Texans defense stands out in TNF win against Bills

HOUSTON — The Texans are back in the playoff race after a massive 23-19 victory against the Buffalo Bills on “Thursday Night Football.”

The Texans defense showed why they are the number one ranked defense in primetime as they held the Bills offense to 12 points. The defense came in allowing only 16.4 points per game and showed why it is possibly one of the best in recent seasons. The unit sacked Bills quarterback Josh Allen eight times, and when it mattered most, Houston's defense sealed the victory with an interception by safety Calen Bullock.

Even though the unit gave up a fourth-and-27 on a hook-and-lateral during the final drive to scare the Houston faithful, it didn't end up costing the team. Now the Texans are above .500. They have a 37% chance of making the playoffs, according to ESPN Analytics.

Here are the most important things to know coming into Thursday night for both teams:

Amazing performance: Backup Davis Mills threw for two touchdowns and led the Texans' offense to 23 points while outscoring the MVP on the other side. Houston's season looked shaky when it lost quarterback CJ Stroud to the Denver Broncos to a concussion and the team fell to 3-5 overall. But Mills stepped in and operated the offense well enough to improve their record to 3-0.

Crucial moment: It was when the Texans scored a touchdown before the end of the first half after Bills running back Ray Davis returned a kickoff 97 yards for a touchdown. Mills found wide receiver Jayden Higgins for a touchdown with five seconds left to provide a big boost as it allowed Houston to take a 20-16 lead. With how well Houston's defense has played this season, scoring 20 points in the first half was all the team needed to win.

Trend to follow: The Texans defense allowed the fewest points per game (16.3) entering Week 12, but their sacks were in the middle of the pack at 25 (14). But Houston sacked Allen eight times, a season-high for the Texans. Now that Houston's defense is racking up sacks along with its number one scoring output, we could be looking at one of the best defenses in recent seasons.

Statistics to know: One of the reasons Mills was able to play well was because he was protected. He was pressured on only 14% of his dropbacks and was not sacked at all. There were plays where he was able to scan the entire field before throwing to his targets. This was the best the Texans offensive line has played all season when you take into account who they were playing on the Bills and the magnitude of this game for playoff seeding. — DJ Bien-Aime

Next match: at Indianapolis Colts (1 p.m. ET, Nov. 30)

The Bills offense needed a boost. The unit had struggled throughout the game, but with 2:48 left in the game, the reigning MVP recovered the ball at his own 18-yard line.

Then, quarterback Josh Allen was sacked for the seventh and eighth time. But the magic came on fourth-and-27 when Allen threw the ball to receiver Joshua Palmer, who almost immediately threw it to receiver Khalil Shakir, who then ran down the sideline for a first down.

In the end, however, the magic ended a few plays later.

For countless reasons, from play-calling to the Texans' No. 1 defense, the Bills' offense spent most of the game failing to make progress. Allen failed to score a touchdown for the ninth time in his career.

And despite a valiant last-ditch effort, mistakes, including a false start by left tackle Dion Dawkins on fourth-and-1, meant the lack of finishing arose once again as the Bills fell short of the end zone. Buffalo fell to 7-4, another game behind the New England Patriots in the AFC East race.

Statistics to know: James Cook III became the third Bills player with 1,000 rushing yards in three consecutive seasons with his 45-yard touchdown in the first quarter, joining OJ Simpson and Thurman Thomas as the only Bills to do so. The score was also the 36th touchdown of Cook's career, breaking a tie with Joe Cribbs and Cookie Gilchrist for the second-most touchdowns for the Bills in a player's first four seasons in the NFL. (Thomas is first at 39.)

What to make of the QB's performance: The big story here is the catches, all eight of them. The Texans were effective in doing so on six of those occasions by sending four or fewer pass rushers, which is the most sacks Allen has received in his career. This struggling offense has been at its best when kept in short-yardage situations, and the sacks (the combined result of a lack of wide receivers, Allen's decision-making, the offensive line having a tough day, and a very good Texans defense) were few and far between.

Trend to follow: Billing margin. The Bills went on an NFL-record streak of 26 consecutive games without losing turnover margin at the end of Week 5, and have been on a downward trend since then. In the six games since then, Buffalo has won the turnover margin twice. This game was a prime example of how turnovers have to be a problem for this team, including wide receiver Khalil Shakir's fumble at the Buffalo 22-yard line. And while yes, the offense is turning over twice as much as last year (eight to 16), the defense has also had trouble getting the ball away (32 steals last year compared to 13 in 11 games this season). –Alaina Getzenberg

Next match: at Pittsburgh Steelers (4:25 p.m. ET, Nov. 30)