The FG and fake punt are not as bad as some think

[dlphg9]

I know a bunch of people wanna act like B.O.B. was the only reason why the Texans lost that game and want to bring up kicking the FG or the fake punt. Kicking the FG wasn't as egregious as some are making it out to be. Sure technically it was a 3 possession game, but in reality when the game is that early, it's a 4 possession game because the Chiefs are going to kick the XP.

We have seen this D stuff 3rd/4th and 1's several times this year and even though we were down by 21 at that point they werent playing bad and on this particular drive they had stuffed Hyde a few times for 2 or less yards already. It's not like going down by 24 shifted the momentum our way. If we make a 4th and 1 stop, then it's a big momentum swing and the crowd gets back into it even faster. Kicking the FG was the right thing to do.

So after we go down 24-0 Hardman has a nice return and in 2 plays we have our first points of the day. Texans get the ball back and can't get a 1st down in 3 plays, but instead of punting they run a fake punt and direct snap to Justin Reid. The play design was almost perfect, besides 2 thing, the ball carrier was Justin Reid and Dan Sorenson didn't have anyone even attempting to block him. Justin Reid is a FS, so he doesn't carry the ball all that often and Dan Sorenson is one of the most clutch Chiefs defensive players in the playoffs I've ever seen, so with him one on one against a safety Im taking Dan everytime. So this might be the dumbest call B.O.B made or was it? We had just scored in less than a minute and have a certain QB by the name of Patrick Mahomes. It's not like the Texans D was stopping the Chiefs, so Bill took the chance to keep the ball out of Mahomes' hands and try to get more points. He figured that we'd score no matter where we got the ball and it almost did work, but Dirty Dan said fuck this shit.

B.O.B does deserve some blame, but in 7 out of 8 drives after the 1st quarter, Deshaun Watson (a guy people like to put on the same level as Mahomes) couldnt lead his team to a score. Out of 32 total drives in the playoffs Watson has led the Texans to score on only 9 of those drives. B.O.B. was just trying to do what he thought would be best to beat us, take any points that are available and throw in a few tricky things. If that fake punt works out, we still win, but B.O.B. is getting a lot less crap.

[Sassy Squatch]

Watson having to tell him they have to go for it on 4th down while down 20 in the middle of the 4th quarter and subsequently wasting a valuable timeout is damn near fireable on its own

[Chiefshrink]

Watson having to tell him they have to go for it on 4th down while down 20 in the middle of the 4th quarter and subsequently wasting a valuable timeout is damn near fireable on its own

Yep !!

[smithandrew051]

I think the field goal was an okay decision. Kind of a pussy move, but defendable. They still ended up with points. If they come up empty, that’s a huge win for the Chiefs.

[rabblerouser]

Yeah I don't fault O'Brien for the fake punt at all, really. He rightfully had zero faith in his defense to slow down Mahomes and Kelce. The best chance to win is to keep them off the field, and if Dirty D misses that tackle, O'Brien is called a gambler who coaches with his balls on.

The FG is a bit less forgivable, but still...not the worst call.

The lack of urgency in the 4th is absolutely fireable.

[cb15]

I would be fine with the FG. Take the points and go up 24.

I didn't understand the fake punt. On the road you just gave up a kick return and a score in 2 plays. Make them drive the length of the field. Don't give them opportunities for more momentum and to allow the crowd back in it.

[sedated]

I think the biggest point in hindsight is that it was inconsistent. Aggressive with the fake punt but passive with the FG.

And not having a play ready for a 4th and 1???

And wanting to punt in the 4th quarter down 20?

There might be a reasonable explanation for any one of them, but combined makes him look like a bumbling buffoon.

[Baby Lee]

Those two decisions weren't so much about the likelihood of success or raw strategy as they are about the motivational messages they sent to both squads.

Going for it on 4th&inches up 21 says 'you might stop us, but we're already dominating enough in the game that we're gonna go ahead and kill you outright.' Taking the FG says "I'm scared our offense is a little smoke and mirrors right now, and we need to take the points while we're 'lucky' enough to get them.'

