Who are the best Houston Texans players in the all-time starting lineup?
Think of all of the great players who have been a success with the Houston Texans since the franchise played their first game back in 2002. Now of all of the players who stood out, break that list of players into a group of the very best players in franchise history.
Now of that group of offensive, defensive and special teams players, make an all-time starting lineup for the Houston Texans and see what that looks like. That is what we did at the Toro Times, and some areas of the team wasn’t easy to choose who would be in the starting lineup.
The Texans have has some excellent players in franchise history who didn’t make this starting lineup, but that doesn’t take anything away from their career — good or bad. Rather, it shows the Texans have had some players who made it tough to choose between.
Also, this list not only makes the all-time starting lineup for the Texans with offense, defense and special teams, but the all-time head coach was chosen as well.
Next are all the Texans players selected by the Toro Times to be in the all-time starting lineup before the 2020 NFL season.
Houston Texans: Quarterback
QB: Deshaun Watson — The honor of starting quarterback for this dream team lineup for the Houston Texans goes to Deshaun Watson for how he’s revitalized the position for the franchise in his short time with the team.
Watson surged ahead of Matt Schaub and David Carr to be the top quarterback on this list, and the great thing about Watson is he’s just starting, as the potential is out of this world for what he can accomplish in the NFL.
As Watson will be entering his fourth season with the Houston Texans, he’ll have maybe the best offensive line in front on him he’s had since joining the team. The quarterback has shown in his short career thus far that he’s able to recover from an injury, and not only that, but excel and be great once he’s returned as he did just that after recovering from an ACL tear suffered his rookie season.
In his three seasons with the Texans, Watson has a 24-13 overall record as a starting quarterback, and in the two full seasons after not being injured the Texans have won the AFC South championship and won a playoff game. Watson has 9,716 career passing yards entering the 2020 season, with 71 touchdown passes and 29 interceptions, which is less than one per game in his first three seasons.
The term “franchise-changing quarterback” fits Watson perfectly, and like mentioned before, Watson is only going to improve, which means more wins for the Texans franchise, as he’s the perfect quarterback to lead this all-time Texans starting lineup.
Houston Texans: Running Back/Fullback
RB: Arian Foster — There is no other choice than Arian Foster that had to be thought of when selecting the Houston Texans greatest running back to earn a spot in this dream team all-time starting lineup, right? The undrafted running back from the University of Tennessee had a star-studded career with Houston, leading the NFL in rushing for the 2010 season, and rushed for over 1,200 yards in four of his seven seasons in Houston.
Foster changed the culture when he become a mainstay with the Texans starting lineup, making the team relevant and helping the franchise earn their early AFC South championships. There is no doubt Foster is the greatest running back to play for the Texans, and he is on the Mount Rushmore of players for the very best in franchise history.
FB: Vonta Leach — The fullback played parts of five seasons with the Houston Texans, and in that time frame Vonta Leach made a name for himself at the position. Fullbacks are known more for their blocking ability than their ability to rush with the football, and Leach was no different. Leach made blocks for running backs and helped protect the quarterback in Houston from 2006-10, and in his final season with the Texans he was named first-team AP All-Pro.
Leach played in 75 games with the Texans and started 37 of them. He even caught passes out of the backfield with 75 receptions for Houston, totaling 518 yards and four touchdowns. Leach had just three carries in his Texans career, and two of those carries went for touchdowns. Having a solid fullback is overlooked by many, but there is no doubt when this all-time lineup needs a fullback, Leach is the man to do so.
Houston Texans: Wide Receivers/Tight End
WR: Andre Johnson — Three words come to mind when thinking about Andre Johnson, wide receivers and the Houston Texans all together, and those words are “simply the best.” Johnson set the standard for all wide receivers who ever play for the Texans franchise, and the bar he set might be unachievable for many, if not every Texans wide receiver from here on out.
Johnson brought a winning attitude to the Texans when drafted to the team back in 2003 during the second season in franchise history. From the ’03 season through 2014, Johnson had five 100-plus reception seasons, seven seasons of 1,100-plus yards receiving, five years of 90-plus yards receiving per game, and he led the league in receptions twice and in receiving yards twice.
Johnson leads the Houston Texans as their very best wide receiver in team history with 1,012 receptions for 13,597 yards and 64 receiving touchdowns. We could go on for hours discussing all the accomplishments by Johnson, but let’s just say no wide receiver was better wearing a Texans uniform.
WR: DeAndre Hopkins — The one player who had a realistic chance to catch Andre Johnson in the record books and make Texans news headlines was DeAndre Hopkins. The wide receiver played seven seasons with the franchise from 2013-19, and is now with the Arizona Cardinals.
