Another week brought another Houston Texans loss on Sunday, this time at the hands of the juggernaut Miami Dolphins. Rarely has a professional football team looked so outmatched. The Texans went down 30-0 by halftime, and it seemed that nothing would go right for the team before they put up respectable numbers in the second half.
Tight end Jordan Akins was a key part of Houston’s offensive resurgence in the third and fourth quarters. He ended the game as the Texans’ leading receiver and caught a touchdown pass. He was asked after the game about how it feels to know that the six games remaining on the schedule are likely to be losses, and Akins left no doubt about his emotions in his response.
“Oh, very frustrating man – we hate to lose,” Akins told reporters. “You’re a competitor – if you’re in the NFL or any professional sport, you absolutely hate to lose. We try our best to flush it, but let it motivate you at the same time, and just to come out and do your job and do better the next game.”
This may be the most poignant response to any question asked of the Texans’ players after the horrendous showing against Miami. One can only assume his reference to “flushing it” was to compare Houston’s performance to excrement, which certainly seems fitting given their halftime deficit.
But not all was lost in this matchup. The Texans didn’t stand much of a chance from the outset and did well to end up losing by just 15 points. The offense hit its stride in the second half under new starting quarterback Kyle Allen, and Houston’s defense didn’t allow a single point after their collapse in the first two quarters.
Moving forward, the Texans would be wise to take any and all positives from their 15-point loss to the AFC’s second-best team and parlay them into a win next week against the 4-7 Cleveland Browns.
