Houston Texans Lead Atlanta Falcons After First Half Defensive Battle

The Houston Texans are locked in a low-scoring battle with the Atlanta Falcons on Sunday.

Matt Galatzan | Oct 8, 2023

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Houston Texans

The Houston Texans entered their Sunday matchup with the Atlanta Falcons at the Mercedes-Benz Stadium as one of the hottest teams in the NFL.

The offense was firing on all cylinders, and the defense was holding up their end of the bargain as well, finishing the previous two weeks as one of the more stalwart groups in the league.

However, through the first half of action in Atlanta, only the defense has been able to continue that momentum, with the Texans and Falcons locked in a tight, low-scoring 9-7 battle through two quarters.

The struggles for the Houston offense have mainly come on the ground thus far, with Dameon Peirce rushing for just 20 yards on seven carries, while receiver Tank Dell has added two for minus four yards.

Atlanta Falcons defensive tackle Calais Campbell (93) tackles Houston Texans running back Dameon Pierce (31) during the first quarter at Mercedes-Benz Stadium. — Atlanta Falcons defensive tackle Calais Campbell (93) tackles Houston Texans running back Dameon Pierce (31) during the first quarter at Mercedes-Benz Stadium / Dale Zanine-USA TODAY Sports

Meanwhile, QB C.J. Stroud was productive but has been held out of the end zone, completing 14 of 22 passes for 173 yards. Tank Dell has been Houston's leading pass catcher, with three catches for 57 yards.

The Texans had a chance to get a score at the end of the half and were able to take advantage, marching down the field, and knocking through a field goal to end the half.

Defensively, outside of the early score from Atlanta, the Texans have managed to keep the Falcons offense relatively in check, particularly in the ground game, where rookie phenom Bijan Robinson has managed just 20 yards on eight carries.

Falcons quarterback Desmond Ridder was responsible for the lone touchdown of the game on a seven-yard run in the first quarter and has completed 10 of 16 passes for 121 yards through the first half.

The Texans will hope to kick things up a notch offensively in half number two, as they seek to get above .500 for the first time since 2019.

Published Oct 8, 2023

MATT GALATZAN

Matt Galatzan the Editor-In-Chief of TexansDaily.com. Galatzan graduated from the University of Mississippi, where he studied integrated marketing communications, with minors in journalism and business administration. Galatzan started in the sports journalism industry under Mike Fisher at DallasBasketball.com in 2014, which at the time was part of the 247Sports network. He also spent two years covering the SMU Mustangs for PonyStampede.com on the 247Sports network. When DallasBasketball.com and CowboysCountry.com moved over to Sports Illustrated's Fan Nation network in 2020, Galatzan followed suit, eventually being taking over as the Managing Editor and Publisher of LonghornsCountry.com and AllAggies.com a year later. Through the years, Galatzan has conducted a handful of high-profile one-on-one interviews to add to his resume — in both writing and podcasting. Some of his biggest interviews have been with Mavs owner Mark Cuban, former Longhorns players Dan Neil and Phil Dawson, and many other recruits, and current/former players for each of the teams he has covered. Galatzan is also a full-time employee in the digital media department for Audacy and KRLD FM's 105.3 The Fan in Dallas, which is the official radio home of the Dallas Cowboys. You can find Galatzan on all major social media channels. For any inquiries, please email matt.galatzan@gmail.com