Hopkins started all 110 games while a member of the Houston Texans and finished with 632 receptions for 8,602 yards and 54 touchdowns. Hopkins has a lot to offer his new NFL team, but while in Houston he was one of the very best to play for the franchise. He replaced the spot left vacant by Johnson very admirably and is also one of the greatest players to ever wear a Texans uniform.
WR: Kevin Walter — As it has been said before on the pages of the Toro Times, Kevin Walter is maybe the most underrated player to play for the Houston Texans franchise and needs to be mentioned more when discussing franchise history.
Walter is fourth all-time in Texans receiving yards with 4,083, with fifth place being Arian Foster with 2,268 yards. Walter in his time with the Texans (2006-12) totaled 109 games played with a 65.3-percent catch percentage on 499 targets (326 receptions). Walter also finished with 24 receiving touchdowns, which is also fourth in franchise history.
TE: Owen Daniels — When one thinks of great tight ends for the Houston Texans, think no further than Owen Daniels, as he played for the Texans from 2006-13 and is third all-time in receptions for the Texans franchise with 385.
Daniels is also third all-time for the Texans in receiving yards with 4,617 yards in his eight seasons of making Texans news at the now-named NRG Stadium.
Houston Texans: Offensive Line
LT: Duane Brown — The greatest offensive linemen to play for the Houston Texans is Duane Brown. The left tackle was tasked to protect Matt Schaub and others during that run of Texans football, and Brown was a member of the offensive line that helped put Arian Foster on the NFL map as well.
Brown is currently a member of the Seattle Seahawks as he was traded by the Texans during the 2017 season. In his nine full seasons with the Texans Brown started 12 or more games in each year on the team. Brown was named first-team AP All-Pro in 2012 and was selected to three Pro Bowls while a member of the Texans.
LG: Wade Smith —Playing four seasons with the Houston Texans from 2010-13, Wade Smith was a difference maker with this franchise and should be remembered as one of the two best guards to ever play for Houston. Smith made 16 starts with the Texans in each of his four seasons on the offensive line. In 2010 he was selected by Pro Football Focus as a second-team All-Pro, and in ’12 Smith was voted to the Pro Bowl.
C: Chris Myers — The center fort the Houston Texans from 2008-14 was Chris Myers, and in that span of games he made all 16 starts for seven straight seasons. From 2012-14 Myers played in a total of 3,350 snaps, and in 2012 and 2013 he played in 100 percent of Houston’s offensive snaps. Myers is a two-time Pro Bowl selection in ’11 and ’12, and in ’11 he also was a first-team All-Pro choice by PFF.
RG: Brandon Brooks —The right guard played for the Texans from 2014-15, totaling 112 games in those four seasons in Houston, making 106 starts. Brooks played the past four seasons of his career with the Philadelphia Eagles, but with Houston he played 3,119 snaps, including 1,043 offensive snaps in 2013. Brooks has really stepped up his game with the Eagles, making the Pro Bowl the past three seasons, and was a PFF first-team All-Pro choice this past season.
RT: Laremy Tunsil — The current franchise left tackle for the Texans will be playing right tackle on this lineup, and that isn’t a demotion, rather wanting him in the starting lineup. Tunsil — a 2019 Pro Bowl selection with the Texans — is one of the very best tackles in all of the NFL today when he’s on the top of his game.
The Texans have him under contract for the next three seasons, and since he’s joined the team the offensive line has done a complete 180 in terms of their overall production, as he was a Pro Bowl selection in 2019.
Houston Texans: Defensive Line
DE: J.J. Watt — Being a three-time Defensive Player of the Year, while adding nearly 100 career sacks through the 2019 season, the first nine years of the career of J.J. Watt have made him the greatest player in Texans history. Watt is still adding to his career numbers, and though he’s battled with some injuries throughout his career, there has never been a better pass rusher to wear the Texans uniform.
J.J. Watt currently has collected 96 sacks, 54 passes defensed, 15 fumble recoveries, 158 TFL, 265 QB hits and 373 solo tackles. An entire section could be written about Watt, as he’s also been selected to five Pro Bowls, is a five-time first-team All-Pro and was named to the Pro Football Hall of Fame All-2010s team.
DT: Antonio Smith — Here me out on this selection. After some discussion among the Toro Times staff, we decided Antonio Smith needed to be on the starting defensive line, and at the end of his career in Oakland he played the position.
