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Courtesy of NFL Communications, I give you these numbers, notes, and food for thought as your Houston Texans steel themselves for their season opener against the Kansas City Chiefs this weekend.
SERIES
|
CHIEFS |
TEXANS |
SERIES LEADER |
Series tied: 3-3 |
|
STREAKS |
|
2 of past 3 |
COACHES VS. OPP. |
Andy Reid: 5-0 |
Bill O’Brien: 0-0 |
LAST GAME |
10/20/13: Texans 16 at Chiefs 17. Kansas City QB Alex Smith and RB Jamaal Charles each rush for TDs. Chiefs LB Tamba Hali totals 7 tackles & 2.5 sacks. |
|
LAST GAME AT SITE |
10/17/10: Texans 35, Chiefs 31. Houston RB Arian Foster rushes for 2 4th quarter TDs. Texans QB Matt Shaub completes 25 passes for 305 yards & 2 TDs (123.9 passer rating). |
|
REFEREE |
Pete Morelli |
|
BROADCAST |
CBS (12:00 PM CT): Kevin Harlan, Rich Gannon. SIRIUS: 136 (KC), 93 (Hou.). XM: 225 (Hou.). |
2014 STATS
PASSING |
Smith: 303-464-3265-18-6-93.4 |
Hoyer (Cle.): 242-438-3326-12-13-76.5 |
RUSHING |
Charles: 206-1033-5.0-9 (T1C) |
Blue: 169-528-3.1-2 |
RECEIVING |
Maclin (Phi.): 85-1318-15.5-10 |
Hopkins: 76-1210-15.9-6 |
OFFENSE |
318.8 |
344.6 |
TAKE/GIVE |
-3 |
+12 (T1C) |
DEFENSE |
330.5 |
348.2 |
SACKS |
Houston: 22.0 (1L) |
Watt: 20.5 (2L) |
INTs |
2 tied: 1 |
Demps (NYG), Moore (Den.): 4 |
PUNTING |
Colquitt: 44.6 |
Lechler: 46.3 |
KICKING |
Santos: 113 (38/38 PAT; 25/30 FG) |
Bullock: 130 (40/40 PAT; 30/35 FG) |
NOTES
CHIEFS:
Since joining KC in 2013, QB ALEX SMITH is 19-11 (.633) as starter, the most wins by QB in his first 2 seasons with club. Since 2011, Smith is 38-16-1 (.700) as starter and has passed for 11,453 yards & 71 TDs versus 23 INTs, with a 92.7 rating.
RB JAMAAL CHARLES has 14 TDs in his past 13 games (9 rush, 5 receiving). He averages 5.5 yards per attempt for his career, the highest of any NFL RB in history (min. 750 att.).
WR JEREMY MACLIN makes his Chiefs debut on Sunday. In 6 seasons with Eagles (2009-14), Maclin posted 343 catches for 4,771 yards and 36 TDs. In 2014, He led Philadelphia with career-highs in catches (85) and receiving yards (1,318), along with 10 TDs, which tied for his career-best.
In 2014, TE TRAVIS KELCE ranked 3rd among AFC TEs with 862 receiving yards and joined TONY GONZALEZ and WALTER WHITE as the only Chiefs TEs with 800-yard receiving seasons.
LB JUSTIN HOUSTON led the NFL with a franchise-record 22 sacks in 2014. That tied for the second-most in a single-season by any NFL player since 1982. Houston has 10 sacks in his past 6 games and aims for his 7th game in a row with a sack.
TEXANS:
QB BRIAN HOYER makes his Texans debut on Sunday. Hoyer started 13 of 14 games with the Browns in 2014, passing for a career-high 3,326 yards and 12 TDs.
In 3 career starts, RB ALFRED BLUE has 310 scrimmage yards (280 rush, 30 receiving, good for 103.3 per game), including a career-high 156 rush yards on 11/16/14 vs. the Browns last year.
WR DEANDRE HOPKINS led the Texans with a career-best 1,210 receiving yards in 2014, including 4 100-yard games. In Hopkins' only career meeting with the Chiefs, he had 3 catches for 76 yards (25.3 avg.) and a TD.
WR CECIL SHORTS III also makes his Houston debut on Sunday. In 4 seasons with the Jaguars (2011-14), Shorts posted 176 catches for 2,343 yards and 12 TDs.
Two-time NFL AP Defensive Player of the Year J.J. WATT ranked 2nd in NFL with 20.5 sacks in 2014. He is the only player since 1982 with two 20+ sack seasons. In 2014, Watt became the first player in NFL history with 3+ offensive TDs, 2 TDs on takeaways, and a safety in the same season.
On Sunday, five-time Pro Bowl DT VINCE WILFORK makes his Texans debut. In 11 seasons with the Patriots (2004-14), Wilfork started 148 of 158 games and posted 16 sacks and 3 INTs.
Since entering the NFL in 2006, CB JOHNATHAN JOSEPH has 5 INTs returned for TDs, which is tied for the most in the AFC (ED REED).
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