Harris Hits: Arizona Cardinals Week 11
Overall, the Texans just couldn't get out of their own way. In the first quarter, Stroud threw one of the best bombs I've ever seen at NRG Stadium to Tank Dell. The crowd went absolutely BONKERS, an eruption of noise and excitement. But…flag on the field. Dell wasn't set in his stance before the ball was snapped so a five yard illegal shift penalty wiped out one of the best plays of any day this season.
(Side note: some of the best catches I've seen Texans WR make have been negated because of the WR's own penalty - DeAndre Hopkins v. Giants in 2014 - lined up wrong, Hop v. Miami in 2018 - offensive PI on Hop, Tank v. Jaguars yesterday - moving at the snap)
NRG Stadium is back to being the raucous, difficult environment that was so vital to the team's success the first 16-17 years of its existence. I'm telling you it EXPLODED throughout the day and was just awesome to FEEL that vibe and HEAR that sound. It was evident how hard Lawrence had to work to communicate with his offense. I can't thank the fans enough for responding and energizing these players thus far this year.
Lawrence was so quick getting the ball out of his hand that the Texans front four just couldn't get to him in the pocket. He took only two QB hits and only one from a defensive lineman (Jon Greenard). He did get some pressure at times, but most of that pressure was moot as the Texans committed penalties in the defensive backfield, unfortunately.
I love how much LB Christian Harris is growing in this defense. He led the team with 12 tackles, then added a TFL and one of the two hits on the quarterback. It's clear that he's getting more and more comfortable and playing explosively fast on every single play.
His Baton Rouge compadre Derek Stingley Jr. came up with another interception with some help from Jalen Pitre (and the refs who missed a blatant holding call on Jalen). Either way, Stingley Jr. has three interceptions in his career and two of them are from Lawrence. He also has two in the last two games at NRG Stadium. He should've had another one later in the game and I don't even know how he missed an INT that Calvin Ridley caught for a first down. Steven Nelson had one that went through his hands at a key spot in the fourth quarter as well. The Texans could easily have had three INT in this game and that could've really helped their cause. Either way, Stingley Jr. continuing to make plays for this defense is a tremendous development over the past two weeks.
There's not much more to discuss about this gut punch loss so we'll cut it there. What I love about this game, not specifically the Jaguars game, but the game of football, is how a squad bounces back from a performance that I know they won't be happy with when they see the film on Monday. Either way, it's time to flush it (not before learning tons from it) to get ready for the HOT Denver Broncos to come into town. See ya then, everyone.
