The Houston Texans are rolling. Winners of six straight games and now standing at a 9-5 record, there isn’t much to complain about for Texans fans. The team feels differently.
It’s all about wins and losses some would suggest. That’s not the case for the Houston defense. The Texans are unsatisfied with their most recent performance on the defensive side of the football. And they are motivated to make quick changes for their next game.
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Texans head coach DeMeco Ryans made his opinion known on how the team is performing on the defensive side. He shared the following to the media.
“We didn’t play up to our standard, defensively. We have a lot to go out and improve.”
Exactly how much the team has to improve is in the eye of the beholder, but Ryans suggests the team is more concerned with playing to the best of its ability rather than playing to a result on the scoreboard.
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Houston edge rusher Will Anderson feels the same way. He added his thoughts to the team’s current trajectory.
“For us, our standard is very high. Obviously, it wasn’t good enough. We talk about leaving no meat on the bone, and we left a lot out there. …
Some mistakes that we made – at this time of the year, we can’t be making those same mistakes. If we want to go where we want to go, everyone goes back to everyone owning it and looking at themselves in the mirror and really taking responsibility for their job.”
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Kansas City Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes (15) throws a pass as Houston Texans defensive end Will Anderson Jr. (51) rushes during the second quarter at GEHA Field at Arrowhead Stadium.
Amy Kontras-Imagn Images
The substandard performance to which Ryans and Anderson are referring is not exactly the worst the NFL has seen. Some defenses would consider it a good game. Houston allowed 20 points and 249 passing yards to Arizona quarterback Jacoby Brissett and the Cardinals. But the Texans aren’t measuring themselves against the rest of the league. They are measuring themselves against their own capability.
Houston’s renewed focus and enthusiasm, as crazy as that is to suggest on a six-game winning streak, could spell trouble for a Raiders team with a 2-12 record simply trying to get to the finish line. Las Vegas players cannot afford to no show given their jobs depend on continued professional level performance. That said, there is not much to play for when it comes to team goals, and Houston is hungry to play better than it did a week ago.
The Texans are determined. They will look to put it all together on the field against the Raiders.