The Houston Texans have set the NFL world on fire in 2023 and things are hotter than ever after Saturday night's 45-14 drubbing of the Cleveland Browns.

And for good reason, too. The Texans looked like more than just a playoff team against an 11-win Browns squad – they looked like one of the best teams in what's left of the NFL. That's in an AFC field with Patrick Mahomes and the Kansas City Chiefs, Lamar Jackson and the Baltimore Ravens, Josh Allen and the Buffalo Bills – and it doesn't even include the top teams and signal-callers in the NFC.

It's hard to poke holes in the Wild Card performance, but there are two glaring areas that need to be fixed if the Texans want to beat either the Ravens or Chiefs.

Texans were not good on third down

C.J. Stroud and the offense lit up a very good Browns defense, especially through the air. The Browns allowed a league-best 164.7 passing yards per game in 2023 and Stroud had 236 passing yards and three touchdowns in the first half. The pass protection was there all night long, evidenced by zero sacks given up on Houston's side of things.

And, the Texans avoided turnovers all night long, as well.

But, on third down, things were not good. At all. 

Houston managed to convert just one of its first five third down attempts. As a matter of fact, its first conversion came in the first quarter and the sticks weren't moved on the money down, again (outside of penalty), until the fourth quarter. If it weren't for a defensive pass interference call on Ronnie Hickman in the third quarter, the Texans would've started 1-of-6 on third down. Overall, they went 2-of-8 for the game.

Yes, they were making plays on first and second downs, so third down wasn't as important in this game. But there was one third down, in particular, that wasn't converted and it can really hurt the Texans against their remaining AFC foes.

It was the 3rd and goal from the Browns 2 in the first quarter, where the offense had to settle for a field goal, instead of a touchdown. Goal-to-go situations are absolutely crucial in the playoffs and while it's hard to do, every opportunity needs to end in six-points. 

In all, Houston has to get better on the money down. It can't expect to fire off explosives all night like it did against Cleveland. That needs to be both the plan and the goal, but we all know how nothing is guaranteed in the NFL.

Getting better on third down means Houston is rounded out on offense and is putting together drives that not only end in points, but take time off the clock. And that would be a major advantage, moving forward.

The running game must get better, too

And speaking of not relying on explosives and sustaining the drives: The Texans have to get better on the ground if they want to keep marching through the postseason.

Again, Stroud and the passing attack were dialed in all night, but still, 16 running back carries -eight in each half- along with the basic average of 4.1 yards per carry isn't the greatest feat, especially when 48 of the 66-yards gained by running backs came on two plays. In all, the Texans averaged just 3.79 yards per carry on the ground – and that's excluding Davis Mills' three kneel downs for -4 yards.

Before garbage time, seven of the team's 14 running back carries went for one-yard or less – and three of those went for negative yardage. The Browns played close to the line of scrimmage and loaded the box the majority of the night, prompting the Texans to beat them through the air. Fortunately, Stroud made that happen.

And that was all part of the plan – to be aggressive.

"Bobby did a great job today like he always does," Stroud said after the game. "When he calls [the plays], we ball. He knew to mix it up, a bit. We wanted to throw the ball early just to set the tone that we were not going to shy away from anything. … When you have an [offensive coordinator] that's going to be aggressive and taking care of the football, that's a recipe for success."

But still, the Texans couldn't get the ground game going, overall. It can't afford to go into the rest of the playoffs as a one-dimensional team. The Browns have a very, very good defense, but one can make the case the Bills, Chiefs, and Ravens defenses are even better. Pittsburgh is the only AFC opposition that doesn't have stack up in this context. Going into those games flexing one strength is not a recipe for success.

The defense closed the game out with two pick-sixes, but again, that's something that can't be relied upon, either. The Texans need to find a way to get Devin Singletary and co. going. That way, they can close out a close game or find a rhythm if the passing game isn't working in the future.

Let's not forget the rest of the playoffs will be played outdoors, in cold weather, as well. The running game will be absolutely key, moving forward. The good news is the Texans have a very creative game-planner in Slowik, so, he should do what's needed to get things on track.

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Don't get it twisted: The Texans were lights-out on Saturday night. It was one of the franchise's most memorable performances, of all-time, and DeMeco Ryans and co. are on fire heading into Round 2.

But this is playoff football, where literally everything matters. The Texans have to correct the third down issues and the running game issues. Because if they don't, their miraculous season will come to an end.

But if they do, well, let's just say this team could wind up pulling off one of the best and most unexpected seasons in NFL history.