Houston Texans All-Pro CB Derek Stingley Jr. Practices Taking The Ball Away Consistently
Leading by a score of 20-10 as time was winding down in the first half, the Jacksonville Jaguars had the Houston Texans on the ropes and were looking for the knockout punch.
With 17 seconds left on the clock, barely across midfield with two timeouts, Jaguars quarterback Trevor Lawrence believed he was in a great position to score before halftime, further crushing Houston’s spirits after the ineffectiveness of the offense led by backup quarterback Davis Mills, who was in for injured starting quarterback C.J. Stroud.
One reason Lawrence was so confident was that he knew they were already within the range for his kicker, Cam Little, whom he had watched the previous weekend end the half with an NFL record 68-yard field goal against the Las Vegas Raiders.
All Jacksonville needed to do was run one more play, call a timeout, and bring Little on to the field for the attempt.
Everything looked great at the snap of the ball as Lawrence, who was in shotgun formation, dropped back five steps and saw wide receiver Austin Trammell running a five-yard crossing pattern that would have taken him toward the sideline and stopped the clock.
The play looked as perfect as it did when the Jags had run it in practice continuously.
However, the only issue is that Jacksonville doesn’t have a First-Team All-Pro cornerback who can replicate all the problems that can occur on that play.
Houston does in Derek Stingley Jr.
The fourth-year player used a baited maneuver to deceive Lawrence into thinking Trammel was open, then made one of the best defensive plays of the year when he extended his right hand and caught the ball, causing the turnover the Texans desperately needed to prevent Jacksonville’s momentum.
This wasn’t the first time Stingley had lured Lawrence into thinking his receiver had beaten him on a route, nor was it the first one-handed interception he had pulled off against the Jaguars.
Last season, in an early December matchup, Lawrence attempted to throw a deep pass to his superstar wide receiver, Brian Thomas Jr., who appeared to have a step on Stingley.
Still, when the ball was in the air, he used his quickness to catch up to Thomas Jr. and snag the ball out of the air.
In Sunday’s game, Houston had a disastrous start across all three phases of the game.
Mills threw an interception on the Texans’ first offensive drive. Defensive lineman Denico Autry drew an unnecessary roughness penalty that kept a Jaguars drive alive. Defensive back Tremon Smith fumbled on a kickoff return, and Jaguars wide receiver Parker Washington returned a 73-yard punt for a touchdown, leading to 17 quick points for Jacksonville.
The only bright spot in the first half, besides a one-yard rushing touchdown by rookie running back Woody Marks, was the incredible play by Stingley.
“The interception by Stingley was huge for us,” said Houston Texans head coach DeMeco Ryans on Monday. “Talk about a momentum shift, being able to limit them from being able to get points there at the half. We know that the field goal kicker has a great leg and outstanding range.”
What Stingley did was help keep the Texans within striking distance of a “Must-Win” game with potential playoff implications on the line.
It may have taken three quarters, but the offense finally got on track in the fourth quarter.
Down by as much as 19 points, Davis Mills led Houston to three straight scores (two passing, one rushing) as the defense held Jacksonville to 11 total yards in the quarter and even contributed to some of the scoring when defensive end Will Anderson Jr. sacked and forced Trevor Lawrence to fumble, which Sheldon Rankins recovered and returned for a score, giving the Texans a 36-29 comeback victory to improve to 4-5 on the season.
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Even with the offensive resurgence and defensive dominance in the final period, the only thing that most of the players were in awe of was Stingley’s interception and how he prevented Jacksonville from scoring points at the end of the half.
Cornerback Kamari Lassiter:
“One of the greatest players I have ever played with. To go out there, dive, undercut the route, and one hand snag it. I didn’t get to see it because I was covering on the other side, but after I saw the replay, I was like, ‘Bro. Chill out Bro.’”
Defensive Lineman Sheldon Rankins:
“When I saw it, I was like, ‘Did he really just do that? Did he really just grab the ball like that with one hand?’ Not only was it a crazy athletic play to make, but it shifted the momentum. It took away any momentum they would have had.”
Defensive End Will Anderson Jr.
“That is what playmakers do. He is a playmaker and does that on the normal. And that is why he is here, in the league, and the best to do it. He gave us a spark when we needed it the most. He delivered for us and got us back on track for sure.”
Yet, in true Derek Stingley Jr. fashion, he only wanted to talk about his teammates and the victory.
“Everybody just doing their job, that’s all it is,” said Stingley in his postgame press conference.
If the Texans can get healthy and string together consecutive wins, it could help them re-enter playoff contention.
If that occurs, a picture of Stingley’s interception on Sunday should be displayed throughout NRG Stadium.