KC Chiefs: Getting to know Houston Texans before Divisional Round

For the second time in the 2019 season, the KC Chiefs will square off against the Houston Texans. This time, it’s in the Divisional Round of the playoffs with the winner advancing to the conference championship and the loser going home.

In an effort to reacquaint Kansas City Chiefs fans with Houston, I’ve reached out to Brian K. Patterson, the site expert of House of Houston, FanSided’s local Houston site. Graciously, Brian answered the 10 questions I sent his way.

Here’s our Q-&-A.

What’s your biggest takeaways from the Texans’ come-from-behind victory against the Bills in the Wild Card round?

Brian: It definitely speaks to how much this team has grown over the years and that they finally have a quarterback they can rest their shoulders upon. It wasn’t looking good early-in but the resilience of this team shined profusely through the second half and it got them the win. This is a talented team from top to bottom with a few holes to fill but the sky is the limit with Deshaun Watson at the helm. They cannot fall 16-0 against the Chiefs because they’ll continue to make the Texans pay with their quick offense which each possession. In the past, even as early as last season, this team would’ve rolled over but not this time, they obviously want more than a measly division title.

How much does J.J. Watt’s presence mean to the Texans?

Brian: It means a ton and although he’s not 100 percent healed, his presence was pivotal in the Houston Texans winning that football game against the Bills. That powerful sack that he delivered on Josh Allen early in the third quarter was the spark that the team needed to pull themselves up by their bootstraps. Watt knew that he had to do something to get this team going as a leader of this football team and his efforts were successful. Watt is being monitored heavily with his pectoral injury but it seems the training staff is letting him do the things that make him great. He’s not going to be everywhere as he usually is because he’s going to be commanding double and triple teams but that’s why the other guys have to step up. They did with Whitney Mercilus, Angelo Blackson and to a lesser extent, Brandon Dunn all contributing to the success of the line. Bar none — if Watt did not play, I don’t think the Texans win that football game.

I gotta know, Brian: how’d you react when Deshaun Watson escaped that sack in overtime and ended up with a long completion to set up the game-winning score?

Brian: I’m fortunate to say that I was in attendance at last week’s game.  From my angle, it looked like he was not going to make it through those two defenders but when he did, I went nuts when he tossed it over to Taiwan Jones. I thought Michael Jordan had somehow found his way to the gridiron! It’s the play of the season! I was sitting in the opposite end zone so I’m looking at the play from behind. Although I said they couldn’t have won the game without Watt, Watson was integral in putting an exclamation point on that win. Watt started it and Watson finished it.