T.Y. Hilton had a good day against the Houston Texans — something that should come as no surprise to anyone who has ever watched Hilton play in Houston before.
The Indianapolis Colts wide receiver entered Saturday with seven previous visits to NRG Stadium in Houston and had 41 receptions for 933 yards and seven touchdowns in those games. That’s an average of 133.3 yards and one touchdown per game.
On the first drive of a Wild Card matchup against the Texans, Hilton got right back down to business. He caught two first down receptions and then got the Colts in the red zone when he hauled in a 38-yard reception in the middle of the field between three Texans defenders.
TY showing up big today @TYHilton13 pic.twitter.com/tr92zHvRKx
— The Checkdown (@thecheckdown) January 5, 2019
Four minutes into the game, Hilton already had three receptions for 63 yards. He finished with five receptions for 85 yards — below his usual average in Houston, but enough for an updated bio on Wikipedia:
WHO DID THIS?! pic.twitter.com/SJdtsDK5J6
— SB Nation (@SBNation) January 5, 2019
Hilton’s day was especially impressive considering the receiver didn’t practice all week due to an ankle injury. But he was always confident he’d have a big day — practice or not.
There’s a growing beef between Hilton and the Texans secondary
In Week 14, the Colts beat the Texans, 24-21, and Hilton had another big day. He caught nine passes for 199 yards and told reporters after the game that NRG Stadium is his “second home.”
That comment didn’t set well with at least one member of the Texans defense.
“Nah, man, that’s for clowns,” Texans cornerback Jonathan Joseph told the Houston Chronicle. “That’s for TV. That’s what they do. You put something in their face, anybody can say it.”
Hilton responded to Joseph’s comments by arriving at the stadium Saturday with a clown mask:
Guess who? pic.twitter.com/bf7oaEgBsE
— Indianapolis Colts (@Colts) January 5, 2019
After the game, Texans cornerback Shareece Wright said players in the secondary weren’t happy about it:
Shareece Wright On TY Hilton’s clown mask: “It’s disrespectful. Definitely pissed us off — but we didn’t make him pay for it.”
— Aaron Reiss (@aaronjreiss) January 6, 2019
Hilton also sent a tweet that took a shot at Joseph, specifically:
Point To The Easy Work #PLAYOFFS LETSSSS GOOOO COLTS NATION pic.twitter.com/wUATjvTvEp
— TY Hilton (@TYHilton13) January 5, 2019
After the game, though, Hilton was respectful and said the clown mask was just his attempt at having some fun with the situation.
Where did @TYHilton13 find the mask?? @randy_moss_TV talked to the @Colts WR about their victory and more!
— NFL Network (@nflnetwork) January 6, 2019
: @NFLGameDay Highlights pic.twitter.com/JgI5j54ADP
Hilton’s not going anywhere any time soon, so he’ll have another two games against the Texans in 2019. Maybe then Houston will finally be able to slow him down.