Texans Coach Demeco Ryans' Defense Will Be Key To Victory

Texans coach DeMeco Ryans’ defense will be key to victory over Chiefs

by Men's Reporter Team

HOUSTON — With 21 seconds left in the third quarter of the AFC Wild Card matchup between the Los Angeles Chargers and Houston Texans on Saturday, Chargers quarterback Justin Herbert scans the Texans defense and picks up receiver Ladd McConkie. I sent it into the slot in motion. left.

Leading by a touchdown, Texans coach DeMeco Ryans called an inverted Cover 2 in an alignment that looked like a Cover 3 with a single high safety.

Herbert took the snap and was pressured, throwing it high past McConkie and into the arm of safety Eric Murray. Murray hovered over McConkie before the snap in the slot and dashed into the flat zone.

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Murray returned it for a touchdown and Houston won 32-12, taking a 14-point lead heading into the AFC Divisional Round.

It was an unusual position for Murray, who usually plays as a deep safety. On this play, he was in the corner of the area normally occupied in a standard Cover 2. That’s where he played 15 snaps in the regular season.

“It gave me a different perspective,” Murray told ESPN. “…Let him throw short. Either you hit (the receiver) or the ball goes through his hands and into yours.”

On Saturday, the defense intercepted Herbert four times, a career-high for a quarterback. He threw an NFL-low total of three interceptions during the regular season.

Defensive end Will Anderson said of the Chargers’ rout: “We rushed, we covered, we worked together. We just stayed tight on the rush.” “They were persistent in coverage, so we were able to make some plays, get some turnovers and get the ball away.”

It was the highlight of a play-calling masterclass by Ryans, and another game in 2024 where the second-year head coach’s game plan resulted in the worst day of his Pro Bowl quarterback.

During the regular season, the Texans’ defense ranked 6th in yards allowed per game (315) and 14th in points allowed (21.9). This unit forced Buffalo Bills QB Josh Allen to his lowest success rate ever (30%) in Week 5, and forced the Miami Dolphins’ Tua Tagovailoa into a career-high four turnovers (three interceptions) in Week 15. (1st inning and 1 lost fumble) and an interception. Jared Goff of the Detroit Lions hit a career-high five innings in Week 10.

“It’s important to stay focused over four quarters,” Lyons said of the preparation process. “I work hard on my tasks, and then I rely on my God-given ability to play the way I’m supposed to play.”

Houston entered the season carrying Super Bowl expectations and started 6-2. But after the team finished with four wins and five losses, some wondered if that dream was realistic. Still, the Texans won the AFC South and advanced to the divisional round for the second straight year under Ryans.

The Texans will be looking to advance to the AFC Championship Game for the first time in franchise history, but on Saturday they will face two-time MVP quarterback Patrick Mahomes and Kansas, who have appeared in the Super Bowl four times in the past five seasons. The City team will be waiting for them. (4:30 p.m. ET, ABC/ESPN/ESPN+). The Texans are 0-2 against the Chiefs in the playoffs.

“We are excited about this opportunity,” Lyons said. “We understand what’s in front of us. A great team, (Kansas City) has done a great job the last few years of really dominating the league and staying until the end.”

The former All-Pro linebacker, who played for Houston from 2006 to 2011, also played the position as a player. Lyons was part of the first Texans team to win the AFC South in 2011 and also win a playoff game. That team defeated the Cincinnati Bengals in the wild card matchup, but lost to the Baltimore Ravens in the divisional round.

That was Ryans’ final season in Houston, and the team has yet to make it past the divisional round (0-5). Over two seasons, his two wins in the playoffs were tied for the most by a Houston coach, and he had the team’s highest winning percentage (.588) with a record of 10 wins and seven losses for two years in a row.

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He doesn’t want his players to make this game any bigger than it is, but they’re playing against a Chiefs team that knows how to get to the AFC Championship Game for the sixth consecutive season.

“(They) have a great coaching staff, great players and a great team,” Lyons said. “So this is a really difficult challenge for us.”

In Week 16, the Texans lost to the Chiefs 27-19. Mahomes threw for 260 yards and scored a passing and rushing touchdown, and Houston allowed the fourth-most points (27 points).

Lyons isn’t going to “take much away” from the first game against the Chiefs because “the circumstances were different.” He will rely on defensive coordinator Matt Burke and the rest of the staff for game plans, but he will have the final say on how the Texans will defend. Each member of the defensive coaching staff is responsible for individually considering how to strategize against specific parts of the opposing offense.