While with the Texans, Smith was a defensive end, but he’s also an underrated player who deserves his due, so he’s in this starting lineup alongside J.J. Watt. While with the Texans, Smith played from 2009-13 with the Texans and then returned in 2016 for his final NFL season. In all, Smith played six seasons with the Texans, a total of 92 games where he made 78 starts on the defensive line. Smith forced seven fumbles in his Texans career, and not only that, what also stands out is the fact he had eight passes defensed.
Also while with the Texans, Smith had three fumble recoveries, 27.5 sacks, 116 solo tackles, 38 tackles for loss and 98 QB hits, including 22 of those QB hits coming in 2010. Smith made the Pro Bowl in 2011 with the Texans.
DE: Mario Williams — The No. 1 overall draft pick back in 2006, Mario Williams played a total of six years with the Houston Texans, and for the most part his career was solid with the franchise, putting him on the starting defensive line in the all-time lineup.
Williams made 13 to 16 starts with the Texans from 2003-10, and in his final season with the Houston Texans in 2011, injuries kept Williams to just five games played, all starts. Williams played in a total of 82 games with the Texans, and though there are some who believe he could have brought more to the Texans — which there could be an arguable case — overall Williams had some nice numbers with the team.
For his Texans career, Williams totaled 11 passes defensed, 11 forced fumbles and 53 sacks, which is an average of 9.3 sacks per season as he’s second all-time in franchise history in total sacks. Williams also finished with 64 TFL with the Texans and had 93 QB hits as he made two Pro Bowls with the team.
Houston Texans: Linebackers
OLB: Jadeveon Clowney — Here is another No. 1 overall pick to make the list for the Houston Texans, as he played his first five seasons with the franchise, though his rookie year was greatly shortened due to injury. For his entire stint in Houston, Jadeveon Clowney for the most part was one of the very best pass rushers to play for the franchise.
In his five seasons with the Texans, Clowney is fourth all-time in sacks with the Texans by totaling 29 in those parts of five seasons, which equaled 62 games. Clowney also collected 11 passes defensed, four forced fumbles, six fumble recoveries, two touchdowns off those recoveries, 151 solo tackles, 64 tackles for loss and 67 QB hits. In all, Clowney is a three-time Pro Bowl selection while in Houston and made a name for himself as he looks to join his third NFL team since being drafted in 2014.
OLB: Whitney Mercilus — Do you know who is third all-time for the Houston Texans in career sacks? That player is Whitney Mercilus, and from the looks of his current contract, Mercilus will be a big part of the Texans offense for the foreseeable future.
Mercilus was the 26th overall pick for the Texans in the 2012 NFL Draft, and since that time he’s been in the starting lineup for 89 of his 115 games played for the franchise. After injury ended his 2017 season much too soon after five games, Mercilus has played strong with nine starts in 2018 as he recovered from the injury, and then this past season he made all 16 starts.
A 2016 second-team AP All-Pro selection, Mercilus has two career interceptions, which both were also last season, and 50 career sacks, trailing Mario Williams by three in that category in the Texans record book. There are many more great things to come from Mercilus in his Texans career, so don’t be surprised by what he’ll bring for the 2020 season.
ILB: Brian Cushing — Maybe the most intense player in this starting lineup, the career Houston Texans linebacker Brian Cushing is a must for this dream team type of lineup.
He was a member of the Texans from 2009-17, and in his 104 games with the franchise, they all were starts. Cushing brought great intensity that will make him a memorable player with the Texans, and though he didn’t have the best ending to his career, he did more than enough to earn a spot on this roster of great Texans players.
Cushing finished his career with eight interceptions, and mixed into that was one touchdown, plus he added 30 passes defensed, 13.5 sacks, 664 total tackles (including 424 solo) and 42 TFL. Also during Cushing’s career, he added 57 QB hits, one safety and he had nine forced fumbles.
Cushing made second-team All-Pro teams selected by the Sporting News, AP and PFF in his career, and he was selected to the 2009 Pro Bowl as a rookie, being that he was the 2009 AP Rookie of the Year.
ILB: DeMeco Ryans — From 2006-11, the Texans had a great deal of success from DeMeco Ryans, as he made 16 starts in each of his six seasons with the Texans, except for the 2010 season where he was injured and played in just six games. Ryans did, however, start all 86 regular-season games played with the Houston Texans and was big-time with 25 QB hits and 43 tackles for loss.
Ryans also collected two interceptions with the Texans, plus he was able to have eight fumble recoveries, including one touchdown to go with that stat. Overall, Ryans was an unsung player at an unsung position on the defense. He did his job well and eventually played his final four seasons with the Philadelphia Eagles, retiring after the 2015 season.
