The Houston Texans will visit MetLife stadium Thursday night to take on the New York Jets and kickoff the NFL's Week 9 slate. To help preview the matchup, Drew Dougherty of HoustonTexans.com and John Pullano of NYJets.com chatted about the game.
The Texans' receiving corps has been battling injuries this season, with Nico Collins on IR and Stefon Diggs sustaining a torn ACL in Week 8. Despite the injuries, the Texans are averaging 26.6 points per game since Week 6. How has the Texans' offense managed to stay productive? And how does the offense match up with the Jets talented defense?
DD: The Texans have benefited from outstanding play by Joe Mixon at running back. In the four games he's started and finished this season he's cracked the 100-yard mark. He's averaging 4.9 yards per carry and is third in the NFL with 123.6 scrimmage yards per game. Mixon's also been able to pop several runs of 10 yards or more, and he's coming off a win over the Colts in which he went for 10 or more five different times. Without Nico Collins and Stefon Diggs, Mixon will certainly get his touches, and the Houston offense will rely heavily upon the likes of Tank Dell, Xavier Hutchinson, Robert Woods and John Metchie at receiver, as well as tight end Dalton Schultz.
JP: Much of the credit needs to go to second-year QB C.J. Stroud. Stroud doesn't have the gaudy numbers of some other quarterbacks – 11 TDs and 4 interceptions – but he has been sacked the third-most times in the league (22) and managed to stay resilient in the face of pressure, guiding the Texans to their best 8-game start since 2012. Stroud's worst game as a pro, however, came against the Jets in 2023. In a 30-6 win for New York, the former No. 2 overall pick went 10 of 23 for 91 yards and no touchdowns, before being injured 6 minutes into the fourth quarter. I think the Jets will be able to have similar success because of their continuity in the secondary. CBs D.J. Reed, Michael Carter II and Sauce Gardner will all be active for the second straight week.
The strength of the Texans' defense this season has been the pass rush, No. 3 in sacks and No. 8 in pressure rate over the first 8 games. How do you expect the Houston defense to attack this Jets offense led by Aaron Rodgers and their handful of playmakers?
DD: I expect a frisky pass rush coupled with solid coverage from the secondary. Head Coach DeMeco Ryans has repeatedly stressed the importance of the Texans' defense playing its game as opposed to focusing on who the quarterback is. In the last two home games, the defense held perennial MVP-candidate Josh Allen and last year's fourth overall pick Anthony Richardson to 30 and 31 percent, respectively. Both attempted 30 or more passes, too.
JP: The Texans' defense this season has been blitzing and playing sticky in coverage. Houston blitzes 28.2% of the time, the eighth highest in the NFL, and, according to Pro Football Focus, the Texans play man coverage on 36.2%of defensive snaps, up from 18.9% in HC DeMeco Ryans first season. And the formula is working, the Texans have allowed 22.3 points per game this season (21 PPG since Week 4).
The Jets have already played the Broncos and Vikings, the two teams with highest blitz rate in the NFL this season and should have some familiarity with Houston's style. I expect the Jets to get the ball to Breece Hall early. Hall leads all tailbacks in receptions and is No. 8 in scrimmage yards. In their matchup versus Denver and Minnesota, the Jets were not able to establish the run. Getting the ground game going versus Houston could go a long way toward earning a win.
Which player on the Jets or Texans, despite maybe a slow start, has improved this season and should be part of the opposing team's gameplan as they prepare for Thursday's game?
DD: While I wouldn't characterize his start as "slow," I definitely think New York must be prepared for defensive lineman Denico Autry. This will be his third game of the season after missing the first 6 due to a suspension. But in 2023 he rang up 11.5 sacks, and can play end and tackle in this defense. In union with ends Danielle Hunter and Will Anderson, Jr., as well as tackles Foley Fatukasi and Tim Settle, Autry is another threat in the pass rush who can really cause problems for Aaron Rodgers & Co.
JP: Jets DL Quinnen Williams has been productive this season, but a lot of his production has been hidden. The Green & White's All-Pro DT has been doubled on 41.9% of his pass rush snaps, 12th highest among DTs, which has created rush lanes for others, such as Will McDonald IV (8 sacks) and Micheal Clemons (2.5). But Sunday versus New England, Williams started to beat those double teams, coming away with 1.5 sacks and earning an 81.3 defensive rating by PFF, his highest since Week 13 of 2023. If last week is any indication, Williams has gone up another level and will begin beating more double teams. Houston could be in trouble, because when Williams wins, the Jets become un-block-able.
