The Texans defense was outstanding in Saturday's Wild Card win over the Chargers.
Houston beat Los Angeles, 32-12, on Saturday afternoon at NRG Stadium. The Texans picked off four Justin Herbert passes, allowed just one touchdown, gave up 2.8 yards per carry and sacked Herbert four times.
Quarterback C.J. Stroud and the offense got going late in the first half, but the defense was dominant from start to finish. Los Angeles ran the 18 times and mustered just 50 yards. That effort against the run made Head Coach DeMeco Ryans happy.
"Playoff football, first things first you have to stop the run," Ryans said. "That's where our interior defensive lineman really played great today, is stopping the run. You stop the run, you force teams to have to throw the ball."
Herbert and the Chargers struggled mightily when throwing. The fifth-year Pro Bowl quarterback completed just 14-of-32 passes on the afternoon, and he finished with a passer rating of 40.9. In the 2024 regular season, he was picked off three times. On Saturday, he threw his third interception of the game early in the fourth quarter, and had one more picked off in the closing minutes. None of the three interceptions in the regular season were returned for scores. Safety Eric Murray returned an interception 38 yards for a touchdown at the end of the third quarter.
Derek Stingley, Jr., who was named All-Pro at cornerback this week, snared a pair of Herbert passes for interceptions in the final quarter.
"We were out there just playing as a unit, just communicating, just making sure we were on top of what he had to do," Stingley said. "There are still plays we've got to clean up, but we're going to go out there next week and play the way we've got to play."
The heroics from that side of the ball were vital, according to Stroud.
"Man, it fueled us for real," Stroud said. "That's one thing that's not good, when the defense keeps getting stops and we're doing whatever with the ball, not moving it. And then the time of possession was like ten minutes to one, which was crazy."
Houston will face either the Chiefs or Bills on the road next weekend in the Divisional Round.
