Houston Texans offensive lineman George Fant knew precisely what was about to happen when the Cincinnati Bengals wide receiver Tyler Boyd dropped a touchdown pass on third down from quarterback Joe Burrow, which forced them to have to kick a field goal to tie the game with less than 1:50 left in the fourth quarter.
“Cincinnati went in, and they didn’t get a touchdown for whatever reason, and right away, I knew it was that time again,” said Fant to the Texans Wire.
The Deja’ Vu that Fant speaks of occurred just one week prior when the Texans found themselves in a similar situation against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. Trailing 37-33 with 46 seconds on the clock and needing a touchdown to win the game, rookie quarterback C.J. Stroud drove his team down the field and hit his fellow rookie wide receiver Tank Dell in the back of the end zone for the eventual game-winning touchdown.
“Cincinnati went in and they didn’t get a touchdown for whatever reason and right away, I knew it was that time again,” said Texans offensive lineman George Fant about preparing for a game-winning drive for the second consecutive week. #Texans #Sarge @TheTexansWire pic.twitter.com/ooXBz2d9lK
— #SARGE (@BigSargeSportz) November 13, 2023
This time, the Texans only needed to get into field goal range to win the game in front of a hostile Bengals fanbase and superstar quarterback Joe Burrow on the sidelines, salivating for one more chance to be the “Hero of Ohio.”
Unfortunately for Burrow, who started his collegiate career at Ohio State before transferring to LSU, he had to watch the former Buckeyes quarterback come back to the state he called home for three years and put his team in position to win the game as Stroud drove the Texans into scoring position. Free agent kicker Matt Ammendola, who was signed to the team after kicker Ka’imi Fairbairn went on injured reserve this week, kicked the game-winning field goal as time expired.
“I was telling the guys, you know what time it is,” Fant told his teammates about Stroud having the ball last. “It felt great having that confidence going on the field knowing you are about to win. There are no ifs, and, or buts about it. It was definitely that type of moment for us.”
After two crushing losses to the Atlanta Falcons and Carolina Panthers on time-expiring field goals, the Texans needed these last two weeks to help the team build confidence.
“These are the wins you have to have,” said Fant in the visiting locker room. “If you want to make it to the playoffs, you have to have these wins.”
