Houston Texans: 5 Takeaways from Week 2 win over Jaguars

2. Whitney Mercilus has another solid game

Somebody is in a contract year, and his name is Whitney Mercilus. He’s also playing like he’s in the final year of a contract on a team that doesn’t have an official general manager, as he’s sure to be catching the attention of many after the first two weeks of the regular season.

In Week 2, Mercilus totaled two tackles and two sacks, as his pass rush is so much improved over last season. This is the final year of a contract that has equaled over $27 million since 2015, and this year Mercilus is making $5.7 million in base salary. Through two weeks, he’s working to show he needs another hefty contract from either the Texans or someone else for the 2020 season.

Since the Texans are without Jadeveon Clowney for the first time in a long time, Mercilus has stepped up to fill that void and through two games at least has played well.

Thus far through two games, Mercilus has seven tackles, three sacks, two forced fumbles and one interception. He’s nearly equaled his sack total from a season ago (four), and that was a season where he played in all 16 games.

This resurgence of Mercilus is excellent to see, because he’s needed greatly on the Texans defense for success this season, and through two games he’s proven to be ultra productive in his overall play.