High School Football

Stingley shines in Texans win over Dolphins

By Tyler Tyre, Sports Editor
Posted 12/15/24

“Stingley was moving around based on how they lined up and we wanted to keep him on Tyreek (Hill) as much as we could. The interception he had to end the game was such a big-time play and not many players can do it, but that’s the kind of player Stingley is. He’s done an outstanding job even when teams try to challenge him.”

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High School Football

Stingley shines in Texans win over Dolphins

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Houston’s defense has been leading the team all season.

In a year where the Texans have struggled offensively, the Houston defense has kept them in front of the AFC South with big plays, forcing turnovers, negative plays and doing whatever is needed to win games.

While there have been struggles, that style of play has led to wins this year and a playoff spot almost secured for the Texans. The trend continued on Sunday, as Houston struggled to move the ball offensively, only gaining 181 total yards, but used a dominant defensive performance to outlast the Dolphins 20-12 and remain in prime position to clinch a playoff spot.

Derek Stingley was the player of the game, coming up with two interceptions in the fourth quarter, including one late that clinched the game. The third-year corner now has six interceptions during December, the most any player has had in the month in Texans' history. He continued his December performances in the game,  as no player in the league has recorded more interceptions in December over the past two seasons.

“Stingley was moving around based on how they lined up and we wanted to keep him on Tyreek (Hill) as much as we could,” said Texans head coach DeMeco Ryans. “The interception he had to end the game was such a big time play and not many players can do it, but that’s the kind of player Stingley is. He’s done an outstanding job even when teams try to challenge him.”

Houston had a strong opening drive and had a fourth and short from the Miami 26-yard line, but opted to play it safe and kick a field goal from 44 yards out.

The Texans defense stopped Miami on its first two drives of the game, but the Dolphins finally broke through and got on the board early in the second quarter when they tied it with a 55-yard field goal. Houston’s offense faltered after the first drive, with three straight three-and-outs, but the defense stepped up, stripping Tua Tagovailoa and recovering it inside the Miami 30 before the Houston offense got its first touchdown with just under seven minutes left in the first half on a 6-yard pass from CJ Stroud to Nico Collins. Miami kicked another field goal from 36 yards out. Houston had a chance to add to the lead before half before turning the ball over, but Houston’s defense stepped up again, as Calen Bullock intercepted a pass and returned it 58 yards to the Dolphins five-yard-line. Houston’s offense couldn’t convert that into a touchdown, but the Texans did add three more points on a 23-yard field goal that made it 13-6 at the half.

“There’s things we can do better, but I’m happy with how we cashed in as an offense off turnovers today,” Stroud said. “That’s been a focus, we have to score points any time we can, especially off those turnovers, so that was a good thing. We played complimentary football today. We could have been better, but I’m happy we were able to reward them and got this win.”

Houston nearly got stalled on its opening drive of the second half, but Houston got a huge game on a fake punt, then Stroud found Collins for their second touchdown connection on a 6-yard pass, but the Dolphins found its answer late in the third, bringing things back to a one-score game on a 7-yard touchdown pass from Tagovailoa to Jonnu Smith late in the third quarter. The Dolphins were driving again early in the fourth, but Derek Stingley Jr. came away with a huge interception to stop the drive deep in Houston territory. Houston and Miami traded punts and then the Dolphins got the ball with under two minutes remaining in a one-score game. Stingley stepped up again, making a diving interception on the sideline to secure the victory.

“Guys stepped up and they did a good job of closing out the game at the end, that’s been a big focus and they did that today,” Ryans said. “It was all over the field, from Stingley to the defensive line and guys stepped up at linebacker and safety. We wreaked havoc, played on their line of scrimmage and limited a very explosive offense.”

Houston moved to 9-5 on the year and stayed in front in the AFC South Race, needing only a Colts loss the rest of the way to clinch the division. The Texans will face arguably their biggest challenge of the season on Saturday when they travel to Kansas City and take on the Chiefs, before heading back to Houston and facing the Ravens on Christmas day.

“We all have so much respect for Kansas City, there’s a reason they are back-to-back Super Bowl champions and Mahomes is the best in the league, they do it at a high level every year,” Stroud said. “But we are excited to go up there and give them our best shot. It will be a great environment, they have a defense that we respect, but we’re excited for the challenge. We want to see what we can do up there.”

NFL, football, sports, Texans, Houston, Miami Dolphins, AFC South