The fake punt compounded it by going complete opposite. It said 'we're not going to keep up with these guys if they wake up, so we need some desperate smoke and mirrors play to get even a little more advantage.'

They told us BoB was still scared, and told the Texans that BoB didn't believe in them. Both of those messages loosened us up and tightened them up, and you see that in another abortion, their horrific attempt at a lateral back to Watson in the next drive.

[Kman34]

Maybe a good call to fake the punt but bad Execution... took too long to snap the ball.. the back couldn’t figure out which way he wanted to go.. Dirty Dan sniffed it out easily...

[Chiefshrink]

Not going for it with 4th and inches without Chris Jones playing while being able to run on us with Watson as your QB said massive volumes about Bill's perspective and where he was emotionally and mentally. He was still scared and did not trust his offense to keep their boot on our neck.

When he did the fake punt at 24-7 deep in his own territory it showed that his fear of us went to panic mode.;)

[Gravedigger]

People like to rag on the FG that the Texans took to go up 24 - 0 as the moment they started to lose, I don't see an issue with that at all. In the playoffs, on the road, in Arrowhead's hostile environment, you take the points. This wasn't going up 3-0 or even 17-0, you had at least three scores lead on them, it's not our fault you shit the bed after that field goal to get ran out of the building 51 - 7 the rest of the way, and it for sure wasn't due to the Field Goal you took instead of the TD you would've tried for. You could've also went three downs and a FG the next set of downs, or the Chiefs gotten a turnover instead. With the Ravens getting burnt on 4th down tries after being so gun-ho about it up until that point, perhaps these coaches need to start learning that the old way is the better way in the playoffs. I'll take Andy's approach of 1 point and 3 point plays anyday in the Playoffs over Harbaugh's and O'Brien's desperation. With all that being said, the fake punt was really ****ing stupid at that point in the game. The sharks smelled blood in the water after that catastrophe. Also saying he didn't have a play for 4th and 1... man he would be gone if I were the Owner of the Texans. You're not just keeping him around to fail again next year, which is likely, you're also hurting the Deshaun Watson years with an underperforming coach as well. It's like a poor man's Mike McCarthy with the Packers and Rodgers.

[Baby Lee]

I think the field goal was an okay decision. Kind of a pussy move, but defendable. They still ended up with points. If they come up empty, that’s a huge win for the Chiefs.

I disagree, even if they stuff them and deny them points, the Texans can brush that off, . . . 'great, you made ONE play . . . We're still up 21. Nothing you do impresses or scares us today. We got this so hard that we're willing to give up points just to send a message. Good for you, you got lucky once today. We'll just get the next one.'

[Sorce]

I watched the fake punt again and it was executed poorly. Justin Reid goes back and forth on both sides of the center several times with Sorenson spying him. It was a good tell the fake was coming. They needed to execute that play faster to not show our guys their cards or check out of the fake when he sees Sorenson is glued on him.

[Rain Man]

I think the field goal was the right move all the way. At that point, the Chiefs' offense had four dropped passes and the special teams had a fumbled punt return and blocked punt. There was reason to believe at that point that the Chiefs offense wasn't having a good day, so you just keep creating distance. Given how the offense looked in the first quarter, would you have expected them to go on a scoring orgy?

The fake punt was weird. I guess I can credit it for being unexpected, but that's only because you shouldn't do it there. Kudos to Sorensen for reading the play, though, because that was a game changer.

[staylor26]

I disagree, even if they stuff them and deny them points, the Texans can brush that off, . . . 'great, you made ONE play . . . We're still up 21. Nothing you do impresses or scares us today. We got this so hard that we're willing to give up points just to send a message. Good for you, you got lucky once today. We'll just get the next one.'

And based on the way the rest of the game went, that would’ve definitely worked out for them!

:rolleyes:

[Chiefshrink]

Maybe a good call to fake the punt but bad Execution... took too long to snap the ball.. the back couldn’t figure out which way he wanted to go.. Dirty Dan sniffed it out easily...

