AFC South Update: Titans on bye week as Texans fails upwards

NASHVILLE - With the Tennessee Titans getting a much needed rest and opportunity to regroup during a Week 5 bye week, the rest of the AFC South was playing some tightly contested football games.

For the second straight week, it looked as if the Titans were going to gain some essential ground in the divisional race. But once again the Houston Texans survived a game that they tried to give away.

C.J. Stroud turned the ball over twice in the fourth quarter and gave the Buffalo Bills ample opportunity to win. But an injury to Josh Allen, a missed call in the red zone, and a 59-yard field goal by Ka'imi Fairbairn locked up a 23-20 Texans victory.

Houston is now sitting atop the division with a 4-1 record. That makes it seem like they've been dominant and are running away with things. But the AFC South may be more up for grabs than meets the eye when you only look at the Texans' record.

The Texans barely survived the Indianpolis Colts in Week 1 and struggled offensively in a one-score win against the Chicago Bears in Week 2. After getting blown out by the Minnesota Vikings 34-7 in Week 3, Houston has narrowly escaped the Jaguars and injured Bills.

At 4-1, the Texans point differential is -12...that's usually a good indicator that a team is not as good as their record would suggest. That's the worst point differential of any team currently sitting over .500. Only the Atlanta Falcons are also over .500 with a negative differential. Oh, and for what it's worth, the Titans have a point differential of -11.

I think the Texans are a bit fraudulent up to this point. But nevertheless, they are 4-1. That's a tough hole for the 1-3 Titans to climb out of, even if the difference between the two rosters isn't drastic. That makes the last two weeks even more frustrating.

The Indianapolis Colts (2-3) lost to the Jacksonville Jaguars (1-4) on Sunday. But the main question about Indy moving forward is if they'll stick with Joe Flacco at quarterback. Despite the loss to Jacksonville, the offense with Flacco under center has been firing on all cylinders. The veteran threw for 359 yards and three touchdowns while scoring 34 points on Sunday.

The Titans have a date with the Colts at Nissan Stadium next weekend. It's a must-win for both teams and both quarterback situations seem to be up in the air.

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