Texans Dominate Jags on Season Opener

 

Written by B. Keith Crear III, SFL Photo-Journalist | Photo: Corey Blanks

The Houston Texans silenced the naysayers (including me) on Sunday by defeating the Jacksonville Jaguars 37-21. Despite it being the Jaguars, the Texans looked good claiming the win. With this being his NFL debut as a head coach, David Culley looked pretty sharp compared to Urban Meyer’s Jaguars team. I mean, Houston DOMINATED the whole game. NRG and the fans were electrified for the 2021 NFL season. 

Texans defensive backs Justin Reid and Vernon Hargreaves intercepted Jaguars rookie quarterback Trevor Lawrence at the end of the first half, shifting the momentum of the game. The Texans scored 10 points in the final seconds of the half to extend their lead to 27-7. 

Following his selection as the first overall pick of the NFL Draft, Lawrence played his first NFL game yesterday. In the second quarter, the much-hyped prospect threw his first career touchdown pass to bring the Jags within 14-7, but two interceptions following the score aided the Texans in maintaining their lead. The Texans defense racked up three interceptions off of Trevor during the game.

Tyrod Taylor threw for nearly 300 yards with two touchdowns and no interceptions in his Texans debut with almost 50 yards rushed. It's the no interceptions for me. Not going to lie, for a new QB to come in behind the team's franchise QB who is under the microscope is a lot of pressure. With all the speculation behind his performance as a Texan, Tyrod showed out his first game in the season opener. This may be the redemption opportunity he was looking for in his career since his start in Buffalo.

Brandin Cooks led Texans receivers with five catches that totaled for 132 yards, including a 52-yard reception late in the first half that set up Taylor’s pass to Danny Amendola, the hometown native of The Woodlands High School, with a little under 10 seconds left in the second quarter. Former New Orleans Saint Mark Ingram led the Texans’ rushing with a touchdown and 85 yards total for the game.

All in all theTexans looked good on Sunday. Once speculative of how well the team would play with all the moves, trades and new faces, Houston could have a solid squad. I don’t want to be too overly joyed as this is just the first game, BUT it seems the rebuilding process, may not take too long.