The Texans (6-2) are on the road this week to face the Jets (2-6). It's the second time in the last year these two squads have squared off, with New York triumphing last December, 30-6. Here are five things to watch when they kick off at 7:15 p.m. CT inside MetLife Stadium.
1) 7's for 7 – Quarterback C.J. Stroud found eight different pass-catchers, completed 67.6 percent of his passes for 285 yards and a touchdown, and guided the Texans to a win last Sunday over the Colts. But after the halftime break, the Texans mustered just a field goal in each quarter in what became a 23-20 victory.
In the second half of games this season, Houston's scored eight touchdowns and kicked seven field goals. Stroud wants those numbers to rise, and he wants the totals skewed far more in favor of the former than the latter.
"We've just got to finish in the red zone and stay aggressive and try to get seven and not three," Stroud said. "And I want those opportunities and when they come, I try to do my best and make the play."
2) (W)Rise up – Nico Collins isn't back for another week at the earliest, and the Texans lost Stefon Diggs to the injured reserve on Tuesday. That means the wide receivers will need a bit more from the likes of Tank Dell, Robert Woods, John Metchie, III and Xavier Hutchinson, to name a few.
Head Coach DeMeco Ryans, though, is confident in that crew.
"One thing that sticks out, 'Hutch', 'Metch' , all those guys just from our last game just showing guys winning their one-on-one opportunities," Ryans said. "'Hutch' going to the ground there making a tough catch. Metchie finding a way to win in an off-schedule moment there in the game and come up with a big catch. That's all we ask is win your one-on-one and make the plays that you are supposed to make. If guys do that collectively as a team, we will be just fine."
3) Joe Knows Running – The ground game with Joe Mixon has been excellent. The veteran running back has started and finished four games this season, gaining more than 100 yards in each of those four games, and scoring a touchdown in each contest as well.
He's played in five games in 2024, and is averaging 100.6 yards on the ground per. That's the third-best mark in the NFL.
Mixon thinks it's just the start of something greater.
"I feel like I've been only getting better," Mixon said. "We just got to keep on continuing to get better, and letting the little things take care of the big things. Just stand out in our technique and detail and being able to execute. That's what it comes down to."
The Jets run defense is around the middle of the pack in the league, giving up an average of 125.6 yards per game.
4) Hammer time – The Texans pass rush has been outstanding this season. Defensive end Will Anderson, Jr. was named the Defensive Player of the Month for October, and he's currently third in the NFL with 7.5 sacks. Fellow defensive end Danielle Hunter is a few sacks behind him at 5.5, and in terms of quarterback pressures, they're flipped. Hunter leads the league with 51, while Anderson is fourth with 39.
Their ability to cause havoc is not lost on Jets quarterback Aaron Rodgers.
"I'm going to have to move around a little bit," Rodgers said. "Will and Danielle are great pass rushers and not the only ones who get a good push in the middle. They can bring five-man pressures, six-man pressure, all-out pressure, so I got to be able to move a little bit, and I'm not the runner I once was."
Rodgers has been sacked 18 times in 2024.
5) No flags, no turnovers – Houston's tied for eighth in the NFL in turnover differential at plus-4, while the Jets are near the bottom of the league at minus-3.
Both teams get flagged quite a bit, as the Texans are tied for fifth in the NFL with 61 penalties, while the Jets are worse, with 63 this year. That ties them for the second-most flags in the NFL. New York has the most penalty yardage in the league, with 567.