I agree with the bad execution of the fake punt. BUT you don't make that call deep in your own territory up by 17pts playing against Mahomes giving him a short field after just scoring for the first time enabling a comeback if you don't make it, especially in Arrowhead.

It just showed that at that point BOB went full panic mode. ;)

[arrwheader]

Taking the FG was not stupid. You make the easy chip shot, you're up 4 scores (extra points not 2pts because I bet the probablity of getting 3 2pt conversions in a row is low af) in a game where you probably thought you would be trailing at that point. You take the points. Plus if you get it there's no guarantee that you get a TD anyway but what is there is 3 points and your up 4 scores.

The fake punt was dumb. I get it you have to score but again you have a substantial lead at that point and your in you're own territory. you fuck that up the Chiefs can get a quick score. At that point it was all about the Chiefs needing to score quickly and you basically gave us that by that stupid call there. He should have punted it hope to pin the Chiefs deep and hope you get a stop if not then you burn more clock while you have the lead.

[Baby Lee]

And based on the way the rest of the game went, that would’ve definitely worked out for them!

:rolleyes:

Margins are so narrow, you have no idea how much a little more confidence for the Texans and a little less confidence for the Chiefs would have played out. Especially with that deep of a hole already.

[Deberg_1990]

I would be fine with the FG. Take the points and go up 24.

I didn't understand the fake punt. On the road you just gave up a kick return and a score in 2 plays. Make them drive the length of the field. Don't give them opportunities for more momentum and to allow the crowd back in it.

This.

Your willing to risk giving Mahomes an extremely short field to work with?

At least make him work for it. Longer field =More plays =more chance for error.

[Chiefshrink]

I think the field goal was an okay decision. Kind of a pussy move, but defendable. They still ended up with points. If they come up empty, that’s a huge win for the Chiefs.

Nah, the moment they decided to kick a FG, that was a win for us and more importantly when they removed their boot from our neck.;)

[staylor26]

Margins are so narrow, you have no idea how much a little more confidence for the Texans and a little less confidence for the Chiefs would have played out. Especially with that deep of a hole already.

I’m saying if they didn’t get it and had the mentality you were talking talking about.

[Baby Lee]

Taking the FG was not stupid. You make the easy chip shot, you're up 4 scores (extra points not 2pts because I bet the probablity of getting 3 2pt conversions in a row is low af) in a game where you probably thought you would be trailing at that point. You take the points. Plus if you get it there's no guarantee that you get a TD anyway but what is there is 3 points and your up 4 scores.

The fake punt was dumb. I get it you have to score but again you have a substantial lead at that point and your in you're own territory. you fuck that up the Chiefs can get a quick score. At that point it was all about the Chiefs needing to score quickly and you basically gave us that by that stupid call there. He should have punted it hope to pin the Chiefs deep and hope you get a stop if not then you burn more clock while you have the lead.

IF you're gonna take the FG, you treat it like a business decision. You don't line up to go for it, then panic, then call at TO, then call it off. A FG there has to be 'OK, we'll just take the points' not 'maybe we. . . . but what if, . . . where's the play . . . . Aww fuck it all!!! [pisses pants up 21].'

[DRM08]

Not sure any of it mattered. Texans defense was horrible and Mahomes brought his A game. If the receivers were not dropping every good pass in the 1st quarter, Chiefs probably score at least 14 in the quarter. It was one of those games with such a bad defense that I think KC could have scored 80+ if they brought their A game for all 60 minutes.

[Deberg_1990]

It will be interesting to see if Vrabel gambles like this?

I think the potency of the Chiefs offense forces teams into a gambling mentality they wouldn’t normally be like.

[Baby Lee]

Not sure any of it mattered. Texans defense was horrible and Mahomes brought his A game. If the receivers were not dropping every good pass in the 1st quarter, Chiefs probably score at least 14 in the quarter. It was one of those games with such a bad defense that I think KC could have scored 80+ if they brought their A game for all 60 minutes.

