NFL Week 12: Houston Texans 23, Buffalo Bills 19

Since falling to 3-5 on the season back in Week 9, it’s been the same battle cry for the Houston Texans before each game — “This is the biggest game of the year, a must win.” And for the third straight week, the Houston Texans walked off the field victorious in said “must win,” this time getting their most legitimate win of the season, a 23-19 street fight versus the Buffalo Bills.

The difference with this game, compared to the wins over the Jaguars and Titans the previous two weeks, is that the Texans came into this one a relatively substantial underdog. The Bills were favored by six points, which may have been mildly disrespectful toward a Texans team whose defense is unquestionably elite. 

Now, the Texans sit at 6-5, over .500 for the first time all season. They have the next ten days off, and they should be getting C.J. Stroud back from the concussion protocol. In other words, things are looking up! Let’s look at winners and losers from a tense, “battle red” Thursday night: 

WINNERS

4. Will Anderson

One of the best things about this game being on national television (or whatever word we are using for the Amazon streaming medium) is that the nation got a taste of what 2025 Will Anderson has been all about — fierce, physical, consistent dominance. In this game, Anderson had 2.5 sacks, two tackles for loss, and a ton of quality time terrorizing Josh Allen all night long. Anderson sits at fourth on the odds board right now for Defensive Player of the Year at +1200.

3. AFC playoff contenders 

We take a break from the Texans-Bills game for a moment to acknowledge the return of quarterback Joe Burrow in Cincinnati this week. After missing two months with a toe injury, Burrow is back practicing, and while the Bengals are out of the playoff race with a 3-7 record, the Bengals next four games are against the Patriots, Bills, and Ravens (twice). Burrow may not be able to help the Bengals make the playoffs, but he sure can help teams like the Texans who are in the mix with these other teams. 

2. Calen Bullock

I think Bullock is the player I was most excited for after last night’s win. It’s always fun to see a young player announce his presence with authority on a nationally televised game, and Bullock did just that, causing three turnovers (two interceptions, one fumble), two of which led to points, and the third one closed out the game. Afterwards, Bullock was doing interviews with multiple national outlets. The recognition was fun to see.

1. Davis Mills, high level backup

Mills’ 3-0 record in the last three games, games that allowed the Texans to crawl back to above .500, will garner a lot of attention around the league. Mills will not be supplanting C.J. Stroud as the Texans’ starting quarterback — Mills himself knows this, and said as much after the game — but his ability to step in and win games could have teams calling Nick Caserio after the season with trade offers to use Mills as a bridge starting quarterback for a team drafting a rookie quarterback. 

LOSERS

4. Texans special teams (again)

When you have a team with an inconsistent offense, like the Texans, it’s imperative that the other two sides of the football, defense and special teams, be clicking on all cylinders. The Texans’ defense is obviously elite. However, for the second time in three weeks, the Texans special teams units gave up a return for a touchdown, this time a kickoff return that gave the Bills a 16-13 lead late in the first half. 

3. Dameon Pierce 

The Dameon Pierce era came to an end just hours before Thursday’s game, as the Texans waived the fourth year running back to accommodate some roster moves. Pierce burst on the scene as a rookie in 2022, rushing for nearly 1,000 yards. However, once DeMeco Ryans got to the building, Pierce had trouble grasping whichever offense the team was running. In some ways, it feels miraculous that he was still on the team after this year’s training camp. Pierce will find a home somewhere else, but ultimately his run with the Texans ends in disappointment. 

2. Second half Nick Caley 

Maybe some of this is a function of having the backup quarterback start the last few games, but the Texans’ offense has been very schizophrenic. Davis Mills has generally done most of his damage in these games in one particular quarter. Thursday night, it was the second quarter, where the Texans went into halftime with a 20-16 lead. Unfortunately, offensive coordinator Nick Caley seemed to get super conservation in the second half of the game, and the Texans generated just 35 yards of total offense. Just when it feels like the Texans are turning some sort of corner under Caley, a half like that happens.

1. Josh Allen 

Thursday night continued NRG Stadium’s run as a house of horrors for the reigning MVP of the league. After Thursday night’s loss, Allen’s record now sits at 0-4 in NRG Stadium, and he’s lost games in a variety of fashions. In 2018, his rookie season, Allen left the game with an injury. In 2019, he watched the Texans come back in a playoff game from being down 16-0. Last season, he set a career low with a 30 percent completion percentage. Finally, last night, he threw two picks and was sacked eight times. If you happen to see Josh Allen today, give him a hug. 

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