Texans demolish Browns in wild card round

by Lloyd Hendricks

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Texans quarterback CJ Stroud tosses a 37-yard touchdown pass to tight end Dalton Schultz.

Stroud would go 16-of-21 for 274 yards and three touchdowns on his way to becoming the youngest starting quarterback to ever win an NFL playoff game.

[Photo by Lloyd Hendricks]

Despite being at home, the AFC South Division Champion Texans found themselves in the position of the underdog, with the Cleveland Browns a slight favorite going into the opening round of the NFL playoffs on Saturday. But once the first whistle sounded the Texans put on an absolute football clinic vs the Browns in a 45-14 rout that wasn’t even as close as the score.

The Browns were led by a former Super Bowl champion in 39-year-old quarterback Joe Flacco. Flacco has experienced a renaissance this season playing very well once taking over as starter in November. He looked every bit like the star of old in a 36-22 victory over the Texans on Christmas Eve. But Houston rookie sensation quarterback CJ Stroud didn’t play on Christmas Eve, and the difference was monumental. Stroud carved up the Cleveland defense, throwing three touchdown passes on 16-of-21 attempts for 274 yards, spreading the touchdowns out to three different receivers.

The pivotal play came early in the second quarter when the Browns took a 14-10 lead and looked to be asserting control over the game with their running attack. On the first play of the next Texans possession Stroud hit tight end Brevin Jordan who caught a short pass on the sideline, broke a tackle and took it 76 yards for the score. The big play ignited the home crowd who then watched with glee as the Texans rattled off 35 unanswered points.

After taking a 24-14 lead into halftime the Houston defense stepped up big in the second half as well, with two interceptions returned for a touchdown on back-to-back pass attempts by Flacco that appeared to take all the fight left out of the Browns. The first pick-six went for 82-yards by cornerback Steven Nelson. The second was grabbed by linebacker Christian Harris who went for 48-yards. Harris also registered eight tackles and a sack in what was his best career performance.

The Texans will next travel to face the AFC North Division champion and overall playoff first-seed Baltimore Ravens in the divisional round on Saturday January 20th at 3:30pm. The Ravens defeated the Texans in week one 25-9 in the first regular season game for Houston quarterback CJ Stroud and new head coach DeMeco Ryans, who will no doubt be looking to improve on that early season performance.

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Texans tight end Brevin Jordan breaks loose on a 76-yard touchdown pass in the second quarter.

Jordan's exciting score would prove to be the turning point in the game as the Texans took the lead for good.

[Photo by Lloyd Hendricks]

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Texans' linebacker Christian Harris sacks Browns quarterback Joe Flacco in the 4th quarter.

Harris also registered eight tackles and an interception he returned 48 yards for a touchdown.

[Photo by Lloyd Hendricks]