Battle Red Blog
To say that there are high expectations for the Houston Texans this season is to understate the obvious. After a less-than-satisfying end to a strong 2025-26 season, Houston did a lot to shore up the team strengths (re-signing/extending key defensive stalwarts) and spent a lot of draft capital/free agent dollars to try to once against improve the offensive line, as well as adding weapons via trade (David Montgomery). Houston will look to not only reclaim the AFC South Division title but to finally breakthrough the Division Round ceiling.
There is a lot of reason for optimism. However, any Houston fan knows all too well that the negatives can easily come to the forefront. Promise and pressure can sometimes be too much. With that in mind, here are some pre-mortem causes should Houston’s season fails to live up to its hopes and dreams.
The fall of CJ Stroud: No Texan entered the offseason facing more questions about his future than QB CJ Stroud. After a rookie season for the ages, Stroud has spent the last two seasons struggling to live up to that opening act. It is not as if he has been horrible, with playoff wins in each of his three seasons. It is also not as if it is all on him, as the team has struggled mightily to provide a consistently solid offensive line, leaving him with one of the worst run games in the league and under a significant amount of duress. However, if the adage “you are only as good as your last performance” is a truth, then Stroud left the world with the worst version of himself. That 4 INT performance in New England likely prevented him from signing a big contract extension. The team has not sat idly by, revamping the offensive line and bringing in better running back talent in David Montgomery. In theory, improvements in protection and the running game should only help Stroud and the offense writ large.
Yet, what of the psychological? While Stroud’s sack numbers were down last season, his pressure rate was still among the worst in the league. Also, he had arguably two of his worst ever QB games in the two playoff game in Pittsburgh and New England. The season may start out well, but what happens after that first bad play? The first INT? Can he still shake it off and more forward, or will the negativity build on itself? If it does, and Stroud can’t get out of his own head, then all of the moves the team made will prove null and void. This would then begat some very difficult questions within Reliant Stadium about the future of Stroud and the franchise.
The offense doesn’t help Stroud at all: There is always the possibility that the offseason offensive upgrade are not, in fact, upgrades. Branden Smith and Wyatt Teller, in theory, are superior OLs to the men they replaced. However, Smith is overcoming some significant injuries and Teller is not the same guard...
