Official Texans vs. Chiefs Wild Card Game Thread, 1/9/2016

[HPF Bob]

Houston got burned by three things in Week 1 that I hope get fixed:

1. Jamaal Charles. The KC star will not be playing although they have found some backups that are pretty good.

2. Blown coverages. Kelce had a field day against our safeties. Hopefully, Crennel has found an answer for this and I think he has with Hal and Demps as the safeties.

3. One-sided officiating. Nothing the Texans can do about bad officiating. If the NFL suits have determined that KC will win, the refs will find a way to make it happen (phantom holding and PI calls at critical moments). However, the Texans have made a ritual of getting flagged on kick returns. This has to stop. I only saw it happen once against J-ville so perhaps they are improving.

Two defensive keys:

1. Clowney needs to be healthy and disruptive. The more ways we can attack Alex Smith, the more likely they are to stop the double and triple teams of Watt. Mercilus also needs a big day early.

2. Kevin Johnson. The first-rounder from Wake was just getting his feet wet in Week 1. He's progressively seen more snaps and I think will be an asset in pass protection.

On offense, remember we played better once Hoyer was benched for Mallett so the Texans will need to be creative on offense. The only way Houston wins is a low-scoring game in the teens. Head-to-head, that's what I'm expecting - two clubs who are better on defense than they are on offense.