10 key notes from the thriller about the Bills | Harris Hits

7) A few plays after Dare’s catch and run for the first down, Dare’s backfield mate Cam Akers ran 15 yards for a touchdown to cap that drive. It was a brilliantly constructed plan by OC Bobby Slowik. This is how it went down.

Bills lead 3-0…not for long

After Ogunbowale’s catch, the Texans moved the ball into the red zone on an 11-yard catch by Nico Collins and an 11-yard carry by Cam Akers. With the ball at the 15-yard line, the Texans fielded 12 personnel (one RB, two TE) but lined up in the I formation with Dalton Schultz at fullback and Cade Stover at H-back. This running concept is so beautiful. It is essentially a counterplay with Stover as the kick-out block and Schultz as the turn-up block. Typically a counter play consists of a guard and a fullback, sometimes a guard and a tackle, but OC Bobby Slowik used his tight ends as kick/turn-up blockers. Stover started moving and hit the DE on the left side. Schultz started as a full-back on the right side and then countered back to the left side. He had a perfect angle on LB Terrel Bernard and nailed him. Akers stepped to the right, turned left again, took a handoff from Stroud, split the gap created by Stover and followed Schultz’s great block on Bernard. WSW

8) Stover’s blocking was undoubtedly great, but it’s the plays Dalton Schultz made that caught my attention. I found him in the locker room and made sure to congratulate him because it was all the little things he did for this offense without a lot of fanfare and without a significant amount of targets. He doesn’t score many goals, but he blocks, including this touchdown, and makes the most of his chances when he gets them. How about on third-and-9 from the Houston 13-yard line, when Stroud found Schultz between four defenders for an 18-yard catch? Huge moment.

9) The three downs after Stroud’s fumble were the turning point in the game. The Texans stuffed the run on first down. Then Bills QB Josh Allen put on the cape to get back in the game, but the Texans forced an incompletion from James Cook on the near sideline (great coverage Eric Murray) on second down. The third downplay goes to Azeez Al-Shair. Allen had a nice pocket early in the game, but coverage was difficult. Al-Shaair spied on Allen. As the Bills’ gunslinger began running to his right, Al-Shair ran as if to catch up with him. I think Al-Shair’s arrival startled Allen, who couldn’t really do anything other than throw the ball away when Al-Shair hit him releasing the pass. The Bills could only tie the game at this point, which led to an incredible final score of 3:20 minutes.

10) The Bills’ final three downs were also pretty darn important, and it was all set up by a great punt from Tommy Townsend. His punt fell out of the sky, hit the 2-yard line, bounced three yards in the air and then Kris Boyd hit it to the three-point line. The Texans then won the time/game management situation after again dominating the Bills’ final three offensive downs with a strong pass rush and sticky coverage. I watched the entire sequence from the back of the end zone, and although Will Anderson Jr and Danielle Hunter didn’t get any sacks there, the pressure was relentless, forcing Josh Allen to make inaccurate throws at just the right time.

Well, that was an emotional win for the Texans and now it’s time for a road trip. It will be a trip to Foxboro, a place where the Texans have never won. However, that’s in the past, it’s time to win in the present. See you then, everyone!