The Houston Texans need a win in the absolute worst way in Week 12, and unfortunately, they aren’t likely to get one. They’ll face the Miami Dolphins, who have been in the mix at the top of the AFC since the season started, and are riding high on the play of quarterback Tua Tagovailoa and receivers Tyreek Hill and Jalen Waddle.
Smith was asked in the Texans’ Wednesday press conference about the challenges posed by the Dolphins in the matchup, and he left no doubt that their crew of talent on offense would be a problem. He didn’t name names, but it was clear that he has been impressed by what he has seen on their film.
“I’m going to talk offensively,” Smith said. “They have a balanced attack. They have a quarterback that’s playing at an elite level right now. I’ll say there are some special players in the league. There’s a lot of good players in the league, and then there’s some special players in the league. I think they have a special player the league. Everything around the passing game is a little different than maybe some week-to-week, and our guys realize that.”
This was always going to be an uphill battle for the struggling Texans, but given the team’s desperation to find their second win of the season, they’ll be pushing extra hard in this game. With a potential quarterback change in the works for the matchup, Smith will need to scheme up a defense that can adequately contain Tagovailoa in all four quarters, and keep the lid on the back end of his secondary against Hill and Waddle.
Houston’s defensive front has shown an ability to get after the quarterback and plug up holes in the running game, and if they can do that against Miami on Sunday, the Texans just might be able to play the spoiler against all odds.
