Houston Texans: The surefire formula to beat the Colts in round one
By Neal Sharma
The defensive bottom line
So, I’ve clearly emphasized that limiting Hilton and Luck is easier said than done. But if you noticed in the film, defensive players were missing some tackles that led to some huge plays. Limiting these guys starts with fundamental tackling, and if that can’t be done, then be ready for a long ball game for us both my friend.
Let’s take a look back at week 17 against the Jaguars, the Texans defense was quick to the ball. They perfected defense by shutting down the run play, making quick tackles on passes, and limiting chances for big gains.
Make no mistake, I understand that this was against Blake Bortles and one of Leonard Fournette‘s backups and not Luck and Mack, but flying to the ball quickly is exactly what this defense needs to do. Limiting the big plays had given the Jaguars slightly above 120 yards of total offense. Clearly, the Colts will have more with a much higher powered offense, but this game provides a perfect blueprint for how to control this game.
Might I mention that the Jaguars only coverted 6 first downs all game? Gee…sounds like Texans dominated time of possession leading to the score it was. Texans could’ve easily scored more had they not taken the necessary conservative approach.
Here’s the part where I’m going to be as honest as I can be. I’m terrified of the Colts. I didn’t want the Texans to play them. They’re a scary team when facing Houston and they will whoop their behinds if the Texans don’t show up with their A+ game.
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Why am I so terrified?
Hilton. He is the X-Factor. If he is getting catches for big gains and stretching the field, it will open up the run game for not only the running back but also for Luck himself. Hilton has always managed to stretch the field and open up the offense for the Colts against the Texans.
Houston Texans need to make Hilton fear trying to catch a ball and throw Luck on the ground so they can make him regret reaching playoffs in the first place. You know what? I’m not terrified of the Colts. I’m suddenly pissed at the Colts. I’m sitting here and fearing about all the ways they can torture us. But let me be more direct.
If the Texans come out here and let Luck and Hilton do what they do best against us with no adjustments, I will flat out say we shouldn’t go further in playoffs. Winning a round against a team in playoffs means you can go out there and conquer strengths of the other team, or at least limiting to a standard, and if you can’t do it, then you don’t deserve to win. Simple as that.