HOUSTON - Jaylin Noel saw an opening and he busted through it, reading his blocking and accelerating away from pursuit.
The speed and moves of the Texans' rookie wide receiver were impressive during a 20-19 loss Monday night to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers at NRG Stadium.
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Noel, the Big 12 Special Teams Player of the Year last season at Iowa State, delivered a 53-yard punt return to spark the Texans.
There was also a blocked punt by fullback Jakob Johnson, and pressure led to a missed field goal by the Buccaneers.
The special teams units, coached by Frank Ross, a two-time winner of the annual Rick Gosselin special teams rankings list, were arguably one of the only bright spots in the defeat as the Texans dropped to 0-2 for the season.
"Our guys, a lot of guys, gave us the chance to win this game," Texans coach DeMeco Ryans said. "Special teams played outstanding, blocking the kick, getting an explosive return, forcing a missed field goal. Guys showed up and made plays to give us an opportunity.
"Now, how do you capitalize on that? How do you put a team away? You let a good team like this stick around for too long is what we did, and they ended up making a play there."
Aaron Wilson is a Texans and NFL reporter for KPRC 2 and click2houston.com