New England Enemy Profile: Houston Texans

The New England Patriots pulled off one of the biggest upsets we’ve seen so far in the 2020 NFL season with a 23-17 win against the Baltimore Ravens. Mother Nature played a huge role in the game. Watching from my TV screen at home, it looked like someone was pouring a bucket of water over Gillette Staduim constantly. Bill Belichick is notorious for getting his teams ready to play in bad weather games. With the win against Baltimore, they are one game below .500. Cam Newton has been turnover-free for eight straight quarters of football. Defensively, New England has played much better in the 2nd half of games. J.C. Jackson recorded his sixth interception on Sunday night and is on the ballot to be voted into the pro bowl.

Know Your Enemy

Let’s get to know the Houston Texans and what to expect come Sunday afternoon:

Houston’s 2020 season has been one to forget. Interim head coach Romeo Crennel was once the orchestrator of the Patriots defense. From 2001-2004, Crennel was on Bill Belichick’s coaching staff. In that time, New England won 3 super bowls. Since 2004, Crennel has coached in a lot of places. Almost 16 years later, they meet in a matchup that’s extremely important to New England’s playoff hopes. Houston at 2-7 will play the role of “Spoiler” this Sunday.

Deshaun Watson has struggled mightily in 2020. Watson is a dual-threat QB, but over the years, he has been more of a pocket passer. The Texans schedule was extremely difficult to start the year as they have already played Kansas City, Baltimore, Pittsburgh, and Green Bay. In most of these games, Houston stayed competitive. The offensive line of Houston has struggled as well, which has really hurt Watson’s ability to go through his reads while in the pocket. Houston’s running game has been non-existent. Running back, David Johnson was placed on IR with a Concussion. This has forced the Texans to use backup, Duke Johnson. In last week’s loss to Cleveland, Johnson only ran for 54 yards. Can the Patriots get back to .500 with a win in Houston? We will have to watch and see!

–Robert Marcello is a Staff Writer for Full Press Coverage Sports Media and covers the New England Patriots. Follow him on Twitter @RobertMarcello5