Bill O'Brien has been successful five of the seven times he's thrown the red challenge flag this season.
He was right both times he tossed it during Sunday night's loss to the Patriots.
Early in the third quarter, with the Texans trailing New England 17-6, Tom Brady threw to Danny Amendola for what was ruled to be a 16-yard completion and first down.
But O'Brien didn't agree with the call.
"When I saw it on the video board I said 'Danny didn't catch that,'" O'Brien said.
The Texans boss tossed the red flag for the sixth time in 2015, and the ruling was reversed. The ball hit the ground while Amendola was securing it, and instead of 1st-and-10 at the Houston 22, and it was 2nd-and-10 at the Houston 38.
Three plays later, O'Brien reached into his waistband again to toss the challenge flag, as the officials ruled that James White pulled down a Brady pass along the right sideline for a gain of 20 yards on 3rd-and-3. That too, was overturned, and the Patriots had to settle for a Stephen Gostkowski 49-yard field goal.
"James White was out of bounds," O'Brien said. "I could see his heel on the white. I just felt like they were worth the challenge. The big thing there was we had to stem the tide a little bit there, and it worked out for that moment."
O'Brien was 2-for-2 on challenges, but ultimately it didn't lead to a victory for the Texans.
. We're turning the page. We're on to the Colts. It's a big game for obviously both teams. We've already started working on these guys, and our players are very focused on the Indianapolis Colts.
OLB WHITNEY MERCILUS
What are your thoughts on playing up in Indianapolis in basically a do-or-die situation?
"We will get to the drawing board on Wednesday, prepare for Indy. That's the thing, we have to go up there and just win this thing out. That's it. That's the mentality we have right now, just give us a shot at getting to the playoffs."
QB T.J. YATES
What similarities can you take from your previous start up there to today?
"Just knowing, going up there before, played there before, started there, it's not a new territory that I have never been, but so many things are going to be different. The situation is still kind of the same for what's on the line. We have to go up there and win, that's the number one goal, that's the only thing that matters right now."
What do you know about the Colts defensively?
"I flew through the game we played against them earlier in the year, when I wasn't here, just checking out their defensive personnel, just kind of seeing what their front is and what kind of coverages they play. I haven't really gotten much into it at all, but just kind of getting familiar with them."
What is it like to play there in Indianapolis?
"It can get pretty loud, especially on third downs. They definitely have a good home crowd and good atmosphere. When they are on offense, they are pretty much silent, so they have a good home crowd and it is going to be a good task for us."
