally, getting Bill O’Brien to manage the clock the last 2 minutes of each half correctly will be of the utmost importance. He handled the last 2 minutes in the first half in Week 1 against the Patriots horribly, amongst other times, and that can’t happen again in playoffs.