Jaguars' defense continues to wreak havoc

Dec 18, 2017 - 2:09 AM JACKSONVILLE, Fla. -- The Jacksonville Jaguars' defense remains on a historic pace.

Since the 1970 merger, no NFL defense has finished first in fewest points allowed, sacks and takeaways.

The Jaguars sacked Houston quarterback T.J. Yates four times and forced one turnover Sunday in a 45-7 win at EverBank Field.

Jacksonville (10-4) clinched its first playoff berth since 2007 with the victory.

The defense began its march in Houston to open the season on Sept. 10, logging a franchise-best 10 sacks in a 29-7 win.

Led by ends Calais Campbell and Yannick Ngakoue, as well as cornerbacks Jalen Ramsey and A.J. Bouye, the defense has never looked back.

The Jaguars lead the NFL in scoring defense (14.9 points), sacks (51) and takeaways (30).

"Nobody can drive on us," Jaguars defensive tackle Malik Jackson said. "Nobody can get in the red zone on us and score. We feel that way and that's what the stats say. That is what we'll go out there and continue to have."

Campbell had two sacks Sunday to push his franchise-record season total to 14 1/2.

"We want to have a standard every time we touch the field," Campbell said. "It's a certain standard we expect. When we eliminate our mistakes and stay focused, we're a tough team to beat."

Campbell has six sacks against the Texans this season.

"We've tried to double him, and we've slid to him," Houston coach Bill O'Brien said. "Obviously, sometimes, you've got to single them just based on how they line up. It's a numbers game. If they overload you on one side, sometimes you end up singled on him. But he's a great player, and he's definitely hurt us this year."

Behind Campbell, Ngakoue has 11 sacks, Jackson has eight and end Dante Fowler has 7 1/2. Fowler and Jackson each had a sack Sunday.

Bouye has six interceptions and Ramsey has four.

Houston managed just 186 total yards. Strong safety Barry Church picked off Yates for the Jaguars' lone takeaway.

The Texans did find the end zone when receiver DeAndre Hopkins beat Ramsey for a 25-yard touchdown. The score only cut the lead to 31-7, but Ramsey was visibly upset.

"I love playing against that guy and he's going to be one of the best one day," Hopkins said. "When I scored the touchdown, I could see in his face that he was hurt. That's what you want from a young player like that. Even though they were up by a lot of points, he takes it to the heart. I'm going to look forward to competing against him in the future."