Houston Texans 19, Kansas City Chiefs 12
Here are the top-graded players and biggest storylines from the Texans’ 19-12 win over the Chiefs:
Quarterback grade: Brock Osweiler, 56.5
While Osweiler threw two interceptions, neither was an awful throw or decision. On the first, his wide receiver was jammed badly at the line of scrimmage, and the second could have been an issue of miscommunication, as it appeared off the broadcast that he tried to fit it in to the receiver's back shoulder, while his target took a step inward. While Osweiler otherwise had an average day, his numbers when faced with pressure are striking. Although he was pressured on just six snaps, he did not complete any of his four passes against a heavy rush, took two sacks and threw one of his interceptions.
Top offensive grades:
WR DeAndre Hopkins, 86.8
RT Derek Newton, 77.0
WR Will Fuller, 76.9
LT Chris Clark, 73.7
RB Lamar Miller, 71.0
Hopkins shreds Kansas City’s excellent duo of cornerbacks
It didn’t matter if it was Marcus Peters or Phillip Gaines guarding him — Hopkins was still getting his. He ripped the Chiefs’ best defensive backs for seven receptions on 11 targets and 113 yards and a score. He almost had a second score on an end-zone fade, but couldn’t keep his feet in bounds despite catching the ball against solid coverage.
Houston also had solid production from its tackles, as Clark did not allow any pressures in pass protection while Newton was the only positively graded run-blocker on the Texans’ offensive line.
Top defensive grades:
OLB John Simon, 85.1
OLB Whitney Mercilus, 81.9
S AJ Bouye, 81.3
NT Vince Wilfork, 80.6
CB Kevin Johnson, 80.3
Balanced performance from all three levels on defense leads Houston to victory
Houston’s defensive front seven notched five sacks and 10 pressures to along with 15 total stops and no missed tackles. Simon led the way with three total stops (two of them sacks) and eight total pressures. Bouye had the best day on the back end, as he notched a pressure to go with yielding just two receptions on five targets for six yards, one of his incompletions coming by way of pass break-up.
Quarterback grade: Alex Smith, 40.2
Smith had a day typical of his career — meaning he was relatively efficient on short passes but ineffective on intermediate and long throws. On throws under 10 yards from the line of scrimmage he completed 15 of 21 for 95 yards, while on throws of 10 yards or more he managed to complete just five of 15 for 91 yards.
Top offensive grades:
LG Zach Fulton, 76.9
LT Eric Fisher, 75.3
RB Charcandrick West, 65.2
WR Chris Conley, 60.7
WR Jeremy Maclin, 59.1
Dismal day for the offensive line
Fisher and Fulton were clearly the best linemen on the day for the Chiefs, despite each of them giving up a sack. They also combined for four penalties, and yet graded significantly better than the rest of the line, in large part to very poor run blocking by the remaining three. The run game consisted of three big outside runs totaling 74 yards, while the remaining 16 totaled just 48.
Top defensive grades:
NT Dontari Poe, 84.1
S Ron Parker, 82.9
CB Marcus Peters, 82.1
OLB Tamba Hali, 78.2
CB Steven Nelson, 77.6
Poe dominates the line of scrimmage
Poe contributed a hit and a hurry as a pass-rusher, but was especially effective against the run. He notched two run stops and four total tackles, and his complete control of Texans’ center Greg Mancz forced Houston’s running backs to constantly have to change the point of attack on inside run plays.
PFF game-ball winner: Texans WR DeAndre Hopkins
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