HOUSTON – The Texans are the kings of the AFC South division. That’s not up for debate.
They are now two games in front of the Indianapolis Colts after sweeping the annual season series with a hard-fought 23-20 victory Sunday at NRG Stadium.
Not only are the Texans in control of the division, they have the head-to-head tiebreaker over the Colts.
Here are five keys to the 6-2 Texans’ latest win:
1. If not for a key call in the fourth quarter, the Texans could have lost this football game.
Running back Joe Mixon, in the midst of his third consecutive 100-yard rushing performance, fumbled late in the game and it was recovered by defensive end Dayo Odeyingbo.
Odeyingbo returned the fumble 84 yards for a touchdown to retake the leader. However, a review nullified the score when he was ruled down by contact.
Texans Pro Bowl defensive end Danielle Hunter sacked Colts quarterback Anthony Richardson twice, forcing him to fumble on the final play of the game to preserve the win and prevent a Hail Mary pass on the final play of the game.
2. Mixon delivered another physically dominant game. He pounded a soft Colts defense for 102 yards on 25 carries for one touchdown and caught four passes for 32 yards. Mixon is the most dangerous player on the offense until star wide receiver Nico Collins returns in two games from a hamstring injury.
3. The Texans’ win was likely a costly one. Wide receiver Stefon Diggs suffered a knee injury on a non-contact play and there is serious concern about his status for the remainder of the season. He will undergo an MRI exam to determine the nature and severity of the injury.
Without Diggs, who caught a team-high five passes for 81 yards on nine targets, Texans quarterback C.J. Stroud will lean heavily on wide receiver Tank Dell. Dell caught his second touchdown of the season and finished with four catches for 35 yards on four targets as tight end Dalton Schultz had four catches for 52 yards. It will take a collective effort to replace Diggs’ production. Wide receiver John Metchie III caught three passes for 29 yards, Robert Woods had two catches for 18 yards and Xavier Hutchinson had one catch for 19 yards. Stroud completed 25 of 37 passes for 285 yards and no interceptions, bouncing back from a career-low 86 yards in a loss to the Green Bay Packers.
4. Richardson was bad, as in bad enough the Colts should have inserted veteran backup Joe Flacco. Richardson completed just 10 of 32 passes for 175 yards, one touchdown and one interception as he was picked off by nickel Jalen Pitre. He had a 48.3 passer rating. He also was sacked five times. When Richardson was picked off by Pitre, it led directly to a Dell touchdown catch. This key turnover allowed the Texans to gain an advantage on the scoreboard.
Anderson had seven tackles, one sack and one fumble recovery.
Safety Eric Murray had three passes defensed and seven tackles.
Hunter had three quarterback hits and a pair of sacks.
5. The Texans bent but didn’t break against one of the top running backs in the NFL as Jonathan Taylor rushed for 105 yards on 20 carries in his first game back from a sprained ankle.
With the exception of Josh Downs’ 69-yard touchdown catch as the Texans secondary got bunched up, the Colts didn’t make a lot of big plays. Wide receiver Michael Pittman Jr. was held to one catch for 16 yards on six targets and Alec Pierce was held to one catch for 11 yards on four targets.
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Aaron Wilson is a Texans and NFL reporter for KPRC 2 and click2houston.com
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