The Jaguars are sitting at 4-1 again, and owner Shad Khan isn’t hiding how good that feels. Asked about the start and whether it can turn into something bigger, especially when the playoffs arrive, Khan pointed to both the team and the city around it.
“I feel great,” Khan told Ryan O’Halloran. “Obviously, the season we had last year and you love stuff coming together as a football team but I also love what’s happening in the city, which is the development and promise of Jacksonville all happening at the same time.”
In Houston, the math is rough. At 1-4, the Texans’ playoff odds are in the single digits.
But the mood inside the building hasn’t cracked. Texans DE Will Anderson Jr. said the group has stayed steady through the early stretch and kept showing up with the same energy.
“I think everybody’s keeping their composure,” Texans DE Will Anderson Jr. said via Sports Illustrated’s Albert Breer. “Not even just today.
I think you look at the last four or five weeks, you see a bunch of guys having joy every day, bringing joy to the building. Nobody felt like the season was over.
Everybody’s still staying up. Everybody’s still coming to work with positive energy and just having joy.
And that’s what you’ve seen today. No matter the outcome, this team has persevered and been able to bring joy every day.
And that’s why we’ve been able to be a really great team.”
Tennessee got a lift from Carnell Tate, who found the end zone in the team’s first win of the season. Tate said the key was simple: stay locked in during the week, trust the routine, and be ready when the moment showed up.
“I feel like it all comes down to preparation throughout the week,” Tate said, via TitansWire.com. “Watching film, getting my reps in, and making sure I’m ready for whatever comes my way.
Before the game, I like listening to music and getting in my zone. Once it’s time to play, I just trust the work I’ve put in and go out there and do my job.”
“Just understanding that everything takes time and you have to put the work in,” Tate added. “Nothing is going to be handed to you, so you have to stay patient and trust the process.
I’ve learned that consistency is everything. You have to keep showing up, keep getting better, and when your opportunity comes, make the most of it.”
In Other News...
Texans Got The Win They Needed But One Concern Just Grew
The Texans got the kind of win they badly needed against Jacksonville, and the game looked a lot more like the sort of close, physical AFC South fight they have to win if they want to stay in the mix. Houston was evenly matched with the Jaguars on both sides of the ball, but there were signs of real progress too, especially in the run game, where the Texans turned in their best rushing performance of the season. The passing attack also showed more life, with Jaylin Noel, Nico Collins and Marvin Harrison Jr. all part of a better-looking afternoon through the air.
DeMeco Ryans also managed the game more cleanly, particularly late, when clock control and end-of-game decisions mattered most. Even with those encouraging signs, the bigger concern is hard to ignore: the defense does not look like the steady force it was in previous seasons. For a team trying to build momentum, the offenses gains are encouraging, but the Texans still have to prove the other side of the ball can hold up when the schedule starts demanding more. [Read more 🡒]
C.J. Stroud Just Got The Texans Weapon Fans Wanted
The Texans trip to London ended with a win over Jacksonville, giving Houston back-to-back victories and another reminder that the offense can look dangerous when it gets rolling. The bigger storyline for plenty of fans, though, was Marvin Harrison Jr. finally making his Texans debut after the trade from Arizona, putting him back alongside C.J. Stroud after their Ohio State days.
Harrisons first game in Houston came with immediate usefulness, as all three of his catches moved the chains for first downs and covered 34 yards. Stroud continued to drive the offense with 312 passing yards and three touchdowns, and the early chemistry between the quarterback and his new target is the kind of development the Texans have been waiting to see. [Read more 🡒]
Texans Defense Suddenly Has A Giants Question They Can't Ignore
The Giants have injected a little more uncertainty into a Texans matchup that was already going to demand plenty of attention on defense. After turning to J.J. McCarthy late in Week 6 against the Saints, New York got a different look at quarterback, one that helped trim the margin in a 34-27 loss and left Houston with a fresher scouting assignment heading into the next game.
McCarthy completed 11 of 21 passes for 243 yards and a touchdown in that appearance, and now the Texans have to prepare for the possibility that the Giants could stay with the change or go in another direction. Head coach John Harbaugh said the team is still deciding who will start against Houston, which leaves one more layer of preparation for a defense already trying to sort out a suddenly shifting opponent. [Read more 🡒]