The Week 3 matchup between the Houston Texans (0-1-1) and the Chicago Bears (1-1) is intriguing as the two teams are similar in many ways. Here are a few things you might want to look for in the noon (CST) kickoff at Soldier Field.
Don’t Let Bears CB Kyler Gordon Hide
Rookie defensive back Kyler Gordon had a rough outing against the Green Bay Packers. He was targeted 13 times last week, allowing ten completions and a touchdown. Although he won’t be going up against quarterback Aaron Rodgers who has won the NFL MVP award four times in his career, Texans quarterback Davis Mills should test him to see if he is still shell-shocked from last week’s game.
Run, Dameon, run!
Most NFL stat geeks know that the Houston Texans are 30th in run defense. They are also aware that the Bears rank last in the league, allowing 189.5 yards per game, allowing 5.1 yards per carry.
This week would be a perfect time for the Texans to see what they have in rookie running back Dameon Pierce. He has rushed for a combined 102 yards on 26 carries in the two games he has played this season. Against the Bears, Pierce should have at least 15-20 carries, which would be a tremendous help to an offense that has struggled to control the clock and produce touchdowns.
Same book, same page
The first two weeks have not been kind to first-year offensive coordinator Pep Hamilton and second-year quarterback Davis Mills. It seems they are reading from the same playbook but on different pages. At times they seem to be synchronized with the perfect play being called and executed, but for the most part, the offense seems disoriented at times.
Houston had an opportunity to be undefeated heading into their Week 3 matchup with the Bears. Still, the offense has stalled in the fourth quarter, only producing 121 yards of offense and no points against their first two opponents. The Texans have a chance to get over that hump on Sunday, going up against a team struggling to prevent teams from extending drives by allowing teams to convert 50 percent (13 of 26) of their third downs.
Finish!
I cannot begin to tell you how many times I have heard the word finish from Texans coaches and players two weeks into the season. They said it after the tie with the Colts, where they gave up a fourth-quarter lead. The phrase was repeated after losing the Broncos in Denver last week, where the Texans had another lead heading into the final period.
Most of their issues are missed tackles from the defense being on the field too long due to the inconsistencies on the offensive side of the ball. For Houston to defeat Chicago, they will have to establish a big enough lead so the Bears can’t control the fourth quarter by continuing to give running back David Montgomery carries.
Prediction
This week Houston finally puts it all together and gets their first victory of the season with a 24-13 win over Chicago.