I have zero question that Mahomes would have been up for the task, . . . the question is if the rest of the team gets out of their own heads after their own early failures. Do the receivers turn the switch and catch everything that comes their way? Does the defense start beasting without smelling blood in the water.

[arrwheader]

Those two decisions weren't so much about the likelihood of success or raw strategy as they are about the motivational messages they sent to both squads.

Going for it on 4th&inches up 21 says 'you might stop us, but we're already dominating enough in the game that we're gonna go ahead and kill you outright.' Taking the FG says "I'm scared our offense is a little smoke and mirrors right now, and we need to take the points while we're 'lucky' enough to get them.'

The fake punt compounded it by going complete opposite. It said 'we're not going to keep up with these guys if they wake up, so we need some desperate smoke and mirrors play to get even a little more advantage.'

They told us BoB was still scared, and told the Texans that BoB didn't believe in them. Both of those messages loosened us up and tightened them up, and you see that in another abortion, their horrific attempt at a lateral back to Watson in the next drive.

meh I mean everyone knew the Chiefs were the better team with the better offense there. I don't think he was sending a "I am a pussy" message, he was trying to play smart and ultimately outsmarted himself.

It doesn't take the smartest coach to think about if they had gone for it and didn't get it now they have 0 points. It was basically a free 3 points to go up another score. I doubt the Texans and BOB ever thought they would be up that big in one Q.

The fake punt was stupid imo, because again you have a lead that you probably didn't expect and the Chiefs needed quick scores. You don't get that you give them a opportunity at a quick score.

[Chiefshrink]

Taking the FG was not stupid.

As Mitchell Swartz stated, "that's when we felt we got a win there finally".

It was psychologically devastating for the Texans offense leaving all 11 players with a WTF moment including the whole stadium and the only person who didn't think they could make it was BOB himself. BOB wet himself right there.

He chose to remove his boot from our neck and paid the price.;)

[chinaski]

Maybe a good call to fake the punt but bad Execution... took too long to snap the ball.. the back couldn’t figure out which way he wanted to go.. Dirty Dan sniffed it out easily...

There was something on Twitter that showed Sorenson prior to the play. He was on it from the BEGINNING. He KNEW something was up. Dude may have his drawbacks, but he ain't dumb.

[Baby Lee]

meh I mean everyone knew the Chiefs were the better team with the better offense there. I don't think he was sending a "I am a pussy" message, he was trying to play smart and ultimately outsmarted himself.

If true, neither you nor BOB understand professional athletes.

There isn't an athlete alive, at least not one worth a damn, that thinks 'I'm not the best, but if I'm lucky I won't make a total fool of myself.'

Athletes thrive on convincing themselves that they have an edge on everyone else on earth, regardless of the past or objective evidence.

[Chiefshrink]

Margins are so narrow, you have no idea how much a little more confidence for the Texans and a little less confidence for the Chiefs would have played out. Especially with that deep of a hole already.

BINGO !!!!

[Chiefshrink]

It will be interesting to see if Vrabel gambles like this?

I think the potency of the Chiefs offense forces teams into a gambling mentality they wouldn’t normally be like.

I can assure you of this he will take the same approach that Bellichek did in their 1st SB win with Brady playing the Rams in 2001. Just beat the **it out of everyone on both sides of the ball especially the WRs. Yes the rules have changed BUT as physical as the Titans are already they will attempt to be even more so.

[warpaint*]

The field goal was fine.
The fake punt was retarded.
Neither is why they lost.
They lost b/c they didn't force a punt for like 2+ quarters & quit scoring.

[Deberg_1990]

I can assure you of this he will take the same approach that Bellichek did in their 1st SB win with Brady playing the Rams in 2001. Just beat the **it out of everyone on both sides of the ball especially the WRs. Yes the rules have changed BUT as physical as the Titans are already they will attempt to be even more so.

