WEEK 6 · FINAL
THE READ
Texans win the turnover battle and the game
Giveaways decided this one. Texans 30, Falcons 24. C.J. Stroud did the damage for Texans — 24/40, 308 yards, 2 TD. Michael Penix Jr threw for Falcons — 19/38, 231 yards, 2 TD, 1 INT — in a losing effort. C.J. Stroud has not had a better afternoon this season. On the ground: Falcons 196, Texans 117.
The Wire · league beat
THE WIDER PICTURE
| Team | SRS | SOS | MARGIN | TO +/- |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Falcons | -5.3 | -2.6 | -2.7 | +3 |
| Texans | -1.3 | -1.2 | -0.1 | -4 |
SRS is how many points a side beats an
average team by once you account for who they played — beat a good
team by 3 and it counts for more than beating a bad one by 20.
SOS is how hard that schedule has been.
Full table.
IN THE BOOTH
Daniel Keller
The numbers guy
Houston won a game it nearly gave away. The Falcons moved the ball—427 yards, nearly matched Houston's output—but couldn't stop giving it back; Houston didn't turn it over once. Tank Dell had 185 receiving yards because Atlanta's secondary couldn't locate him, and that alone was the difference in a 6-point game that felt closer than it was.
Nicole Santos
Beat reporter
· replying
Atlanta's at 4-7 and fighting for scraps in a weak division—this loss doesn't knock them out, but it confirms what the numbers already said: they can't beat good teams without a clean game, and Houston just proved it doesn't have to be close.
They only ever read the box score and this league's own numbers —
none of them has a source, and none of them can report anything that
did not happen.
C.J. Stroud
Texans
24/40, 308 yards, 2 TD
Michael Penix Jr
Falcons
19/38, 231 yards, 2 TD, 1 INT
Tank Dell
Texans
13 catches, 185 yards, 1 TD
THE STORY SO FAR
WHAT DECIDED IT
On the ground
Falcons 196, Texans 117
Falcons
Through the air
Texans 308, Falcons 231
Texans
Total yards
Falcons 427, Texans 425
Falcons
Giveaways
Texans 0, Falcons 2
Texans
THE ROOM
Final. The recap is below.
THE MATCHUP SCOUT
every number below is counted from the export or read off the roster — nothing is inferred about playcalling
LEAGUE DATA
counted by Madden, and arithmetic on top of it
Balanced
Pass 56% · Rush 44% · 22.4 scored, 25.1 allowed
6.9 yds/att
57.6% completions
4.9 yds/carry
346.1 yds/game
1.1 giveaways/game
9.4% sack rate
last 5: 3-2
SAPPHIRE METRICS
QB efficiency 47 · Conservative
Balance 94
Ball security 70
Back usage 37%
QB runs 3.9/game
Most exposed: pressure -- sacked on 9.4% of dropbacks
PERSONNEL
off the roster — unit averages, best starters only
QB 78
WR 88
TE 86
RB 90
OL 84
DL 84
LB 78
DB 90
Best: Bijan Robinson HB 99
Fastest: Zachariah Branch WR 95 SPD
3 at star dev or better
YOUR NOTEBOOK
what you wrote about them — private, and never a Sapphire statistic
Sign in as a member of this league to keep private scouting notes on your opponents.
LEAGUE DATA
counted by Madden, and arithmetic on top of it
Balanced
Pass 58% · Rush 42% · 25.1 scored, 25.2 allowed
8.1 yds/att
53.6% completions
5.0 yds/carry
343.5 yds/game
2.1 giveaways/game
5.5% sack rate
last 5: 2-3
SAPPHIRE METRICS
QB efficiency 51 · Aggressive
Balance 92
Ball security 40
Back usage 36%
QB runs 3.0/game
Most exposed: ball security -- 2.1 giveaways a game
PERSONNEL
off the roster — unit averages, best starters only
QB 89
WR 88
TE 85
RB 82
OL 84
DL 86
LB 81
DB 91
Best: Derek Stingley Jr CB 99
Fastest: Jaylin Noel WR 93 SPD
4 at star dev or better
YOUR NOTEBOOK
what you wrote about them — private, and never a Sapphire statistic
Sign in as a member of this league to keep private scouting notes on your opponents.
HOW THEY PLAY
the man, not the franchise — only weeks the record attributes to him, this season
Lor_mn
Texans · his last 8 games
Balanced
Gives it away
One target
Pass / run58% / 42%
Points for / against20.6 — 23.4
Margin-2.8
Giveaways a game2.0
Sacks taken5.5% of dropbacks
Lead backMark Fletcher Jr · 10.2/g
Top targetNico Collins · 38%
QB carries1.2 a game
Counted from the weeks each man actually held his team — so a franchise that changed hands is not credited to whoever has it now. Nothing above is a playcall: the export does not carry those, and neither does this.
