For much of the 2025 NFL season, the conversation surrounding the Houston Texans has rightfully focused on the team's defense, an historically great unit that is exactly what you envision whenever the phrase "championship defense" is uttered. But then, inevitably, that conversation veers in a direction that has likely made Texans fans very uncomfortable... is Houston's offense good enough to make a deep postseason run?
A half-hearted shrug is most reassuring answer that any Texans fan could've provide to that question for most of the season, but in Week 15, there were at least some signs that Houston's offensive ceiling may be slightly higher than we've previously considered.
Against the 3-win Cardinals, the Texans put 40 points on the scoreboard on Sunday afternoon, their second-highest scoring game of the season behind only a blowout of the depleted Baltimore Ravens back in early-October. This was, by the numbers, CJ Stroud's best game of the season, but his performance against the Cards was not far behind.
“CJ played very clean, efficient game. What I'm most proud of is, I think he did a great job of his decision-making. When it comes to the play, it's not that he's just looking or staring at one person. He’s going through his progression the right way, and you see multiple guys catch the ball and make plays, because he's not just eyeing in on one single target," Texans head coach DeMeco Ryans said of Stroud during his postgame press conference. "And that's where he’s grown, he’s improved a lot. Since he's come back, each week, he's gotten better. Probably the best game he’s had this year.”
Against Arizona, Stroud completed 22-of-29 passes for 260 yards and 3 touchdowns, getting off to a hot start with a 57-yard touchdown pass to Nico Collins. His 136.6 passer rating was the second-highest of the season behind only that win over Baltimore. It was a reminder of where Stroud was at the conclusion of his rookie season, being viewed as one of the best young quarterbacks in the NFL, but even more than that, it was a welcome sign for anyone who believes this team -- this complete team -- is capable of competing for a Super Bowl title this February.
"We're getting hot at the right time," Stroud told reporters after the game. "We're starting to trend up towards December, going into January. We got to keep this going. But it's one-game-at-a-time mentality, one-play-at-a-time mentality."