Agree 100%

[dlphg9]

People keep saying that the FG and fake punt contradict each other, but I dont think that is the case at all. In both situations Billy Boy had only one thing in mind and that was to score points. The difference between 24 and 28 points in that situation is very small, because Reid wasn't going to try to go for 2 at that point in the game. That means going up 24 points means that the Chiefs have to have 4 possessions to tie/take the lead and they would have to make sure the Texans didnt score on their possessions. If the Texans go for it on that 4th and a long 1 (I don't think it was 4th and just a few inches) and they dont convert, then it's a 3 possession game and it doesnt take long for us to score 3 TDs. Its not that he didn't want to be aggressive, its because taking the 3 points was the smart thing to do.

The reason he ran the fake punt is because he just saw us score in less than a minute and it was 24-7. He couldn't have a 3 & out and punt the ball away right after we scored and the crowd was back into the game. If Reid breaks one tackle then it's a first down and Mahomes and the offense stay on the sideline. At that point there was only 8:35 left in the half and if you can get a first down, then even if you don't get any points you can still limit the amount of time/drives that the Chiefs get. That's especially important because we got the ball after halftime. So Bill knows how fast we can score, so he decided to try to catch us off guard, because he knows that giving us the ball 33 yards from the endzone is going to have the same result as giving us the ball 70 yards from our endzone.

When Bill had to be talked out of punting it in the 4th, that was retarded. These other 2 instances though are not retarded and were the right calls. Im not saying Bill is some genius, but he's probably the most successful Belichick disciple, but gets shit on alot because the national media loves Deshaun Watson, so BOB is the one who gets the blame for all the bad and Watson gets all the Escalades when things go good. Do people in the media really think if Mahomes was in Watson's situation he wouldn't have found a way to stop the bleeding and found a way to score a couple of times during the onslaught? People want to point to Watsons college career and that he has some GWD in the regular season, but if he cant do that in the playoffs then what does it matter. Blame B.O.B. for that loss, but at some point you have to stop pointing the finger at the coach, because if Watson is as good as people make him out to be then he should have been able to put a drive together instead of coming up with goose eggs as Patrick Mahomes is leading our O to TD after TD after TD. That kind of ineptitude is on the players. Its inexcusable for a playoff team to go that long without at least lucking into a score or 2 no matter who the coach is.

[Pitt Gorilla]

The field goal was the worse decision, IMO. Even if they don't make it (they probably should make it), the Chiefs are pinned insanely deep; momentum hasn't really shifted. If they make it (and score a TD), things get REALLY tough for the Chiefs.

I don't really hate the fake punt at all. Catch the other team off-guard and keep the ball out of Mahomes' hands.

[tyecopeland]

Kicking and making the FG actually lowered the Texans chances of winning by 1%. It was a bad decision.

[Lilmrp117]

Kicking and making the FG actually lowered the Texans chances of winning by 1%. It was a bad decision.

It was a terrible decision and besides for this probability you mentioned, it was a bad decision from a common sense view. Anytime you make a decision that results in the opposing team/opposing fans breathing a sigh of relief, then that's usually a bad decision. That was absolutely the case here. Instead of going for it to try to drive the stake in, it sent a horrible message to his team.

I also said in another thread that I think the decision to kick the FG was linked to the stupid fake punt. If the texans had scored a TD instead of a FG there, perhaps BoB wouldn't have felt as much pressure to try for another score as to fake that punt. Of course that is speculation by me, but if what BoB said is true that he thought they needed to score 50 to win, then why the hell did he pass on the 4th and 1 attempt and yet try a fake punt so deep in his own territory? Out of those two situations, going for it on 4th and 1 gives you the better chance at points with way less risk. If you're going to take a gamble, take the gamble of going for it on 4th and 1 when you have the opposing team in a bad situation. It's like if you need a 2 point score in basketball and you pass up a layup in favor of taking a 30 foot 3 pointer.

[Buckweath]

People keep saying that the FG and fake punt contradict each other, but I dont think that is the case at all. In both situations Billy Boy had only one thing in mind and that was to score points. The difference between 24 and 28 points in that situation is very small, because Reid wasn't going to try to go for 2 at that point in the game. That means going up 24 points means that the Chiefs have to have 4 possessions to tie/take the lead and they would have to make sure the Texans didnt score on their possessions. If the Texans go for it on that 4th and a long 1 (I don't think it was 4th and just a few inches) and they dont convert, then it's a 3 possession game and it doesnt take long for us to score 3 TDs. Its not that he didn't want to be aggressive, its because taking the 3 points was the smart thing to do.

