DeShaun Watson put on a cape when the Texans needed it most.
The unexplained play Watson pulled off in the Texans, 22-19 overtime win over the Buffalo Bills on Saturday evening at NRG, left millions of TV viewers stunned.
Fairbairn threw the knock out punch with his game-winning 28-yard field goal, but it was Watson’s superhero instincts that led it down in scoring territory.
Facing second and six, the Bills sent safety Siren Neal and linebacker Matt Milano on a bliss off the edges. Neal got to Watson first, slamming into him within seconds of Milano, who bounced off Watson and fell to the ground. Watson then spun out of danger, running right, finding running back Taiwan Jones, who scampered to the Bills ten-yard line before being tackled by Bills cornerback Kevin Johnson. The play will be remembered as one of the most dynamic plays in Texans’ history.
Watson told one reporter, “I knew it was bliss zero. I checked the play. Kevin Johnson was here last year, so he knew the signal, and I just told myself to stay up.”
Watson completed 20-of-25 passes for 247 yards, no interceptions, and a touchdown. He rushed 14 times for 55 yards and a score. Hopkins caught six passes for 90 yards.
Houston (11-6) received the ball first in overtime but was forced to punt when tight end Darren Fells dropped a pass that would have kept the drive alive following a first down.
Then the Bills (10-7) could not dig itself out of a hole after tackle Cody Ford’s controversial blindside block. That backed the Bills up to its 43 and eventually forced a punt.
In regulation, Buffalo trailed, 19-16 before Stephen Hauschka split the uprights with five seconds left, knotting the game at 19.
In the first half, Josh Allen came out on a roll, driving the Bills down the field to end zone to grab the early lead, 7-0. The Bills received much support from its athletic defense, which boasts talented young players such as Ed Oliver, Trent Murphy, Star Lotulelei, Jerry Hughes, Tremaine Edmonds, and Neal, who disrupted Houston’s offense. Its defense registered four sacks in the first half and seven total.
“Give a lot of credit to the Buffalo Bills,” O’Brien said. “They are a tough football team. They did a lot of really good things today. They know us pretty well.”
The 75-yard possession ended with trickeration play when John Brown took a pitch moving right while Allen headed left where he was alone when he received the pass from Brown as he crossed the goal line.
Allen paced the Bills going 24-of-46 attempts with 264 yards and no interceptions. He rushed nine times for 92 yards. Singletary had six receptions for 76 yards.
The Bills defense was up for the task, holding Houston’s offense scoreless for nearly three quarters.
Houston saw a shade of light when it took possession of the ball with 6:02 left in the third quarter at its 25-yard line and worked its way downfield with a mixture of running plays from Carlos Hyde, Duke Johnson, DeShaun Watson, sprinkled with a couple passes to first-team All-Pro DeAndre Hopkins. But it was Watson’s scrambling ability that brought on the first celebration after he scored the Texans first touchdown and a two conversion, slicing Buffalo’s lead in half, 16-8.
The Bills took its next drive into the fourth quarter, but disaster struck when Whitney Mercilus stripped Allen of the ball with 14:11 remaining. Outside linebacker Jacob Martin recovered the ball at midfield.
Coach McDermott felt like some of the Bills’ young players did a poor job of handling the ball. But he was proud that the defense allowed it a chance to win.
Though Watson absorbed his sixth sack of the game, Houston used its time wisely, adding points to the scoreboard when Ka’imi Fairbairn drilled a 41-yard field goal, making the score, 16-11 with 10:55 to go in the fourth quarter.
The Texans’ defense amped it up in the second half. Benardrick McKinney bundled up ten tackles, and Houston registered three sacks on Allen.
In spot duty, JJ Watt’s presence was felt after missing eight games due to pectoral surgery. His sack of Allen gave the Texans a spark to feed off. Wyatt explained, “We knew we needed a spark. We were down 16 to nothing. We didn’t believe we were out of the game.”
The Texans will travel to No. 2 Kansas City Chiefs next week for a Divisional Round matchup on Sunday at 2:05 p.m.
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