You certainly don't need me to tell you that the superpower of the 2025 Houston Texans has been a defense that at its best has felt impenetrable, and at worst felt merely disruptive. It's a unit that ranks in the top five of essentially every statistical category worth looking at, but as the season has progressed, attrition has gradually taken its toll, threatening the depth of the league's best defense.
Just 12 days after the Texans announced that starting defensive tackle Tim Settle Jr. would miss the rest of the season with a foot injury, fellow defensive tackle Mario Edwards becomes the latest Texan to be ruled out for the rest of the year.
Houston Texans head coach DeMeco Ryans announced the unfortunate news that Edwards suffered a torn pectoral muscle after the Texans secured a 40-20 win over the Arizona Cardinals on Sunday afternoon.
"Unfortunately, Mario Edwards will be out for the season. He ruptured his pec, so he'll be out for the season," Ryans said, per KPRC2's Aaron Wilson. "Mario's done a great job for us all year. Steady player, consistent, and brings great energy to our entire team. So, really going to miss his presence. He can fly around on game day, and he runs to the football. Great effort, intent, and really love what he brought to our unit."
Although neither Settle or Edwards are big-name players on the level of stars such as Will Anderson Jr., Danielle Hunter or anyone in the Texans secondary, their presence and push in the interior makes life easier for all parties mentioned here. It's really the only unsung position group on a defense that everyone seems to want to talk about, and now as the group continues to get thinner, more and more pressure will be on the broad shoulders of guys like Tommy Togiai and Sheldon Rankins to keep this defense stout in the trenches.
In 14 games this season, Mario Edwards had accumulated 13 tackles and 1.5 sacks. Earlier in the season, the 11-year veteran made headlines when he became the Texans' nominee for the Salute To Service Award, which recognizes players around the league who "make an exceptional effort to honor and support military and veteran communities."