The reason he ran the fake punt is because he just saw us score in less than a minute and it was 24-7. He couldn't have a 3 & out and punt the ball away right after we scored and the crowd was back into the game. If Reid breaks one tackle then it's a first down and Mahomes and the offense stay on the sideline. At that point there was only 8:35 left in the half and if you can get a first down, then even if you don't get any points you can still limit the amount of time/drives that the Chiefs get. That's especially important because we got the ball after halftime. So Bill knows how fast we can score, so he decided to try to catch us off guard, because he knows that giving us the ball 33 yards from the endzone is going to have the same result as giving us the ball 70 yards from our endzone.

When Bill had to be talked out of punting it in the 4th, that was retarded. These other 2 instances though are not retarded and were the right calls. Im not saying Bill is some genius, but he's probably the most successful Belichick disciple, but gets shit on alot because the national media loves Deshaun Watson, so BOB is the one who gets the blame for all the bad and Watson gets all the Escalades when things go good. Do people in the media really think if Mahomes was in Watson's situation he wouldn't have found a way to stop the bleeding and found a way to score a couple of times during the onslaught? People want to point to Watsons college career and that he has some GWD in the regular season, but if he cant do that in the playoffs then what does it matter. Blame B.O.B. for that loss, but at some point you have to stop pointing the finger at the coach, because if Watson is as good as people make him out to be then he should have been able to put a drive together instead of coming up with goose eggs as Patrick Mahomes is leading our O to TD after TD after TD. That kind of ineptitude is on the players. Its inexcusable for a playoff team to go that long without at least lucking into a score or 2 no matter who the coach is.

I agree with this take.

FG or going for it on 4th down early in the game are both defendable. I actually think Andy Reid if coaching the Texans and in the same situation would have done the same as O'Brien.

The fake punt also was not a bad call IMO. It was super unexpected but as others have said it was possibly poorly executed.

I think O'Brien said he came into the game thinking he's not punting any ball against that Chiefs offense. If that fake punt succeeds, you're kinda crushing the hope that the Chiefs had just regained with that TD.

As is often the case, regardless of the call you make, people will criticize and say it was a poor call if it fails and they will say it's brilliant if it succeeds.

Thinking of punting the ball in the 4th quarter and taking a TO was definitly poor from O'Brien. That's the one clear and obvious mistake.

[suzzer99]

Watson having to tell him they have to go for it on 4th down while down 20 in the middle of the 4th quarter and subsequently wasting a valuable timeout is damn near fireable on its own

Yeah that was by far the worst, but for some reason all the pundits ignore it. It's like they knew he was a wreck by that point and not thinking straight - so they go easy on him. Well that's pretty freaking bad for a head coach to lose his mind like that.

[suzzer99]

All I know is as a Chiefs fan I was thrilled when BOB took the FG. The way they were rolling I fully expected 28-0. I think you have to keep the foot on the neck there, and know that you at least give us a long field when you blow it.

Also this:

https://forumserver.twoplustwo.com/cache.php?img=https%3A%2F%2Fi.imgur.com%2FUnjPA9W.png

[dlphg9]

Kicking and making the FG actually lowered the Texans chances of winning by 1%. It was a bad decision.

And? What do you think their chance of winning percentage would have done if they didn't score? Dropped several percent ? Hell how much would it have raised if they score a TD? 1%? The reward of scoring a TD didn't outway the risk of not scoring.

The fact that we are even debating this is insane lol. It just shows how fluky the lead was and proves how much better we are than them. It seems stupid for blaming a coach for a loss because he decided to go up 24-0 instead of trying to go for a TD to go up 28-0. I don't care how bad a coach is, if you are up 24 points all you have to do is execute at a very basic level and thats all it would take to win.