MATCHUP ADVANTAGES
unit averages against each other — inside three points is a push
Falcons receivers vs Texans secondary
88 v 91
TEXANS
Texans receivers vs Falcons secondary
88 v 90
EVEN
Falcons line vs Texans front
84 v 86
EVEN
Texans line vs Falcons front
84 v 84
EVEN
Falcons backs vs Texans run defence
90 v 84
FALCONS
Texans backs vs Falcons run defence
82 v 82
EVEN
Falcons passer vs Texans secondary
78 v 91
TEXANS
Texans passer vs Falcons secondary
89 v 90
EVEN
TOP PERFORMERS
🎬
The Game Recapthis game as an episode -- the score, the stars, the numbers that decided it -- and a video you can post ›
BOX SCORE
FALCONS
TEXANS
FALCONS
TEXANS
FALCONS
TEXANS
FALCONS
TEXANS
FALCONS
TEXANS
FALCONS
| PLAYER | C/ATT | YDS | TD | INT | SCK | LNG | RTG |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Michael Penix Jr QB | 19/38 | 231 | 2 | 1 | 2 | 30 | 75.6 |
TEXANS
| PLAYER | C/ATT | YDS | TD | INT | SCK | LNG | RTG |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| C.J. Stroud QB | 24/40 | 308 | 2 | 0 | 3 | 50 | 100.8 |
FALCONS
| PLAYER | CAR | YDS | AVG | TD | BTK | YAC | LNG | FUM |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Bijan Robinson HB | 13 | 120 | 9.2 | 0 | 6 | 62 | 30 | 0 |
| Jonathon Brooks HB | 7 | 58 | 8.3 | 1 | 4 | 35 | 25 | 0 |
| Kalel Mullings HB | 3 | 11 | 3.7 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 5 | 0 |
| Michael Penix Jr QB | 2 | 7 | 3.5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 1 |
| Zachariah Branch WR | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
TEXANS
| PLAYER | CAR | YDS | AVG | TD | BTK | YAC | LNG | FUM |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Woody Marks HB | 16 | 66 | 4.1 | 1 | 3 | 21 | 20 | 0 |
| C.J. Stroud QB | 2 | 31 | 15.5 | 0 | 1 | 24 | 29 | 0 |
| Mark Fletcher Jr HB | 7 | 20 | 2.9 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 7 | 0 |
| Tank Dell WR | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Nico Collins WR | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Dalton Schultz TE | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
FALCONS
| PLAYER | REC | YDS | AVG | TD | YAC | DRP | LNG |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Zachariah Branch WR | 8 | 122 | 15.2 | 2 | 31 | 0 | 30 |
| Jahdae Walker WR | 4 | 44 | 11 | 0 | 9 | 0 | 16 |
| Drake London WR | 3 | 31 | 10.3 | 0 | 10 | 0 | 14 |
| Kyle Pitts Sr TE | 2 | 20 | 10 | 0 | 4 | 0 | 13 |
| Dorian Fleming TE | 2 | 14 | 7 | 0 | 4 | 0 | 12 |
TEXANS
| PLAYER | REC | YDS | AVG | TD | YAC | DRP | LNG |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Tank Dell WR | 13 | 185 | 14.2 | 1 | 72 | 1 | 50 |
| Nico Collins WR | 5 | 70 | 14 | 0 | 22 | 1 | 28 |
| Dalton Schultz TE | 2 | 30 | 15 | 1 | 4 | 0 | 20 |
| Jayden Higgins WR | 2 | 12 | 6 | 0 | 8 | 0 | 8 |
| Marlin Klein TE | 1 | 7 | 7 | 0 | 4 | 1 | 7 |
| Woody Marks HB | 1 | 4 | 4 | 0 | 3 | 1 | 4 |
| Malik Benson WR | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
FALCONS
| PLAYER | TKL | SCK | INT | PD | FF | CMP ALW | TD |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Divine Deablo MIKE | 8 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 6 | 0 |
| Harrison Phillips DT | 6 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Jalon Walker LEDG | 5 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Jaylinn Hawkins FS | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 0 |
| Jessie Bates III FS | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 |
| A.J. Terrell Jr CB | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 |
| James Pearce Jr REDG | 3 | 0.5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| Clark Phillips III CB | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 0 |
| Avieon Terrell CB | 3 | 0.5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 0 |
| Xavier Watts SS | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| A'Mauri Washington DT | 2 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Kendal Daniels WILL | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| Mike Hughes CB | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
TEXANS
| PLAYER | TKL | SCK | INT | PD | FF | CMP ALW | TD |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jalen Pitre SS | 5 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 0 |
| Jermaine Johnson II REDG | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Brice Pollock CB | 4 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 6 | 0 |
| Reed Blankenship SS | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 0 |
| Azeez Al-Shaair SAM | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| Nehemiah Pritchett CB | 3 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| Derek Stingley Jr CB | 3 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| Tommy Togiai DT | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Wade Woodaz MIKE | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Kayden McDonald DT | 2 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Calen Bullock FS | 2 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Germaine Pratt WILL | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| Will Anderson Jr LEDG | 2 | 0.5 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| Kamari Ramsey FS | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Trey Taylor SS | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Yahya Black DT | 0 | 0.5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
FALCONS
| PLAYER | FG | XP | LNG |
|---|---|---|---|
| Daniel Carlson K | 1/1 | 3/3 | 23 |
TEXANS
| PLAYER | FG | XP | LNG |
|---|---|---|---|
| Ka'imi Fairbairn K | 3/4 | 3/3 | 50 |
RECENT FORM
Falcons
L
14–34 vs Jaguars
WK 5
W
37–22 vs Eagles
WK 4
W
33–22 vs Panthers
WK 3
Texans
W
52–42 vs Dolphins
WK 5
W
20–13 vs Patriots
WK 4
L
34–41 vs Jaguars
WK 3
TEAM STATS
| Falcons | Texans | |
|---|---|---|
| 427 | TOTAL YARDS | 425 |
| 231 | PASSING YARDS | 308 |
| 196 | RUSHING YARDS | 117 |
| 2 | SACKS ALLOWED | 3 |
| 3 | SACKS MADE | 2 |
| 2 | GIVEAWAYS | 0 |
| 0 | TAKEAWAYS | 2 |
Bold is the side that won that line. Giveaways come off a team's own offensive rows and takeaways off its own defensive rows — two separate payloads, so they need not tie out against each other.
ALL-TIME HEAD-TO-HEAD
0
FALCONS
—
1
TEXANS