“Everyone has an opinion,” Lyons told ESPN. “I listen to everyone’s opinion. And at the end of the day, it’s my job to give my opinion and put the players where they need to be. But I also listen to everyone’s opinion. Every coach has specific areas for their game plan. ”

Ahead of Week 15, Ryans introduced something new to highlight rookie safety Karen Brock’s ball-hawking skills against the Dolphins. Through 14 weeks, Bullock tied for the most interceptions (four) among NFL rookies. Lyons had a way to get another one.

Lyons knew Tagovailoa and Dolphins coach Mike McDaniel wanted to attack the middle of the field. When the Dolphins played the New York Jets last week, Lyons noticed a play-action pass with wideout Tyreek Hill running a crossing route and tight end Jonnu Smith running a drag route.

The Jets were in Cover 3, but Tagovailoa hit Hill on a route and cleared 17 yards in front of the safety. So Ryans wanted to take advantage of more coverage so Brock could hover over the middle and “free him up to go steal some of those routes,” Burke said. Ta.

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With 25 seconds left in the second quarter against Miami, McDaniel called the same play-action play he made against the Jets. Lyons countered by placing Brock, who normally plays deep field safety, in a reverse cover-two alignment. Bullock hovered in the middle of midfield, jumped in front of Hill to intercept Tagovailoa, and sprinted down the field until he was brought down at the Miami 5-yard line. Houston scored on a field goal before the first half.

“He put me in positions that he knew I was comfortable in, to get the ball and help the defense,” Bullock told ESPN. “That was the plan all week. Hover me in the middle and let me play the ball the rest. I knew Tua would look away with my choice, but once he When he would throw the ball, he wouldn’t really watch me throw it, just so he wouldn’t see me the whole time. ”

It was Bullock’s fifth interception, but he wasn’t the only defensive back to benefit from Lyons’ game plan. Throughout the year, Lyons limited several star receivers by starting cornerback Derek Stingley Jr., who was named first-team All-Pro last week. Stingley was assigned to cover Hill, CeeDee Lamb of the Dallas Cowboys, and DJ Moore of the Chicago Bears. And all of his interceptions (five) in the regular season were against those players.

“There were a few games where he told me to go (to the shadows),” Stingley told ESPN. “Situations like that give me the confidence to go out there and make sure I do what I’m supposed to do.”

On Saturday against the Chargers, Stingley added two more interceptions to his resume. The first came on a possession after Murray’s pick-six. Ryans called a fake firezone blitz and brought defensive end Denico Autry into coverage.

Herbert rushed the throw to tight end Will Dissly, and Stingley was in coverage, hoping to break the blitz on a fast break. When the cornerback saw Herbert go into a throwing motion, he sat down and the pass bounced off Dissly’s hand and Stingley snagged it.

The “confidence point” Stingley mentioned is something linebacker Azeez Al Shaair praises about Ryans. When the second-year coach challenges his players, he always gets them excited.

“More than what he does schematically for our players, he gives us confidence,” Al Shair told ESPN. “You want to know how we win games? Execution, of course, but belief in ourselves. He never lets us lose the fact that we are who we think we are. We’re dogs, we’re in the league, and we’re great players who play great.”

Against the Bills, the Texans pressured Allen on 45% of his dropbacks, forcing him to go 1-of-14 for 24 yards from those spots. Al Shair was tasked with spying on Allen to slow him down, and he responded with a team-high eight tackles, three pass deflections, and two quarterback hits.

Houston Texans coach DeMeko Ryans greets linebacker Azeez Al Shaair ahead of Saturday’s wild-card playoff game against the Los Angeles Chargers. Eric Christian Smith/AP

Defenders knew Allen preferred to do so, as his 160 scramble rollouts to the right were the second-most since 2018, according to NFL Next Generation Stats.

“(Ryons) was just saying, ‘Hey, when this guy scrambles, he’s going to pop out to the right,'” Al-Shair said. “The group was just doing their own stunt, and when I saw him, I went to get him.”

The Texans will need a defense that can make franchise history if they are to overcome the difficult situation against the defending Super Bowl champions. It’s a tough task against another Pro Bowl quarterback, but defensive end Daniel Hunter knows Ryans will be ready for them.

“We’re always willing to step up to the challenge. I like it when something is difficult,” Hunter told ESPN. “We all want to compete.”

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