[Megatron96]

I know a bunch of people wanna act like B.O.B. was the only reason why the Texans lost that game and want to bring up kicking the FG or the fake punt. Kicking the FG wasn't as egregious as some are making it out to be. Sure technically it was a 3 possession game, but in reality when the game is that early, it's a 4 possession game because the Chiefs are going to kick the XP.

We have seen this D stuff 3rd/4th and 1's several times this year and even though we were down by 21 at that point they werent playing bad and on this particular drive they had stuffed Hyde a few times for 2 or less yards already. It's not like going down by 24 shifted the momentum our way. If we make a 4th and 1 stop, then it's a big momentum swing and the crowd gets back into it even faster. Kicking the FG was the right thing to do.

So after we go down 24-0 Hardman has a nice return and in 2 plays we have our first points of the day. Texans get the ball back and can't get a 1st down in 3 plays, but instead of punting they run a fake punt and direct snap to Justin Reid. The play design was almost perfect, besides 2 thing, the ball carrier was Justin Reid and Dan Sorenson didn't have anyone even attempting to block him. Justin Reid is a FS, so he doesn't carry the ball all that often and Dan Sorenson is one of the most clutch Chiefs defensive players in the playoffs I've ever seen, so with him one on one against a safety Im taking Dan everytime. So this might be the dumbest call B.O.B made or was it? We had just scored in less than a minute and have a certain QB by the name of Patrick Mahomes. It's not like the Texans D was stopping the Chiefs, so Bill took the chance to keep the ball out of Mahomes' hands and try to get more points. He figured that we'd score no matter where we got the ball and it almost did work, but Dirty Dan said **** this shit.

B.O.B does deserve some blame, but in 7 out of 8 drives after the 1st quarter, Deshaun Watson (a guy people like to put on the same level as Mahomes) couldnt lead his team to a score. Out of 32 total drives in the playoffs Watson has led the Texans to score on only 9 of those drives. B.O.B. was just trying to do what he thought would be best to beat us, take any points that are available and throw in a few tricky things. If that fake punt works out, we still win, but B.O.B. is getting a lot less crap.

Firstly, I agree with everything you're saying here. Hell, HCs have to make some really tough calls in playoffs games.

My issue was that he waffled. If you're going to play safe football, okay then play it safe. Kick the FG and take the points when you can, fine. But then you can't go for it on 4th-and-4.

Because that's risky. Especially on your own 30-yard line.

I think he had to choose his path and stick it out. Instead, it looked like he panicked (whether that's accurate or not, I'm talking optics), and mid-stream he changed his mind.

If I were him in the game, I'd have gone for it on 4th-and-inches on the Chiefs 13-yard line, because that's not a terrible risk. I don't like not taking the points, but if you can't get 6 inches, you're probably screwed anyway. And the Chiefs defense gives up 4th-and-short about 56% of the time or something like that. So not a terrible risk.

Going for it from my own 30-yard line on 4th-and-4 smacks of desperation. And is really risky. And the Chiefs are a lot better about not giving up 4th-and-more than 2 yards.

And if you don't convert, the Chiefs are really good in the RZ, like scoring a TD about 70% of the time good. So not a fan of that call.

But I agree with you that in the end it made no real difference. No matter how he called those plays, the Texans were going to lose that game anyway.

Oh, and Frank Clark doesn't suck . . .

[Why Not?]

Personally. I would’ve went for it on 4th and 1 but I get taking the points there. I think the fake was stupid but not because they went for it. If your mentality is “we need to score 50” and you decide to go for any fourth down outside of scoring range(provided it’s not like a 4th and 15 on your own 10), fine. Have your star QB throw a pass to your NFL top 3 WR(who, save one great play by the Badger, we never really stopped)or design a run for that QB or something. I can justify going for it. I can’t justify putting the ball in my safety’s hands to convert.

[dlphg9]

Firstly, I agree with everything you're saying here. Hell, HCs have to make some really tough calls in playoffs games.

My issue was that he waffled. If you're going to play safe football, okay then play it safe. Kick the FG and take the points when you can, fine. But then you can't go for it on 4th-and-4.

