DeMeco Ryans gave an eye-opening reaction to the Texans' controversial loss to the Kansas City Chiefs
Houston Texans' head coach DeMeco Ryans gave an eye-opening reaction to his team's 23-14 Divisional Round loss to the Kansas City Chiefs. The clash between the AFC's No. 1 and No. 4 seed was mired in controversy with two penalties on hits to Chiefs QB Patrick Mahomes that led to ten points. Fans blasted the refs online for favoring the two-time defending Super Bowl champs throughout the contest. Houston quarterback CJ Stroud was able to move the ball down the field with 245 passing yards but was roughed up throughout the game with eight sacks.
The Texans will now head home, having lost in the Divisional Round for the second straight year. Ryans reflected on the missed opportunities in the season-ending game to Texans Reporter Aaron Wilson.
“I'm walking out of here discouraged. This one hurts because I know we're a better football team than we showed today, no matter who we're playing against. To go back and still talk about mistakes that we made in this moment. It's discouraging to be here. We got to get over that at this point in the playoffs. For postseason football, you have to be at your best and operate on all cylinders. And for us, we didn't do that today, so that's what I'm discouraged here.”
The Houston Texans had plenty of opportunities to pull the upset in Arrowhead
The Texans' defense made a heroic effort on Saturday to keep their offense in the game. Unfortunately, CJ Stroud and company consistently struggled to convert in Kansas City territory while also costing themselves 82 yards in penalties. The Texans outgained the Chiefs by more than 100 yards yet were playing catch-up for most of the game. DeMeco Ryans' team ultimately did not do the little things right to halt Kansas City's quest to be the first team ever to win three straight Super Bowls.
Houston will head into a critical offseason under its young head coach. The Texans had won playoff games in two straight years, along with two AFC South titles. This franchise is trying to take that good-to-great step to win its first Super Bowl in history.
One thing that will be key going forward is the continued development of CJ Stroud. The second-year quarterback had an uneven season after putting together one of the best years for a rookie in NFL history. Stroud will need to improve his pocket awareness as his team cleans up the offensive line and adds more weapons for him this offseason. The Texans are not far off from the elite in the AFC but are not there yet.
