Official Texans @ Titans Game Thread, 10/18/2020
 

The 1-4 Texans travel to Nashville this Sunday to take on the 4-0 Tennessee Titans in an early game. The Texans are coming off their first win of the season, a 30-14 home win over the Jacksonville Jaguars. The Titans are coming off a rare Tuesday night game - a home win over the Bills 42-16. While the Titans looked like world beaters against the Bills, they just barely edged the Broncos, Jags and Vikings. They have several injuries that are up in the air. Titans are led by QB Ryan Tannehill, RB Derrick Henry and TE Jonnu Smith.

The Texans are 17-19 all time vs. the Titans. Texans went 1-1 last year vs. the Titans, 2nd game was won by the Titans when the Texans were prepping for the playoffs.

Call me crazy but I like the evolving-and-really-needed-a-preseason Texans here:

Texans 28, Titans 24

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TV = CBS (channel 11 local), noon CST, Sunday, October 18, 2020

Announcers = Greg Gumbel, Rich Gannon

The line = Titans by 3½

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Other Sunday viewing in the Houston area:

FOX (early) = Chicago @ Carolina, Kenny Albert, Jonathan Vilma

FOX (late) = Green Bay @ Tampa Bay, Joe Buck, Troy Aikman

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Prime time:

SNF = LA Rams @ San Francisco (NBC)

MNF (early) = Kansas City @ Buffalo (4 PM CST; FOX/NFLN)

MNF = Arizona @ Dallas (7 PM CST; ESPN)

Texans hold the Titans to a 3-and-out on the first possession of the game.

Y'all please hold the enthusiasm down a bit....

Titans get on the board first with a 7 yard TD pass to Firkser.

Titans 7, Texans 0

6:57 left in the 1st qtr.

Henry gashing the Texans. 6/58 so far.

Short 6 yard pass to AJ Brown goes for another Titan TD.

Titans 14, Texans 0

12 seconds left in the 1st qtr.

1 yard TD pass to Fells gets the Texans on the board.

Titans 14, Texans 7

8:56 left in the half.

Tannehill hits Humphries on a 22 yard TD pass. Terrible coverage by the Texans.

Titans 21, Texans 7

3:34 left in the half.

Fairbairn is good from 38 as the half comes to a close.

Titans 21, Texans 10

Halftime.

Gostkowski's FG attempt is blocked! Texans get the ball at their own 21.

Still 21-10 Titans.

8:47 left in the 3rd qtr.

David Johnson runs it in from 1 yard after the long PI sets it up.

Titans 21, Texans 17

6:15 left in the 3rd qtr.

Big strip/sack on Tannehill sets up the Texans inside the Titan 5!

Maybe a TD to Cobb..... under review.....it's close...

Touchdown! Woohoo!

Argh, missed XP.

Texans 23, Titans 21

4:35 left in the 3rd qtr.

Whoa, Gostkowski misses a 38 yarder. Texans takeover at their own 27.

About 14 minutes left in the game.

Jeeeeez, things were going so well.

Henry gets loose for 94 yards and the TD.

Titans going for 2.

2 pt conversion is good.

Titans 29, Texans 23

9:23 left in the game.

Bombs away!

53 yards to Fuller! TD!

Texans 30, Titans 29

8:37 left in the game.

Tannehill tries his luck on a deep ball and Roby INT's!

Texans set up at their own 31 with 8:30 to go.

On 4th and goal from the 1, the Texans complete the TD pass to Cooks!

Texans going for 2....

Arg, ball is tipped, inc.

Texans 36, Titans 29

1:50 left in the game.

That call is embarrassing. He's clearly out of bounds. You could see it in real time and you could see it plain as day on replay. Officials shouldn't be allowed the "call stands" cop out. Have a neutral official who doesn't know the call on the field make the call.

And it's even worse when they took a 50/50 call and overturned it when we scored the tying TD against Minnesota a couple of weeks ago.

This whole franchise has a giant 'kick me' sign on our backs when it comes to officials.

