The Houston Texans host the Tennessee Titans in a battle between, as of now, arguably the two worst teams in the AFC. The Texans are coming off of a game in which they were throttled by the Miami Dolphins. Houston was down 41-0 at halftime, and had given up 35 points before they even gained a yard. Tennessee lost last week to the Atlanta Falcons 10-7 in a game that was a lot closer than many expected. This should be a close game that will likely come down to which quarterback is able to avoid mistakes more so than his opponent.
Zach Mettenberger in , Marcus Marriota out
Zach Mettenberger will start in place of the injured Marcus Marriota. This will be Mettenberger’s first start in Houston since the infamous “selfie” game when JJ Watt scolded the rookie quarterback for taking a selfie in the locker room before the game. Watt also managed to score a touchdown in that game, which was an anomaly in an up and down Texans’ season, mainly because Ryan Fitzpatrick looked more like Tom Brady than himself in that game. Good blocking will go a long way towards making sure Mettenberger can take his time and make good decisions. If defenders are constantly in his face, then it might be a long game for the second year man from LSU.
Houston Defense-Who steps up?
Houston’s defense will look to bounce back after atrocious showings two of the last three weeks, both of which featured six touchdown deficits at some point in the game. JJ Watt needs some help, he cannot continue to be double teamed and schemed away from without the opposing team regretting it. It is time for someone else on the defense to step up. Jadeveon Clowney can be that guy. Clowney, who finally registered his first career sack last week, will look to take advantage of constant mismatches and get to Mettenberger early and often. Look for Clowney to record his first multi-sack game of his career. He is my key to the game on the Texans on the defensive side of the ball.
Brian Hoyer-JV or Varsity signal caller
The Texans want to see the Brian Hoyer that led the team to a lopsided victory in Jacksonville a week ago, not the Brian Hoyer that looked like a JV backup against a previously inept Dolphins defense. Hoyer will be looking for Deandre Hopkins, the most targeted wide receiver in football, constantly throughout this game. As long as he is able to avoid tunnel vision towards Hopkins, look for Hoyer to have a big game. A decent running game would greatly enhance Hoyer’s effectiveness throwing the ball and turn the JV quarterback from a week ago into a Varsity one.
Texans’ Running GameThe one thing that should scare every Texans fan is the running game without Arian Foster, who is out for the season with a torn Achilles tendon. The perennial All-Pro is replaced by Alfred Blue and Chris Polk, both of which are unproven, inconsistent runners that will be running behind a shaky at best offensive line. If Houston cannot get some semblance of a running attack going, the Titans defense may be able to zero in on making them a one dimensional offense, something that should instill very little confidence in any fan of the Texans. Aside from garbage time, and a few lucky bounces here and there, Houston’s offense has been very easy to defend, and has really struggled to sustain many solid, long distance drives.
This will be an exciting game to watch if you enjoy watching bad teams duke it out. The sad thing is, both teams are in the hunt still for the division crown (Houston is only a game out) so they both actually have something to play for. This will not be a high scoring game. Texans 21-Titans 17