The Texans (1-0) host the Bears (1-0) in a Week 2 matchup. It's the first home game of the 2024 regular season for Houston, while Chicago takes its first road trip of the year. Last Sunday, the Texans beat the Colts, 29-27. The Bears, meanwhile, clawed themselves out of a 17-0 hole to come back and beat the Titans, 24-17. Here are five things to watch when the Texans and Bears kick off inside NRG Stadium at 7:20 p.m. CT on Sunday night.
1) Ground beef – Joe Mixon and the Texans run game hammered the Colts defense last week. Altogether, Houston rushed 40 times for 213 yards. Mixon accounted for 30 of those carries and 159 of those yards. It was a Texans debut to remember, and perhaps a sign that the offensive line and the run game as a whole could be on its way to turning a proverbial corner.
The past few seasons have seen Houston average less than 4.0 yards per carry as a team. In the postgame locker room speech to his team, Head Coach DeMeco Ryans touched on how the team wanted to rise above that 4 yards per goal, and they were better than 5 yards per carry at the Colts.
Offensive coordinator Bobby Slowik detailed the stresses a successful run game puts on opposing defenses, and is hoping for more results like last Sunday's.
"The run game really kind of sets the table," Slowik said. "It allows us play pass, keepers and then gets guys thinking about it when we go drop back. You get a lot of loaded boxes when they start to get worried about it. And you can put them in a bind if they want to keep playing shell and split-safety stuff. So, it just helps empower us to do whatever we feel we need to do to win the game."
The Texans dominated the time of possession last week, as they held the ball for an even 40 mintues, to just 20 for the Colts.
"In particular, I think what was really underrated about running the ball is you gain a power position with controlling the clock" Slowik said. "I felt like we had multiple drives we were on the field for what felt like five-plus minutes. And for an offense, it's really gratifying because you want to be on the field, that's when it's fun."
The way the Texans go about running ball is a big challenge, according to Chicago Defensive Coordinator Eric Washington.
"Their run inventory creates some issues for you," Washington said. "They can go from a gap-scheme concept with pullers, to an outside zone looking to cut the football back. They've got a nice blend, a nice mix of run concepts that you have to do a really good job of addressing, and fitting, especially when they start to pull offensive linemen."
2) Options abound – Keep an eye on the ball distribution when C.J. Stroud is throwing. Last Sunday, eight different Texans caught a pass. Nico Collins led the way with 117 yards on six catches. Stefon Diggs also had six receptions, and two of those resulted in touchdowns. Tank Dell caught three passes, including one that went for 23 yards.
Stroud has a variety of options from which to choose, and there's always a good chance last week's leaders won't be the same as this week's.
"C.J.'s going to find a guy who's open," Ryans said. "That's what's the unique and cool part about our offense, it's not about a lot of people getting into the number one receiver type debate and those things. It's truly about who's open and that's where the ball is going. We're all trying to win games, nobody is in their feelings, nobody has any ego here. It's just about winning the game and whatever it takes each week to win, that's what we'll do."
3) Speaking of C.J. – Since the start of last season, nobody in the NFL has a better touchdowns-to-interceptions ratio than Stroud. His 25-5 mark is the best in the league, and he's third in the NFL in both passing yards per attempt (8.2) and passer rating (101.8) in that span. Stroud's also averaging 271.4 passing yards per game, which is the fourth-highest average since the beginning of 2023.
The Bears defense is well aware of who Stroud is and what he can do.
"He's an all-around quarterback," Chicago cornerback Tyrique Stevenson said. "If the pocket closes, he can get out with his feet. He can make all the throws. He's a great quarterback. He showed last year coming in with the rookie season and taking his team where they needed to go to make the playoffs."
Including the postseason win over the Browns last year, Stroud was magnificent at NRG Stadium. He guided the Texans to a 7-2 mark in those games, completing 66.2 percent of his passes for an average of 306.7 yards per game. Stroud also tossed 20 touchdowns and was picked off just four times, and boasted a passer rating of 112.4.
"He naturally keeps his eyes down the field and doesn't look at the rush, which happens to a lot of young quarterbacks," Bears Head Coach Matt Eberflus said.
4) Rated rookie – Chicago's quarterbacked by the first overall pick in this year's NFL Draft, Caleb Williams. The USC Trojan won the Heisman in 2022, and also became one of just four first overall picks to start and win their first NFL game.
Williams didn't have the flashiest stats in the victory over Tennessee last week, but he got the job done. Defensive Coordinator Matt Burke described Williams as "very talented", and even used the "e" word in detailing the young passer's best attribute.
"Near elite at making throws out of the pocket," Burke said. "Very, very good and has arm talent all day long. When he gets loose, it's what he wants to do and obviously from college even from some snaps we've seen in the league so far, he has a real talent to make real plays and make throws outside the pocket."
Veteran defensive lineman Mario Edwards, Jr., who picked up a sack in last week's win at Indianapolis, is also impressed by Williams.
"He's able to extend the plays with his legs and still be able to make completions down the field," Edwards said. "We definitely have to try to contain him and know that he's still dangerous and can make a deep throw as well."
5) Keep taking – The Texans didn't turn the ball over last Sunday, and rookie safety Calen Bullock picked off a pass in the red zone. At plus-1 in turnover differential, that was the eighth straight game Houston's been positive or even in the category.
The Bears came up with three takeaways last Sunday, and were tied for 5th in the NFL last season with 28 takeaways.
