Here’s how the Chiefs can secure a win over the Houston Texans in Week 15
The Chiefs (10-3) travel to Houston in Week 15 to take on the Texans (1-11-1) at NRG Stadium.
KC and Houston have squared off 13 times, including the postseason, and the Chiefs hold an 8-5 edge. And given the teams’ respective records, Sunday sets up well for the Chiefs, who opened the week as a double-digit favorite.
Or does it?
“In this league you can take no one for granted,” Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes said. “Those are NFL players. They have a lot of talented, young guys that play hard.
“We understand it’s going to be a great challenge for us, so we’re going to go out there and play our best football to win.”
Chiefs defensive coordinator Steve Spagnuolo had a similar perspective.
“Listen, it’s a good football team, well coached,” Spagnuolo said. “They still have players. I’ve been on both ends of the really good and guys are prideful in this league. They’re going to play, and nobody is going to walk out there and lay down. We don’t expect that.
“I’m expecting a real tough battle here.”
Whether the Texans meet Spagnuolo’s expectations and can hang with the Chiefs remains to be seen. But the Texans came close to defeating the Dallas Cowboys in Week 14 and the Chiefs are giving them proper respect.
Here are four key areas to monitor for the Chiefs, who seek to improve to 11-3.
BE AWARE OF PERSONNEL
The Texans offered a wrinkle last week by utilizing a quarterback rotation with Davis Mills and Jeff Driskel, and both signal-callers saw significant playing time.
Mills and Driskel each played 33 offensive snaps, while Mills threw for 173 yards.
“They have a unique one-two combo,” said Chiefs safety Justin Reid, who spent four seasons with the Texans before signing with the Chiefs during the offseason. “Davis Mills, a little bit more of the pocket passer. … Jeff Driskel, I kind of liken him to (New Orleans Saints quarterback) Taysom Hill, a guy who can get gritty, a lot of quarterback option, physical runner, good speed.”
The Chiefs haven’t faced an offense this season where the opponent rotates quarterbacks, but the defensive plan entering the game will focus on what Mills and Driskell each do well.
Then, it’s about awareness and accounting for who is under center.
“We have to prepare for both of them,” Spagnuolo said. “We have a No. 6 jersey (Driskel) out there in practice and a No. 10 (Mills) jersey, and the players have to be aware of who’s taking the snap because it looks like the football is a little bit different.”
“We’re going to be on target with what we do. Sometimes when you have that, it’s more about what you’re doing, not as much about how they’re changing. We do have to be conscious about which guy is taking the snap.”
AVOID TURNOVERS
After jumping out to a 27-0 lead over the Denver Broncos in Week 14, the Chiefs let the Broncos back in the game because of Mahomes’ two second-quarter interceptions. Mahomes’ third interception in the game made it interesting, but the Chiefs’ defense bailed out the turnover by recording a pick off Broncos quarterback Brett Rypien three plays later.
The Chiefs held on for a 34-28 win against the Broncos.
Mahomes’ three interceptions in Week 14 gives him 11 picks this season, two off his career-high 13 interceptions he threw in 2021.
The Chiefs can’t become a turnover machine against the Texans, a team that has 17 takeaways this season to rank 17th in the league. To do so would allow Houston to hang around and make the game something it shouldn’t become.
The good news is that the Chiefs have a quarterback who will seek to correct the mistakes from the previous game.
“Pat’s a very competitive kid, and he’s very self-aware of the mistakes that he makes,” Chiefs offensive coordinator Eric Bieniemy said. “He’s very self-aware of anything that’s taking place on the field, especially in those critical moments. So, when something like that happens, the only thing that you can do is, ‘Hey, man, listen, it’s time to move on. Ok? We can’t keep killing ourselves over the mistake that we made.’”
Expect the Chiefs’ quarterback to take care of the football when he takes the field Sunday.
UNLEASH PACHECO
The Chiefs can often seem allergic to committing to the run, and nobody can really blame Chiefs coach Andy Reid for relying on the pass so much with Mahomes at quarterback.
But if there’s ever a time to let rookie running back Isiah Pacheco headline the offensive game plan, it’s Sunday against the Texans, a team ranked 32nd in the NFL against the run (165.8 yards allowed per game).
Pacheco has come into his own since becoming the starter in Week 7, and he’s totaled 442 yards rushing and two touchdowns over the past seven games.
The last time the Chiefs had an exploitable matchup against the run came in Week 11 against the Los Angeles Chargers, who entered that game ranked 30th in the league against the run (146.8 yards allowed per game).
Pacheco took full advantage of the Chargers’ soft run defense by bruising his way to 107 yards rushing on 15 carries, marking the first 100-yard rushing effort for the Chiefs offense in 2022.
Let the rookie run.
HANDLE BUSINESS
OK, there’s the any given Sunday approach, but this is a game the Chiefs should outright win.
Houston ranks at or near the bottom of the league in multiple defensive categories, while the Chiefs take the No. 1 offense and second-best scoring offense to Houston. The latter isn’t good news for the Texans, who have six losses by double-digit margins.
The Chiefs can’t get sloppy as they did in Week 14 and need to ensure the Texans aren’t hanging around in this one. To do that, the Chiefs must execute in all three phases of the game plan.
