Houston Texans coach Lovie Smith had been telling anyone who would listen that there was just something special about rookie safety Jalen Pitre.
From the time he was drafted until he played in his first NFL regular season game, Smith has raved about the potential of the second-round pick from Baylor.
Spectators got a glimpse of his ball awareness skills against the Indianapolis Colts, where he almost had his first interception. He was a very intricate part of stopping the run game of the Denver Broncos in Week 2.
In Week 3 against the Chicago Bears, Pitre displayed the talents that made him the 2021 Big 12 Defensive Player of the Year and a consensus first-team All-American. He recorded two interceptions off of Chicago Bears second-year quarterback Justin Fields in the Texans 23-20 loss to the Bears at Soldier Field.
Pitre’s first NFL interception of his career came in the first quarter after the Texans had scored on a four-yard touchdown pass from quarterback Davis Mills to tight end Jordan Akins and cut the Bears’ lead to three points.
Fields dropped back to pass and had a significant amount of time in the pocket to find his tight end Cole Kemet cutting across the middle of the field. The ball sailed over Kmet’s head and into Pitre’s arms as he secured heading towards the ground.
“Big shout out to my coaches,” said Pitre when asked about his game plan preparations. “They do a great job throughout the week of putting me in great spots and helping me the things I am going to see when game time comes.”
“So, I give a big shout out to them and my teammates. We put in a lot of work on first down, second down and third down. Looking at everything we need to see and come into the game prepared. I give a big shout out to the older guys in the locker room and my coaches for helping me with that.”
The 23-year-old rookie came up with another spectacular grab for his second interception of the game on third down early in the fourth quarter, with the game tied, to give his offense another possession.
“Kirko (Christian Kirksey) did a great job of making him put some air on the ball and that allowed me to make a play,” said Texans rookie safety Jalen Pitre who become one of four rookies since 202 to record multiple interceptions in one game. #Texans #Sarge #TexansWire pic.twitter.com/kLLvp4EdN4
— #SARGE (@BigSargeSportz) September 26, 2022
“We were in Cover-2, and I understood the weak part of the defense in the middle part of the field,” Pitre said after the game to reporters. “Kirko (Christian Kirskey) did a great job of making him put some air on the ball and that allowed me to make a play.”
With his two interceptions on the day, Pitre became one of only four rookies since 2020 to record multiple interceptions in a single game. He is the second rookie in Texans history to record two interceptions in the same game since CB Dunta Robinson did it vs. the Oakland Raiders in 2004.
The former two-time All-Big 12 First-Team selection also added eight total tackles and a sack, making him the fourth rookie in NFL history and the first rookie in franchise history to record two interceptions and a sack in the same game.
“He was phenomenal,” said Texans defensive lineman Jerry Hughes about Pitre’s play on Sunday. “Young guy, he’s making great plays for us. I know he wanted to get up and score, but two big picks to kind of keep our offense in scoring territory, that’s what you want as a secondary.”
