The Houston Texans have been the team to beat in the AFC South for most of DeMeco Ryans' time with the team. He's instilled his never-stopping, hard-hitting defensive motor well deep in the team's DNA, and quarterbacks know they'll be in for a long day every time they have to face them.
That was certainly the case in the first year of the Daniel Jones era. The Texans got the best of the Indianapolis Colts in both meetings last season, including one in the season finale with Riley Leonard at quarterback.
That's why watching them keep some of their defensive stars around and add even more firepower next to Will Anderson Jr. and Danielle Hunter would be a catastrophe. According to Bleacher Report's Kristopher Knox, that's exactly what they should do before the start of the season.
The Texans could add more talent to their defense to scare the Indianapolis Colts
"...Derek Barnett and Denico Autry provided 8.5 sacks as complementary edge-rushers last season, and both remain unsigned," wrote Knox. "Bringing at least one of the two back would be advisable, and Houston could consider other options, like Leonard Floyd or A.J. Epenesa. Either way, the Texans should bolster their edge depth ahead of training camp."
The Texans' pass rush is already utterly dominant. They hit Daniel Jones 6 times and sacked him once in their 20-16 win, and they doubled down on that with 3 QB hits and one sack of Riley Leonard in their second matchup. As a team, the Texans averaged 2.9 sacks per game last season, tied for the fourth-most in the league.
The Colts will host the Texans in Week 3 of the 2026 season, with Daniel Jones likely still out and nursing his season-ending injury. Then, barring another injury, he should be out there when the Colts travel to Houston for a Week 11 Thursday Night Football rematch.
Fortunately, general manager Chris Ballard has built a solid offensive line, and pass-protection shouldn't be much of an issue for Jones or whoever is behind center in Indianapolis. That said, the Texans' bruising and deep defense can keep every quarterback on his toes.
The Colts have gone to great lengths to bolster their defense this season. That should help mitigate the Texans' unimpressive running back corps and put pressure on the erratic C.J. Stroud. Still, divisional matchups are always a toss-up. This team didn't do much to help their quarterback in his second year with the team, and that spells trouble with such a strong defense in the division.
At least, the Texans won't have that many big-name options to add to the team. According to Over The Cap, the Texans have only $17.1 million in available cap space, so guys like Joey Bosa or Leonard Floyd will likely be better suited to join teams with more financial flexibility. For Jones' sake, let's just hope that's the case.
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