Andre Johnson and the Houston Texans emerged from one brawl without incident last week. They may have to survive another to remain standing in the AFC playoff race.
Coming off their first shutout in six years, the Texans hit the road to take on the Philadelphia Eagles on Thursday night.
Houston (5-6) saved its season last week, snapping a four-game losing streak with a 20-0 victory over the Tennessee Titans. It was the first shutout since 2004 for the Texans, who held Tennessee to nine first downs and 162 totals yards.
The game was marred by a fight between Houston wide receiver Andre Johnson and Titans cornerback Cortland Finnegan. After ripping one another's helmets off, Johnson nailed Finnegan with two solid right hands and both players were ejected.
Somewhat surprisingly, the NFL decided not to suspend either player, instead doling out $25,000 fines to each.
That was a huge bonus for Houston, which will need its star wideout in the lineup to keep pace with Michael Vick and the high-scoring Eagles offense.
Johnson had nine receptions for 56 yards and a touchdown before he was tossed in Sunday’s game, making him the first receiver in league history to have at least 60 receptions in each of his first eight seasons.
The Texans also feature the league’s leading rusher in Arian Foster, who rumbled for 143 yards on 30 carries against Titans. It was the sixth 100-yard game for Foster, who has 1,147 yards and an NFL-high 12 rushing touchdowns.
Foster also has emerged as a reliable target out of the backfield for quarterback Matt Schaub, catching 48 passes this season, including nine for 75 yards last week.
Schaub has thrown for 15 touchdowns and seven interceptions while completing 64.3 percent of his passes for 2,752 yards.
The Texans, who had surrendered at least 29 points in six consecutive games prior to the shutout of Tennessee, will be hard pressed to slow down Philadelphia’s big-play offense.
The Eagles (7-4) had their three-game winning streak snapped in a 31-26 loss at Chicago last week that dropped them back into a tie with the New York Giants atop the NFC East.
Vick threw for 333 yards and a pair of touchdown passes, but he also was sacked four times and tossed his first interception of the season.
The Eagles are tied for second in the league in scoring at 28.2 points per game and will be looking to exploit a Houston defense that ranks 31st in passing defense, having allowed 286.2 yards per game, and has yielded a league-high 25 touchdown passes.
DeSean Jackson was limited to two catches for 26 yards and Jeremy Maclin had four catches for 47 yards and a score vs. the Bears. Running back LeSean McCoy, who leads NFL running backs with 59 receptions, had 120 total yards.
Philadelphia has won its last three home games and has gone 10-1 overall in its last 11 contests in December.