Texans heading into OT after the quick score by the Titans

All tied up:

36-36

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Titans get the ball first in OT.

Titans waste no time. No one can stop Henry cause no one is on Henry.

Henry goes for the 5 yard direct snap rushing TD on 3rd and goal.

Final score:

Titans 42, Texans 36

Lots of bad defense by the Texans today.

Total loser organization. It's hard to believe I used to care about these slapdicks.

Embarrassing like your high school haircut.

WHY???? An eight-point lead forces the Titans to score a TD *AND* convert the two-pointer. It can still happen but the Texans made it easy for them by allowing them to just take the tying extra point. Should have kicked the extra point and made Tennessee reach the end zone twice.

I'm not a big fan of "win probability" but, for the record, Texans were a 93% win probability after scoring the go-ahead TD with a minute left.

If they would have made it, win probability would have been 99.99%. Crennel said he wanted to put the game out of reach - he knows the defense sucks. They rolled the dice a bunch of times today unfortunately, that was the only fail. Can you imagine what the result would be had OB called the shots today?

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Early line has the Packers as 3 to 4 pt favorite next week. Seems like a no-brainer, no?

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2-4 would have been so much better than 1-5. There still would have been hope for the season. I still think 8-8 is a reasonable goal to shoot for....

I think we should start tanking for the top pick of the 3rd round.

I don't always feel this way, but I agree wholeheartedly with Buford.

Yeah, yeah, I know what the numberz guys say, and I know that all the nerds say going for two is the right decision there. And maybe it is if you have a normal team that is at least average in most areas. We all know that the team's goal line offense is terrible, and we all know that their defense is terrible. So if you don't make the conversion attempt, and as far as I was concerned not making it was a foregone conclusion, then all they have to do to get to OT is what they've been doing all day long. If you kick, sure, of course they're going to score a TD. We've all been Texans fans for 20 years, we know the Titans are going to score. But you have to make OT less automatic.

This is literally what I was thinking as they were lining up to go for two.

First, "win probability" is about the dumbest made-up metric created.

Second, of course kicking the XP was the sound decision. It's what I wanted before, during, and after.

BUT

I will say two things... (a) Ka'imi Fairbairn already missed an XP earlier in THIS game. It's not automatic. And (b), Romeo is showing that he wants to take chances, going for 2, going on 4th down, etc. He's on the road against an undefeated division opponent, and he wants to step on their throats.

So, no, I didn't agree with the decision, but I admire his guts to make it.

Yep. He's a 100 year old replacement coach with no chance at the job long term, and he's coaching a lost season for a broken team. If any situation ever called out for not playing it safe, it's this one. So stupid yes. But still ok.

My real problem with Romeo isn't his 2 point tries but his pathetic defense. I'm glad these idiots decided Earl Thomas wasn't good enough to make the roster a few weeks back. Or Eric Reid. Instead we pay Cunningham a bundle to get caught in the wash while the Safeties look allergic to covering or tackling a back.

Didn't O'Bonehead sign Carebear to a 3-4 year extension before he was axed?

Yeah, and he’s one of the highest paid kickers in the league. For me, making extra points is table stakes. I don’t mean making most of them, I mean make all of them. It infuriates me as I look around the league and see idiots shanking extra points all over the place.

I honestly couldn't follow your nick names.

But since almost every remaining member of our team received a ridiculous extension, I'll answer yes without knowing who you're talking about.

The NFL felt the extra point lacked drama when I felt it should be dropped altogether. Give the team seven points for the TD then subtract one if the team decides to try for two. Same end result except the team isn't left believing that their PK sucks and teams suffer a few less injuries (which the league talks out of both sides of their asses when they speak about altering the game to limit injuries).

I'm old enough to remember when teams didn't even having kicking specialists. They'd get a guy who actually played the other downs to punt or placekick. Lou "The Toe" Groza was an honest-to-God offensive tackle in his playing days who just happened to also be a fine placekicker, not some guy who couldn't cut it on the local soccer team.

I wasn't about to call the guy "BOB", for rather obvious reasons. What moron thought that nickname up?