Because that's risky. Especially on your own 30-yard line.

I think he had to choose his path and stick it out. Instead, it looked like he panicked (whether that's accurate or not, I'm talking optics), and mid-stream he changed his mind.

If I were him in the game, I'd have gone for it on 4th-and-inches on the Chiefs 13-yard line, because that's not a terrible risk. I don't like not taking the points, but if you can't get 6 inches, you're probably screwed anyway. And the Chiefs defense gives up 4th-and-short about 56% of the time or something like that. So not a terrible risk.

Going for it from my own 30-yard line on 4th-and-4 smacks of desperation. And is really risky. And the Chiefs are a lot better about not giving up 4th-and-more than 2 yards.

And if you don't convert, the Chiefs are really good in the RZ, like scoring a TD about 70% of the time good. So not a fan of that call.

But I agree with you that in the end it made no real difference. No matter how he called those plays, the Texans were going to lose that game anyway.

Oh, and Frank Clark doesn't suck . . .

Frank no longer sucks. You are correct lol.

I disagree about Bill "playing it safe" and then "being a risk taker". I think he was doing what he thought he had to do to win and thats score points. Out of all the decisions he made, the only one that could have potentially swayed the outcome of the game is if they convert on that fake punt. Converting that and then having the ability to run a few minutes off the clock may have changed the outcome of the game. That would have had much more impact on the game then going for it instead of kicking a FG and much more impact than punting it. If they would have converted they had a chance to win if they can hold onto the ball a few more minutes.

[Megatron96]

Frank no longer sucks. You are correct lol.

I disagree about Bill "playing it safe" and then "being a risk taker". I think he was doing what he thought he had to do to win and thats score points. Out of all the decisions he made, the only one that could have potentially swayed the outcome of the game is if they convert on that fake punt. Converting that and then having the ability to run a few minutes off the clock may have changed the outcome of the game. That would have had much more impact on the game then going for it instead of kicking a FG and much more impact than punting it. If they would have converted they had a chance to win if they can hold onto the ball a few more minutes.

It's true that we have no real idea what Billy was really thinking in those moments. And we'll probably never find out the truth either.

But 4th-and-4 on your own 30 is a much tougher proposition than 4th-and-1 on your opponent's 13, you'd have to agree. From a purely mathematical perspective, you'd really be more comfortable going for it from your opponent's 13-yard line with inches to go, IMO.

But I agree that if they did convert the fake punt, they would've at least improved their field position and taken some more time off the clock. Maybe even score.
But you have to admit, it sure looked like a desperate move.

[SupDock]

It's true that we have no real idea what Billy was really thinking in those moments. And we'll probably never find out the truth either.

But 4th-and-4 on your own 30 is a much tougher proposition than 4th-and-1 on your opponent's 13, you'd have to agree. From a purely mathematical perspective, you'd really be more comfortable going for it from your opponent's 13-yard line with inches to go, IMO.

But I agree that if they did convert the fake punt, they would've at least improved their field position and taken some more time off the clock. Maybe even score.
But you have to admit, it sure looked like a desperate move.


I don't mind the FG, as if you get stopped when going for it, it gets the crowd back into it

The fake punt I disagree with for the same reason, it let's the crowd back into. The two decisions are quite incongruous.

[MahiMike]

For the life of me, I can't understand why everyone piled on Billy. He could do nothing to stop the awesomeness of Mahomes. Pat took that game into his hands and went out and won it. The Texans didn't lose it.

[MMXcalibur]

Watson having to tell him they have to go for it on 4th down while down 20 in the middle of the 4th quarter and subsequently wasting a valuable timeout is damn near fireable on its own

This.

I can understand the field goal and I can comprehend why you would want to push the envelope with the fake punt to recapture momentum, but punting on 4th and 4, down 20 at midfield halfway through the 4th quarter is fucking stupid.

Did O'Brien think his shit defense was going to magically force the Chiefs into a 3-and-out? EIGHTH TIME'S THE CHARM!