Texans @ Packers
Final Score: Packers 24 – Texans 22
Writer: Brendan Boe (@BeeBoeFF on Twitter)
This game had “shootout” written all over it – Jordan Love delivered, but I guess C.J. Stroud didn’t get the memo. The Houston Mixons excelled in the rushing game, but the rest of the offense faltered against stout defensive plays that practically schemed QB play out of the game. The Packers weren’t without errors as they had a couple of interceptions, which kept the game interesting as it was a 1-score on either side throughout the contest.
Three Up
- Joe Mixon – He carried the whole Texans offense with 2 scores and 100+ yards. His excellent cuts, vision, and toughness were on display throughout the contest.
- Josh Jacobs – Finally caught his first receiving touchdown of his career! With 5 catches on 5 targets, he was heavily utilized in the passing game out of the backfield.
- Romeo Doubs – With nearly 100 yards on eight catches, Doubs was the receiving leader across both teams. His catches were quick and he saw targets deep down the field.
Three Down
- All Texans Receivers – Tank Dell laid a goose egg, Stefon Diggs only had 23 yards on five catches, and the receiving leader was Dalton Schultz with 28 yards. Gross.
- C.J. Stroud – Green Bay applied heavy pressure all game and the schemes were excellent. Despite this, Stroud seemed to lack chemistry with his receivers and couldn’t even muster 100 yards through the air.
- Jayden Reed – Dropped and nearly fumbled on a screen pass, unable to maintain a catch on a perfectly played route, and only made two short catches. It was a rough day for the talented receiver.
Houston Texans
Quarterback
C.J. Stroud: 10/21, 86 Yards | 5 Carries, 19 Yards
I’ll give credit to the Packers: their defense was on point and applied heavy pressure to the quarterback throughout the game, including four sacks for decent yardage losses. However, the real story here is that Stroud misses Nico Collins – none of the other receivers have stepped up to fill this void. The passes he made were mostly short and he had less than 50% of his passes caught as he underthrew and didn’t make as many reads as he needed to to find success. Again, the pressure didn’t help as he was forced to make quick decisions, but the decisions he did make weren’t great. He didn’t have any interceptions, but it’s hard to defend a quarterback who couldn’t even hit 100 yards through the air. An all-around poor performance for any Texan not named Joe Mixon.
Running Back
Joe Mixon: 25 Carries, 115 Yards, 2 TD | 2 Catches, 9 Yards
Amazing performance! He carried the entire offense on his back, the only reason the Texans were in this game was because of Mixon. His vision was stellar as he found openings to make big gains, particularly on a 32-yard run where he spotted and avoided a blitz. The cuts he made to gain extra yardage were quick and he was a force to be reckoned with as he displayed toughness through tacklers. His first touchdown run was a show of his power as he pushed through the defense, while his second one highlighted his awareness as he identified an open lane to the end zone after a gain of four. The only reason this game was close was because of Mixon.
https://twitter.com/NFL/status/1848068409155629196
Dameon Pierce: 2 Carries, 2 Yards
Dare Ogunbowale: 1 Carry, 6 Yards
Wide Receiver/Tight End
Stefon Diggs: 5 Catches, 23 Yards
Seeing a 33% target share is usually a good thing, but not when the quarterback has fewer than 100 passing yards. Despite having five catches on seven targets, Diggs was almost entirely used in short passing situations, with one exception being a 17-yard catch that accounted for all but six of his yards. He was called upon in necessary situations to get first downs and keep drives alive, and his day would’ve been much better had he come away with a couple of deep targets. However, a combination of good coverage and inaccurate passes put a pin in it. You love to see the target volume, but Diggs’ hands were tied as most of his targets had little value.
Tank Dell: 0 Catches, 0 Yards
I’m at a loss for words, but I’ll do my best. With the loss of Nico Collins, Dell stepped up last week with a great outing, which should be indicative of future success. Right?… So he dropped a ball in the end zone, and caught one out of bounds on the next play (target not counted due to a flag) – this was their first drive after they were gifted with an interception by the defense. The rest of his performance was not of note – I mean, he made one catch later in the game, but it was out of bounds. There was no chemistry with C.J. Stroud, but QB play isn’t solely responsible for the lackluster performance.
https://twitter.com/SMHighlights1/status/1848049379296616959
Dalton Schultz: 1 Catch, 28 Yards
With one big catch on two targets, Schultz was the Texans receiving leader on the day. Big yikes. That is a much bigger statement on C.J. Stroud’s performance (or lack thereof) because not much else can be done if the passing attack is falling apart.
