What happens when the NFL's top-ranked defense is tasked with stopping the NFL's No. 2 offense?
Well, the reigning AP NFL MVP takes a battering.
Buoyed by one of the league's elite pass-rushing duos of Will Anderson Jr. and Danielle Hunter, the Houston Texans defense hounded Josh Allen all evening Thursday in a 23-19 victory that kept the Texans' playoff hopes alive and well.
"I think it was just everybody executing on defense, everybody being on the same page," Anderson told NFL Network's Steve Wyche of Houston's defensive mastery. "I love this group because we're relentless, we're persistent. We persevere through anything. Any turnover, any first down they get, this defense and this team just keeps going. That's what I love about this team."
Allen was sacked a career-high eight times with Anderson notching 2.5 and Hunter wrapping Allen up for two.
"Yeah, it's not fun," Allen said of facing the Texans rush. "I ran into a couple myself. I got to be better throwing the ball away and living to see another down. And letting us play some situational football and pinning them deep. Too many times I was going backwards. I've got to be better on that."
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Houston's defense was in hot pursuit of Allen from start to finish, pressuring him 15 times (Anderson had a team-high nine, while Hunter had six). The pressure up front wasn't the only story, though, as Houston held a team to less than 20 points for an NFL-high eighth game this season. The aforementioned eight sacks weren't just a career worst for Allen, but tied a Texans franchise record. In the process, Allen was hit 12 times.
"I don't like that stat at all," Bills head coach Sean McDermott said of the pounding dished out on Allen.
Anderson had three of those QB hits, along with six tackles, two tackles for loss and a massive pass breakup on third-and-1 on the final drive.
"Man, that motor," Hunter told Prime Video's Kaylee Hartung about what makes Anderson one of the best pass rushers in the game. "He got that motor and he got that mind. And he has that will in him. He has that dog in him. If anything's happening on the field, you can count on Will. He's coming to hunt the quarterback down."
Though the pass rush set the tone, safety Calen Bullock had perhaps the two biggest plays, recording a pair of interceptions; the first coming in the second quarter to preserve a one-point Houston lead and then leading to a field goal and a 13-9 advantage. Bullock's second capped the night and clinched the win, coming with the Bills threatening to score a potential game-winning touchdown on an Allen heave on fourth-and-6 from the Texans' 22.
"The thing that stood out to me, I mean, the way our D-line hunted, of course, that was great," Texans head coach DeMeco Ryans said. "But Calen Bullock is the guy for me. The way Calen went out and intercepted the ball two times, you know, forced fumble to get us in plus territory there. So, my favorite play was the one that ended it. It was a lot of emotions going on on the sidelines through the entire drive, but for Calen to come down with that interception, that was my favorite play because it meant it was over."
Though backup quarterback Davis Mills deserves much credit for coming off the bench and coming up clutch in relief of C.J. Stroud, who's missed the past three games with a concussion, it's the Houston defense that's been the bedrock of the team and driven it on its current three-game winning streak. Now 6-5, the Texans have clawed back into playoff contention, currently situated in the AFC's eighth seed with a massive Week 13 matchup ahead against the AFC South's first-place Indianapolis Colts.
"Man, we've just got to keep trending," Anderson told Wyche. "One game at a time. We know what we want: playoffs, Super Bowl. But it's all about us and how we're executing and how we're going out there doing the fundamentals."
Entering Thursday, the Texans defense was No. 1 in points and yards allowed. It was tasked with stopping the reigning MVP and the NFL's No. 4 offense in yards gained.
The Texans D most certainly stood tall on "TNF."
"This team, we had a short week," Anderson said. "And the preparation, the intensity was there all week, man. We was locked in, and that's what complementary football looks like. Offense doing their thing, defense doing their thing, special teams doing their thing. We are just jelling as one."