The Houston Texans this past decade saw their share of success at the running back position.
When one thinks of the Houston Texans from the past decade, it was watching a team take the next step in building their franchise in their second decade. The Texans had some excellent success in their second decade, and in this topic of best running backs of the 2010s on the roster, there are three names that jump off the page when it comes to that position.
Houston saw some excellent players carry the football from 2010-19, and even the ninth-highest rusher in franchise history was during this time frame and that is current quarterback Deshaun Watson, because his 1,233 yards on the ground since 2017 not only makes him ninth all-time in franchise history, but Watson is fifth in rushing yards during the past decade.
That said, Watson will not be a part of this list as he’s not an official running back on the Texans roster. Also not on this list is Ben Tate, who played for the Texans from 2011-13, as he was a quality running back in mostly a reserve role while with the Texans. Tate had 1.992 rushing yards in those three seasons with 673 carries and eight touchdowns.
Alfred Blue won’t be in the Top 3 either for the Texans, even though he’s fourth all-time in rushing yards in franchise history with 2,407 yards and eight touchdowns from 2014-18. That is part of the issue — Blue averaged just 33 yards per game rushing and never once had close to a 1,000-yard rushing season. Blue was a serviceable running back for the Texans, but overall — at least on this list — he didn’t make the Top 3 for the Houston Texans.
Next are three players who were the best for the Texans in the past decade with the franchise. The trio of players have combined to play in 136 games, where they have totaled 9,936 yards with 73 touchdowns on 2,415 carries.
3. Carlos Hyde (2019)
Though Carlos Hyde played just one season with the Houston Texans, he did more in a one-year term with the team than most of the running backs have done with the franchise. Last season, Hyde rushed for 1,000-plus yards (1.070 yards) for the first time in his six-year career, as he made 14 starts.
Also this past season while a member of the Houston Texans, Hyde totaled 245 carries, rushed for 55 first downs, collected six touchdowns on the ground and averaged 4.4 yards per carry. Hyde also rushed for an average of 66.9 yards per game this past season, which was the second-highest amount for his career.
While with the Texans in 2019, Hyde’s top run went for 58 yards and three times during the 2019 season Hyde had games of over 100 yards rushing, and those were against the Kansas City Chiefs (26 carries for 116 yards, one TD), the Jacksonville Jaguars (19 carries for 160 yards) and the Tennessee Titans (26 carries for 104 yards, one TD).
In the two playoff games last season, Hyde totaled 29 carries for 92 yards. His time with the Houston Texans wasn’t long, but Hyde makes this list for how important his overall play was tot he team en route to what became an AFC South championship season, plus the team won one playoff game.
2. Lamar Miller (2016-18)
Lamar Miller’s time with the Houston Texans came to a sudden stop in the 2019 NFL Preseason when he tore his ACL before he ever got to a chance to really start his fourth season on the field for the franchise. The aforementioned Carlos Hyde took over for Miller in the starting lineup, but we can’t forget the good moments that Miller accomplished in the backfield of the Texans.
Miller rushed for 1,000-plus yards during his first season with the Houston Texans in 2016, where he had 268 carries in the regular season for 1,073 yards with five touchdowns. That same season, he also caught 31 passes for 188 yards and one touchdown.
Miller followed the ’16 season with 888 yards and three touchdowns in 2017, then in 2018 the running back totaled 210 rushes for 973 yards with five touchdowns. In ’18, Miller averaged 4.6 yards per carry, which was his best average while a member of the Texans offense.
In his three seasons on the field with the Texans, Miller had at least one receiving score in each of those years, with a career-high three receptions for a touchdown in ’17, a season where Miller collected 46 receptions for 327 yards.
Eight times while with the Texans, Miller rushed for over 100 yards in a game, with four of those coming in 2016, and the final four coming in 2018. Miller’s top game with the Texans came on Nov. 26, 2018 at home against the Tennessee Titans, where the running back collected 162 yards and one touchdown on 12 carries, averaging 13.5 yards per rush.
The great thing about having Lamar Miller in the backfield was he was capable of making the play when needed, and though his overall numbers may not have been at the top of the NFL rushing charts, during his tenure with the Texans, Miller played well and did a solid job at running back.
1. Arian Foster (2009-15)
We all know in any “best of Houston Texans lists” when it comes to running backs, the top player to lead the way is Arian Foster, who came to the roster as an undrafted free agent and became the greatest running back the Texans have ever had in their backfield.
From 2009-15, Foster was the leader of the Texans offense with his overall play of not only rushing the football, but also catching the football, too. Foster began the past decade with a 2010 season where he led the NFL in rushing in just his second overall season. That year, Foster was selected first-team All-Pro and to the Pro Bowl as well. Foster also rushed for 1,616 yards with 16 rushing touchdowns, as he averaged 101 yards rushing per game to also lead the league.
That was the start of three consecutive years of Foster having way over 1,000-yard rushing season while with the Houston Texans. In 2011, Foster was again selected to the Pro Bowl, where he totaled 1,224 yards on 278 carries with 10 touchdowns. He averaged nearly 95 yards per game rushing that season. Again in 2012, Foster was one of the very best with a third-consecutive Pro Bowl selection.
In 2012, Foster rushed for 1,424 yards and 15 touchdowns on 351 carries, as that season he averaged 89 yards per game. Following a year hampered by injury, the 2014 season was Foster’s last great season with the Texans as he totaled 1,246 yards on 260 carries with eight touchdown rushed, That season, he also had a career-high five touchdown receptions.
No Texans player has matched the production Foster had for a majority of his career with the franchise, and with the Texans entering a new decade of running backs, only time will tell if another Texans player can have a three-year stretch like Foster accomplished.
Achieving that feat will be tough, but if a player does, they’ll have earned a great career just like Foster accomplished while with the Houston Texans.