Xavier Hutchinson: 1 Catch, 11 Yards
Cade Stover: 1 Catch, 15 Yards
Green Bay Packers
Quarterback
Jordan Love: 24/33, 220 Yards, 3 TD, 2 INT
After clinching this win, Love now has at least three touchdowns through his last four games. He has displayed great trust in all of his receivers in short, medium, and deep passing situations, as he once again spread the ball around, particularly honing in on Romeo Doubs. Even his receivers with quieter days made the most of their targets with gorgeous touchdowns to Dontayvion Wicks and Tucker Kraft, plus the first-ever touchdown reception for Josh Jacobs out of the backfield. He did make a few mistakes, most notably his two interceptions – though the first one at the beginning of the game didn’t instill confidence, the second one can be credited to a great defensive play. Over 72% of his passes were caught, which overcame any mistakes he made throughout this contest.
Running Back
Josh Jacobs: 12 Carries, 76 Yards | 5 Catches, 16 Yards, TD
After 212 catches throughout his 6-year career, Jacobs finally got his first receiving touchdown! He caught all five of his targets, and despite only gaining 16 yards on his receptions, it’s a great sign to see him finding success from his utilization in the passing game. Despite having an inefficient 1st half, his final stat line showed an average of 6.3 yards per carry – he came out guns blazing in the third quarter with multiple big runs, one of which was a 27-yard gain after he cut back through an open lane down the center. Jacobs controls the backfield in this pass-heavy offense and he should continue to be a valuable asset.
https://twitter.com/NFL/status/1848077108569944459
Emanuel Wilson: 5 Carries, 11 Yards
Minimal usage with an inefficient 2.2 yards per carry; he’s merely available to let Josh Jacobs get some rest.
Wide Receiver/Tight End
Romeo Doubs: 8 Catches, 94 Yards
From the very first play of the game, with a 23-yard reception, it was evident that Doubs was in for a solid outing. He commanded just over 30% of the team’s total targets, making quick catches as Jordan Love keyed in on him for several deep passing plays. His footwork was on point and despite good coverage, he still found ways to make plays and keep the offense in motion. To cap everything off, he made the catch that put the Packers in field goal range, leading to the game-winning kick. The Packers receivers are a dice roll regarding who finds success each week, and this was a week where Doubs rolled the highest numbers.
https://twitter.com/SMHighlights1/status/1848055142051901485
Jayden Reed: 2 Catches, 10 Yards | 1 Carry, 0 Yards
The Packers have some amazing receiving options, with Jayden Reed being the best of them; unfortunately, this performance was not an example of his prowess. He made a couple of mistakes: dropping and nearly fumbling a screen pass, and later being unable to maintain control of an otherwise perfect catch. These were his only two misses, which makes sense seeing as he only got four targets; it’s hard to produce if you’re not being thrown the ball. A couple of big penalties changed the tides of his day as the penalty yardage moved the ball in place of potential plays that Reed could’ve made. This was a disappointment, but better days are ahead.
Dontayvion Wicks: 3 Catches, 48 Yards, TD
One of the highlight plays for the Packers was Wicks’ gorgeous 30-yard touchdown reception as he towed the line to stay in bounds on the edge near the end zone, diving in to get the score. Toward the end of the game, he got wide open for a 12-yard catch on a necessary first down to keep the Packers in this game. His performance was small yet mighty as two of his three catches were vital to seal the win for Green Bay.
https://twitter.com/NFLFantasy/status/1848062749311410654
Tucker Kraft: 3 Catches, 33 Yards, TD
With his fourth touchdown on the season, Kraft has been on a rampage in the world of tight ends and has proven to be another dependable target in Jordan Love’s arsenal. His score was made on a beautiful diving catch in the end zone for 14 yards, giving the Packers their first lead of the day. Kraft has been performing above expectation from the beginning of the season and this waiver wire wonder has been a blessing in an otherwise barren tight end landscape.
https://twitter.com/NFL/status/1848056969652748586
Christian Watson: 1 Catch, 9 Yards | 1 Carry, -4 Yards
He’s back! Well, kinda. I mean, he WAS on the field, but not much else can be said about his performance. To be fair, he only had two targets and one carry, but he did practically nothing with them. Again, a lot of mouths to feed in this receiving room, but Watson was left famished.
Bo Melton: 1 Catch, 8 Yards | 1 Carry, -1 Yard
Ben Sims: 1 Catch, 2 Yards