The present might be bleak for the Houston Texans, but the future is bright. Houston is likely going to be one of the worst teams in the AFC once again in 2022. The Texans have finished with just four wins in back-to-back seasons as a result of Bill O’Brien’s disastrous run as general manager coupled with Deshaun Watson’s off-field issues. Fortunately, O’Brien and Watson are both gone now, so the rebuild can begin in earnest. Houston will have a bevy of draft picks to work with as a result of the Watson trade, and the Texans are hoping to turn it around as quickly as Miami did a few years ago.
Houston Texans Season Win Total
Over 4.5 Wins -104
Under 4.5 Wins -116
2022 Houston Texans Schedule
| WEEK | MATCHUP |
| 1 | Vs. Indianapolis Colts |
| 2 | @ Denver Broncos |
| 3 | @ Chicago Bears |
| 4 | Vs. Los Angeles Chargers |
| 5 | @ Jacksonville Jaguars |
| 6 | BYE WEEK |
| 7 | @ Las Vegas Raiders |
| 8 | Vs. Tennessee Titans |
| 9 | Vs. Philadelphia Eagles |
| 10 | @ New York Giants |
| 11 | Vs. Washington Commanders |
| 12 | @ Miami Dolphins |
| 13 | Vs. Cleveland Browns |
| 14 | @ Dallas Cowboys |
| 15 | Vs. Kansas City Chiefs |
| 16 | @ Tennessee Titans |
| 17 | Vs. Jacksonville Jaguars |
| 18 | @ Indianapolis Colts |
Houston Texans Offense
This offense is likely going to be one of the worst in the NFL this season. The Texans ranked 30th in scoring offense and dead last in total offense in 2021, and there’s not much reason to believe it will be more than marginally better this year.
Davis Mills was decent for a rookie quarterback that wasn’t drafted in the first round. Mills completed 66.8% of his passes for 2,664 yards with 16 touchdowns and 10 interceptions. He was not expected to play much, but Tyrod Taylor was injured and ineffective early in the season, leading to the third-round draft pick out of Stanford seeing action in 13 games. Mills is not a mobile quarterback at all, so the offensive line will have to keep him upright in the pocket.
It would help if the running game could keep the pressure off Mills. The running backs were unable to have much success last year, and Rex Burkhead ended up leading the team with 427 yards and 3.5 YPC. Burkhead is expected to be the backup to Marlon Mack this year, and the hope is that Mack can be more successful.
This offensive line really needs to improve given the resources the Texans have dedicated to fixing it. Laremy Tunsil has not been worth what the team gave up in order to acquire him, and first-round draft pick Tytus Howard has yet to pan out. They drafted guard Kenyon Green out of Texas A&M with the 15th overall pick, and they signed A.J. Cann in free agency. That should mean improvement in 2022, although it could take time for this unit to gel.
Houston also drafted John Metchie III in the second round to help the receiving corps. Brandin Cooks had a very nice year in this offense given the problems at quarterback with 90 receptions for 1,037 yards and six touchdowns, so the passing game should be better.
Houston Texans Defense
This defense has ranked in the bottom five in total defense for three straight years. Houston will probably have one of the bottom six or seven defenses in the NFL once again in 2022, as there just isn’t a lot of talent on this side of the ball.
The Texans did draft LSU cornerback Derek Stingley Jr. with the No. 3 overall pick. Houston went with Stingley over Ahmad Gardner, and the hope is that he can shut down one side of the field. This secondary needs all the help it can get given what we saw last year.
The front seven isn’t much better. The Texans allowed 142.2 YPG on the ground last year (31st in the NFL), and they could only record 32 sacks. No player had more than four sacks for Houston, so this team is in desperate need of an elite run stuffer and pass rusher.
Prediction
We won’t see any real improvement from the Texans this season. This team is still digging itself out of a hole, so the ‘Under’ is the play to make although the number is low.
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