The Houston Gamblers are riding momentum from their upset victory over St. Louis last weekend, but coach Kevin Sumlin knows his team can't afford to get comfortable. With playoff hopes hanging by a thread, the Gamblers face the unique challenge of playing the Battlehawks in back-to-back weeks — this time at home in what could be their final stand.
At the center of Houston's late-season push is quarterback Hunter Dekkers, who's finally hitting his stride after missing five weeks with injury. Sumlin sees steady improvement from his signal-caller but wants him to cut down on the costly mistakes.
Dekkers Still Shaking Off Rust
Sumlin didn't sugarcoat his assessment of Dekkers during Wednesday's press conference. The quarterback came into the season rusty and then lost five crucial weeks to injury, making his recent progress all the more important.
"He continues to improve. Obviously he has shown that he is talented and can make the throws all over the field," Sumlin said. "I think the biggest step he's got to make is just making sure that he's given us a chance and not — and cut down the negative yardage plays, right? Whether it's taking a sack or throwing an interception."
The coach emphasized that while aggression is expected, Dekkers needs to sharpen his field vision and pre-snap reads. "There are things in between that I think seeing the field and being able to adjust and make checks and do things like that. I think he can, and he's getting better at it because he hadn't played a lot."
Back-to-Back Challenge Against St. Louis
Playing the same opponent in consecutive weeks presents a chess match unlike anything else in football. Sumlin isn't buying into any supposed advantages from familiarity.
"I don't know that you want to play a team back-to-back all the time," Sumlin explained. "You look at some of these head-to-head games, the team who wins the first one has struggled in the second one. So I don't know what the advantage is."
The Battlehawks will be adjusting to personnel changes, including the loss of one of their top tight ends. That uncertainty cuts both ways in a rematch scenario where both teams know exactly what to expect from film study.
Receiver Room Stepping Up
While Dekkers works through his development, the Gamblers' receiving corps has been carrying the load. Jontre Kirklin, who leads the team in receiving yards, praised the depth and intelligence of Houston's pass-catchers.
"All I can say is it's explosive. It's a lot of speed in the room, a lot of talent, a lot of guys with high football IQ," Kirklin said. "We complement each other, I would say."
Kirklin and fellow receivers Justin Hall and Lawrence Keys are all within 10 yards of each other statistically, creating a balanced attack that's tough for defenses to key on any single player.
Win-or-Go-Home Mentality
The math is simple for Houston's playoff hopes. Kirklin laid it out bluntly when asked about the team's mindset heading into the final stretch.
"We basically need to win out, for real, for real, if you want me to be honest," Kirklin said. "We just gotta take it one week at a time. We can't think about the situation after."
Kirklin emphasized the need to avoid self-inflicted wounds that have derailed drives throughout the season. "We got to eliminate all the self-destructing situations that I feel like we'd be putting ourselves into. I feel like we beat ourselves."
The Gamblers host St. Louis this Sunday at Shell Energy Stadium in what could be their final home game of the season if they can't string together wins. With momentum from last week's victory and a quarterback finally finding his rhythm, Houston has the pieces in place for a playoff push — if they can execute when it matters most.