Unlike many players at his position, Derek Stingley Jr. isn't one for self-promotion. The 4th-year Houston Texans cornerback prefers to let his play do the talking, and over the last few seasons, he's said plenty.
Heading into the 2025 NFL season, Stingley was named the 18th-best player in the NFL by his peers, the highest of any player on the Houston Texans roster. Combining flawless technique, sticky coverage, top-tier closing speed and some of the best hands you'll ever see from a defensive back, Stingley's side of the field is often a no-fly zone for opposing quarterbacks. Similar to the way that even the best wide receivers would disappear during visits to Revis Island, in Houston, Stingley's Skerry offers similar problems for travelers.
What Stingley will divulge plenty about when asked is his technique and the nuances that he's exploited to become one of the very best at this craft, like how the head and eye movements of wide receivers give away where the ball is being thrown.
"If the receiver's eyes go up before their head moves -- like, their eyes will get wide when the ball's coming from a high angle, coming down. If it's a back shoulder, or more in the dark, their head will turn. But their shoulder will also turn, and they'll slow down because they've got to adjust to the ball," Stingley explained. "That one's a little tougher, because the receiver doesn't even know where the ball is going to go for that one. But the one over the top, they look up first."
This is Dennis Rodman talking about rebounding angles on The Last Dance kind of stuff, but it helps to explain why no player has more combined interceptions and pass break-ups since the mid-point of the 2023 season than Stingley does.
While Stingley may not be the heaviest hitter or the most active run stopping defensive back in the NFL's, he's plenty serviceable in that regard, especially since he's surrounded by a bunch of hyenas that have a nose for the football. A lingering oblique injury could explain why Stingley's been graded out so poorly as a run defender this year.
But even if Stingley remains just an average run defender at his position, everything he brings in coverage makes him one of the most valuable defensive players in the league, and accordingly, the Texans paid him as such with a 3-year, $90 million extension.
Derek Stingley Jr.'s 2025 Season to Date
What the stats are saying: 30 tackles, 12 passes defended, 3 interceptions, 42.4% opponent completion percentage, 52.6 opponent passer rating, 63.7 PFF Grade (47th out of 112 qualified cornerbacks)
What former teammate Scott Quessenberry tweeted about Stingley in November: "He’s gonna say 7 words during the week, show up eat his Popeyes or Chick Fil A on the bus before the plane show up, on Sunday clamp your best receiver, get on the bus go to sleep and get ready to do it all over again. In a league of his own."
What Texans cornerbacks coach Dino Vasso said about Stingley: "He doesn't intentionally bait quarterbacks and receivers, but if there is some separation, he has the ability to close that pretty quickly. He gets to top speed extremely quick -- probably faster than anybody I've been around."
What former college teammate Malik Nabers said about Stingley: "He's really a receiver that's just amazing at corner."
Past Defensive Spotlights
10/8/2025 - Jalen Pitre
10/15/2025 - Danielle Hunter
10/22/2025 - Will Anderson Jr.
10/29/2025 - Azeez Al-Shaair
11/5/2025 - Kamari Lassiter
11/12/2025 - Sheldon Rankins
11/19/2025 - Matt Burke
11/26/2025 - Calen Bullock
12/10/2025 - Tommy Togiai