John McClain, a member of the Pro Football Hall of Fame and the Texas Sports Hall of Fame, is in his 48th year of covering the NFL in Houston, including 45 seasons at the Houston Chronicle.
The Texans' defense is an anomaly.
It gets persistent pressure on opposing quarterbacks and is closing in on a franchise record for sacks but still allows touchdown passes at a dizzying pace.
While the Texans get ready to play three games in 11 days against elite quarterbacks Tua Tagovailoa (Miami), Patrick Mahomes (Kansas City) and Lamar Jackson (Baltimore), their No. 1 priority on defense should be a reduction in touchdown passes – a problem that's plagued them all season.
Usually, a defense that harasses quarterbacks as ferociously as the Texans doesn't surrender a lot of touchdown passes. Pressure from the pass rushers ordinarily translates into better coverage and fewer touchdowns passes, but that's not what's happened with the Texans.
They lead the AFC South with an 8-5 record, and they enter the Miami game at NRG Stadium fifth in defense (308.5-yard average), including 10th against the run (109.7) and seventh against the pass (198.8). They have 42 sacks – second in the NFL to Denver's 47 – and they're four behind their record-setting pace of 2023.
With four games left in regular season, the Texans should shatter their sack record of 46 set last season, but they've allowed 26 touchdown passes. No team has given up more. And no offense has more speed and big-play ability than the Dolphins.
"Watching the Dolphins, the first thing that jumps out is how efficient and accurate Tua is," Head Coach DeMeco Ryans said. "He's done a great job of making smart decisions with the football.
"He gets the ball out quickly, but it's accurate, and he's getting it into the hands of some dynamic playmakers. He has so many playmakers around him that when they touch the football, they have that ability to take it to the house. It's a difficult matchup."
The Texans have to find ways to get pressure on Tagovailoa, who doesn't hold the ball very long. The Texans didn't have a sack in their last game, the 23-20 conquest at Jacksonville before their bye. They don't want to make it two games in a row without a sack.
When the Texans defense set its sack record in 2023, the Texans surrendered only 17 touchdown passes. This season, a lack of pressure hasn't been an issue.
Defensive ends Danielle Hunter (10.5) and Will Anderson Jr. (9.5) have combined for 20 sacks, more than any twosome in the NFL. And don't forget Anderson missed almost three games because of an ankle injury.
Hunter leads the league with 81 pressures, and he's tied for third with 15 tackles for loss.
"Danielle has done an outstanding job all year," Ryans said. "He's been everything we can ask for and more (with) the production he's had (and) how much pressure he's able to apply on a quarterback. He should be up for the NFL Defensive Player of the Year. He deserves it.
"The guy doesn't say much, but his play speaks very loud, and the opposing offenses understand they have to account for him because he's such a force."
The Texans are second in the NFL with 84 tackles for loss, and they're tied for second with 75 passes defensed. And they're fifth in average yards per play (5.03).
But they've had issues with pass coverage even though cornerbacks Derek Stingley Jr. and Kamari Lassiter have been outstanding. According to The 33rd Team, Lassiter (42 percent) and Stingley (44.6) are first and third in the league in the lowest catch rate allowed, with a minimum of 40 targets.
The Texans are plus-10 in turnover differential, tied for fourth. They have 16 interceptions (second) and 24 takeaways (tied for third). But there's still that annoying problem of giving up too many touchdown passes.
Even Mac Jones threw two in the fourth quarter of the Texans' last game at Jacksonville. They have only one game in which they haven't allowed at least one touchdown pass, and that was way back on Sept. 15, the second Sunday of the season when Chicago rookie Caleb Williams was shut out in the Texans' 19-13 victory.
The defense has allowed 11 touchdown passes of at least 30 yards, seven of at least 40 yards and five of at least 50 yards. The Texans also surrendered 10 inside the 10-yard line, which is one reason the red zone defense (65.6 percent) is 28th.
Because safety Jalen Pitre is out for the season, Jimmie Ward has been forced to take his place in the slot. That leaves veteran Eric Murray paired with rookie Calen Bullock, who leads the team with four interceptions, one more than Stingley and Lassiter.
Ryans talked this week about what's vital in trying to keep Tagovailoa from picking part the secondary with receivers Tyreek Hill and Jalen Waddle, tight end Jonnu Smith and running back De'Von Achane.
"Eye discipline is key this week," he said. "Even though the ball is out, they have a lot of eye candy, as we call it, (when) they present things where a play is going one way, and it goes to the other side.
"You have to maintain your discipline (and) make sure your eyes are in the proper place with the defensive call. If your eyes are right, you have a chance to be right. But if you're seeing too much, that's where you run into problems."
Both teams need to win this game. The Dolphins (6-7) are trying to close strong and compete for a wild-card playoff berth, but they'll need a lot of help. The Texans (8-5) don't want to lose Sunday and run the risk of a three-game losing streak.
Ryans knows what he wants from his players.
"When trying to defend such an efficient offense, it'll be about making sure we're on top of our game and executing properly," he said. "That's been an emphasis for us this week – being on the details of our job (and) being where we're supposed to be.
"We've got to do a great job of tackling in space. That's what the game will come down to – how well we're tackling in space versus their playmakers – and we have to get multiple hats to the ball to tackle these guys because they're so elusive and explosive."
