The Houston Texans snapped a two-game skid on Monday Night Football with a win at Jerry World over the Dallas Cowboys.
Joe Mixon ran for three touchdowns and the defense looking much-improved, but that hasn’t been enough to vault DeMeco Ryans’ side into a Top 10 spot in most NFL power rankings.
“Nico Collins’ opening-play touchdown was called back, and it was emblematic of the Texans’ offensive night: plenty of encouraging signs, mixed with bouts of frustration and inefficiency. That said, Joe Mixon still paid off that opening drive with a 45-yard touchdown run, providing an important early statement in the wake of back-to-back losses for Houston. The first-year Texan fueled the offense with 153 scrimmage yards and three scores, while C.J. Stroud settled down after a bad early pick and Collins made an impact in his return from injury. But the offense only crossed midfield once from the 9:00 mark of the second quarter until Dallas turned it over on downs on its own 35-yard line with six minutes left in the fourth. Thankfully, the Texans’ defense was smothering, led by Danielle Hunter’s two sacks, Derek Barnett’s strip-and-score and Derek Stingley Jr.’s excellent coverage on CeeDee Lamb. This was a sigh-of-relief game for Houston, although it had a few testy moments between both teams. Rarely easy for the Texans this year.” – Eric Edholm
“Diggs suffered a torn ACL in a contract year, as the former Bills receiver is a free agent after the season. He averaged 62 receiving yards per game, the third-lowest mark of his career. But he was still an effective No. 2 option for quarterback C.J. Stroud by being tied for the team lead in touchdowns (three) before he went down. He will be age 31 and coming off an injury going into next season, so his market will be murky.” – DJ Bien-Aime
“The Texans are not winning how everyone expected, with C.J. Stroud and the passing game failing to hit a higher gear amid injury issues. But the running-and-defense formula will rebound and take care of business in the extra-weak AFC South.” – Vinnie Iyer
“After Cooper Rush coughed up a fumble leading to a knockout-blow defensive touchdown, this game stopped looking close. This is a “win your clunker” special for the Texans but I have a very conservative position on them in the power rankings thanks to an inescapable feeling that I shouldn’t trust them. C.J. Stroud has not hit triple digits on his passer rating since Oct. 13 now. Since Oct. 20, Stroud has thrown just two touchdowns to three picks.” – Connor Orr
