With the Houston Texans on a bye week, they get to sit back and observe the rest of the NFL settle a variety of scores across its remaining 13-game slate. As that's happening though, Houston would still benefit tremendously from a litany of beneficial occurrences that could transpire this afternoon.
As they continue their climb out of their self-inflicted 0-4 hole to start their campain, a litany of fellow AFC teams could help them out by dropping their match ups in week eight. At this point, the name of the game for Houston is to remain as competitive as they can while others fall back to the pack along the way. Then, the most likely outcome for the Texans—assuming they win enough games from this point on—would be to strike late in the season and snatch away either a sixth or seventh seed from another team that's collapsed somewhere on the conference path to the playoffs.
There are seven games in particular to look out for this weekend, along with a bonus game just for giggles.
Seven AFC outcomes that the Houston Texans could benefit from during the bye week (with a bonus)
Game: Jacksonville Jaguars (4-2) vs. Indianapolis Colts (2-5)
Texans' ideal winner: Colts
Explanation: The Jaguars are threatening to run away with the AFC South, while the Colts have officially waved the white flag on their season. Any win for Indianapolis will be hard to come by moving forward, which is why a shocker here would be a huge favor for Houston. Plus, a plethora of questions about the legitimacy of Jacksonville would naturally follow after dropping their third game of the season to a rebuilding franchise.
Game: Cleveland Browns (5-2) vs. Pittsburgh Steelers (5-2)
Texans' ideal winner: Steelers
Explanation: This one is really a toss up. However, a win by the Steelers edges out the value of a victory by Cleveland, simply due to scheduling reasons. After week eight, the Steelers have a more difficult road to the playoffs than the Browns do, which would ensure a decent amount of L's come their way even after a big win against a divisional opponent in Cleveland. If Cleveland wins, then I wouldn't see another "most-likely-losable" game for them until week 12 against the Bengals.
Game: Baltimore Ravens (4-3) vs. Buffalo Bills (5-1)
Texans' ideal winner: Bills
Explanation: Delirium about the Texans' chances at the AFC one-seed do not exist in this article. At this point, Houston's likeliest path to a fourth consecutive playoff berth would be by squeezing in as a sixth or seventh seed. With that said, they'd need as many AFC competitors as close to .500 as possible as quickly as possible for that to remain in play. Thus, a Ravens loss would drop them to that exact mark through eight games.
Game: Las Vegas Raiders (3-4) vs. New York Jets (2-5)
Texans' ideal winner: Jets
Explanation: I never thought rooting for the Jets would be part of my Texans' fandom at any point in the 2026 season, but here we are. After the Raiders surprised the NFL with a 3-0 start to being the year, they've floundered to an 0-4 stretch to follow that up. After a sideline blow-up last week between quarterback Geno Smith and wide receiver Garrett Wilson, maybe New York comes out galvanized and ready to get a much-needed win at a crucial juncture. If they do, it'll drop both AFC teams to 3-5, which is ideal for Houston.
Game: Tennessee Titans (1-6) vs. Cincinnati Bengals (4-2)
Texans' ideal winner: Titans
Explanation: A win by Tennessee here would drop Cincinnati to 4-3, which would keep them hovering around the .500 mark for another week while Houston is on a bye. For the Titans, it would also drop their draft pick value in the process. Double-whammy victory for the Texans here.
Game: New England Patriots (4-3) vs. Miami Dolphins (1-5)
Texans' ideal winner: Dolphins
Explanation: Now being without wide receiver A.J. Brown and running back TreyVeyon Henderson due to injuries, the Patriots look primed for somewhat of a freefall in the coming weeks. In walks the Dolphins, who just secured their first win of the season last week against the Jets. Maybe they ride that momentum into another victory against a depleted New England squad? If so, the Patriots will land at exactly .500 by the end of the day.
Game: Kansas City Chiefs (5-1) vs. Denver Broncos (5-2)
Texans' ideal winner: Broncos
Explanation: Full disclosure, I actually chose the Chiefs at first. Then, I reconsidered my position, seeing as though both teams currently have five wins and are looking fairly solid to begin the season. WIth that said, a win by Denver here would ensure that both they and Kansas City would have at least two losses after week eight. It's not much of a victory for Houston, but at least it mildly inconveniences the powers at the top of the conference for another week.
Honorable Mention Game: Arizona Cardinals (2-5) vs. Dallas Cowboys (3-4)
Texans' ideal winner: Cardinals
Explanation: I mean, do I need a reason? It's the Cowboys. After steamrolling a suddenly-defunct Philadelphia Eagles team last week, there's a good chance that Dallas is smelling themselves a bit today. Then you have Arizona, who's actually played some inspired football this campaign in spite of their 2-5 record. Wouldn't it be fitting for Arizona to yet again get the better of their in-conference foes at an inopportune time and cause the entirety of Cowboys Twitter to lose their marbles for the week?
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