HOUSTON – Houston Texans running back Alfred Blue noticed a reluctance from the New Orleans Saints’ defense to challenge him physically late in the game following a series of bruising collisions.
Blue won the majority of those encounters as he rushed for 77 yards and a touchdown on 16 carries during the Texans’ 24-6 win Sunday over the Saints at NRG Stadium. The Texans gained 167 rushing yards on 38 carries, averaging 4.4 yards per run.
“As a runner when you see the defense bent over and tired and you gash them a couple of times, you know if you stay on the gas pedal, eventually something big is going to happen,” Blue said. “We kept running it down their throat. The line did a hell of a job blocking. It made my job easy.”
Blue kept his legs driving in the third quarter on an eight-yard touchdown run where he broke tackles to bust into the end zone.
“Down there in the red zone, it’s tough down there,” Blue said. “The field is condensed. You have to keep plowing and pushing until you cross the goal line.”
The Texans rushed for over 100 yards for the second game in a row and third time this season, gaining their second-most rushing yards of the season.
“Blue did a great job,” offensive tackle Duane Brown said. “It takes some time to get in sync and he’s able to find his rhythm. It’s the perfect time of year for him to do it.
“He’s running hard. There were times where we didn’t give him much (room to run), but he found a way being so big, running behind his pads to get three or four yards.”
–The return of veteran corner Kareem Jackson after being sidelined for four games with a sprained right ankle created an impact on the Texans’ defense. Jackson returned an interception 50 yards in the fourth quarter to prevent a potential touchdown as he stepped in front of Saints quarterback Drew Brees’ goal-line pass intended for wide receiver Brandin Cooks.
“It felt good just to be back out there with the guys,” Jackson said. “To get back out there in the mix and be a piece of the puzzle, to help the guys out, to get the win, is definitely big for us. When I came back, I just wanted to continue to help the guys.”
Jackson contributed four tackles, including one of the Texans’ seven tackles for losses.
“That’s the type of player he is, a game-changer,” rookie corner Kevin Johnson said. “He’s one of the better corners in the league for a reason, and it’s good having him back. Obviously, we all saw the impact on the game he had.”
–Thoroughly enjoying a four-game winning streak following a rocky start to the season, Texans owner Bob McNair attributed some of the turnaround to head coach Bill O’Brien.
“I think he’s doing a fine job,” McNair said. “We had a lot of work to do. I think he’s got everybody pointed in the right direction and on the same page working together. That’s what it takes: offense, defense, special teams all doing well.”
Improving to 6-5 overall, the Texans have the same record as the Indianapolis Colts. The Colts beat the Tampa Bay Buccaneers on Sunday and own a tie-breaker edge over the Texans with a head-to-head win over them. The two teams meet again at Lucas Oil Stadium on Dec. 20.
“That’s what you have to do,” McNair said. “Now we got to go out and try to win five. If we keep playing with this level of energy, we’re competitive with anyone.”
–The Texans maintained their use of the Wildcat offense, including three runs from wide receiver Cecil Shorts for 20 yards.
“It’s fun, especially when it works,” Shorts said. “When things go well and you get positive yards on those plays, it makes the whole game a lot of fun.”
The Texans also picked up seven yards from running back Jonathan Grimes on a Wildcat run.
“Just coming up and doing whatever we need to do to win,” wide receiver DeAndre Hopkins said. “It’s been working.”
The creative approach helped with the Saints paying special attention to Hopkins as he caught five passes for 36 yards on eight targets. Hopkins surpassed his previous career-high of 76 receptions last season and now has 81 catches this year for 1,081 yards and nine touchdowns.
“No, the Saints’ plan was double-team (No.) 10,” said Hopkins, who wears the No. 10 jersey when asked if the Saints’ strategy was to play physically with him.
–Texans outside linebacker Jadeveon Clowney acknowledged that it bothered him to get close to bringing down Saints quarterback Drew Brees only to finish the game without a sack or a quarterback hit.
Close only counts in games like horseshoes, though.
“Very frustrating,” said Clowney, who had two tackles Sunday and 1.5 sacks for the season. “You try to get those sacks. You want to get there, but it happens.”
–The Texans’ humiliating 44-26 loss to the Miami Dolphins on Oct. 25 marks the last time the AFC South club had lost a game. It was a defeat that may have triggered the Texans’ dramatic turnaround with four consecutive wins since that defeat.
“We’re winning, so of course it was a turning point,” Clowney said. “We lost that game and we came together in this locker room and we said everybody was against us. We’ve got each other’s back in this locker room, and we’ve just been playing like that.”