Houston Texans Secondary
SS: Quintin Demps — During the 2010-12 and 15-16 seasons, Quintin Demps was one of the better safeties to play for the Houston Texans, as he was all over the field wherever the ball went. Demps played in 50 games with the Texans. During that time frame, Demps ended his Texans career with nine interceptions, putting him seventh all-time in franchise history.
Demps is another player who needed to be remembered for all he gave with the Texans, and that includes his 222 solo tackles, 44 passes defensed and even his four forced fumbles.
FS: Andre Hal — One of the most popular players for all he accomplished on and off the field for the Texans, Andre Hal is the free safety in this all-time starting lineup. Hal retired early after battling and defeating non Hodgkin’s lymphoma, retiring after the 2018 season.
Hal in his Texans career totaled 40 starts (69 total games) with 12 interceptions, one int return for touchdown, 31 passes defensed, two forced fumbles, one sack, 130 solo tackles, six tackles for loss and two QB hits. It would have been exciting if Hal had been able to continue to play in the NFL, but he’s did more than enough to be remembered with the greatest Texans players of all-time.
CB: Johnathan Joseph — The tenure of Johnathan Joseph with the Houston Texans just ended this offseason after nine years with the franchise (2011-19) both parties have moved on. That said, all that Joseph did with the Texans while with the team easily puts him on this list of all-time greats.
Joseph is the greatest cornerback in franchise history, as he played 133 games in Houston, with 128 of those games being starts. In that span, Joseph had 421 solo tackles and 118 passes defensed, and it is where he became the top player he is after being drafted by the Cincinnati Bengals in 2006.
With 17 interceptions, Joseph is the all-time leader in interceptions in franchise history, and within those he has four pick-six returns. Joseph also has two interceptions in the playoffs and has been selected to two Pro Bowls. Joseph was a true team leader with the Texans, and there is no doubt he is in this lineup.
CB: Kareem Jackson — The second all-time leader in interceptions for the Texans is Kareem Jackson as the second-best cornerback to play for the franchise has 16 picks (three for touchdowns) when he was on the team. Jackson played from 2010-18 with the team before the two went their different ways.
Though the ending wasn’t the best, his tenure with the franchise puts him as one of the two starters at cornerback. Jackson played the fifth-most games in franchise history with that number being 132. In that time, he had six forced fumbles, three fumble recoveries, 468 solo tackles and 88 passes defensed as he also starts 124 of the 132 games played. Jackson was named PFF second-team All-Pro in 2018.
Houston Texans: Special Teams
K: Kris Brown — After his first three seasons were played in Pittsburgh, Kris Brown made himself a Texans legend from 2002-09 playing eight of his 12 seasons in Houston. Brown played 128 games with the Texans, and he made 77.1-percent of his field goal attempts (172-223) and 99.2 percent of his extra point attempts (251-253).
P: Shane Lechler — Being a member of the Pro Football Hall of Fame All-2000s and All-2010s teams, Shane Lechler is one of the easier selections to this Texans dream team starting lineup for the special teams. He is also a member of the NFL 100 All-Time Team, so again, he’s on a level at his position that very few are.
Though he made his name in the NFL with the Raiders, Lechler played his final five seasons with the Texans Where in 80 games the punter — maybe the greatest punter ever — averaged 47.6 yards per punt while in Houston and had only one punt blocked (five in his career) with the team in 430 punts.
LS: Jon Weeks —Weeks has been with the Texans since the 2010 season, playing as the long snapper on the special teams. Weeks is one of the very best at his positions he’s played in 1,235 snaps in his career, even earning a Pro Bowl selection in 2015.
KR: André Davis — In kick returning, André Davis played 40 games with the team and is the career leader in kick return yards with 2,743 with three touchdowns on 108 returns. His longest return was 104 yards, and he averaged 25.4 yards per return.
PR: Jacoby Jones — Jones is the all-time Texans leader in punt return yards with 1,820, and he also leads the Texans all-time punt return leader with three touchdowns. Jones had 179 returns in his Texans career, averaging 10.l2 yards per punt return.
Houston Texans: Head Coach
HC: Bill O’Brien — Though not all decisions made by Bill O’Brien have been favorable in his time with the franchise, and the results aren’t what many want, but he’s still the right coach for this all-time team. O’Brien has the best winning percentage with the Texans, as from the 2014-19 seasons his teams have a .542 winning percentage with a 52-44 overall record.
O’Brien has also led the Texans to four division titles six seasons as head coach, and five of his six seasons has been winning seasons with records of at least 9-7.