It's no accident that the Houston Texans finished the 2025 season as one of, if not the best defense in the National Football League. Not only has this unit been coached up extremely well by head coach DeMeco Ryans and defensive coordinator Matt Burke, but an abundance of talent up and down the roster is certainly just as important to Houston's dominance.
On Saturday afternoon, the Texans defense was rewarded for its dominance throughout the season in the form of three spots on the Associated Press All-Pro team. What's interesting about these three selections is that there are about seven Texans defenders who could've theoretically earned a spot on one of the two AP All-Pro teams. But with apologies to Jalen Pitre, Calen Bullock, Kamari Lassiter and Azeez Al-Shaair, they'll all need to wait until next season to earn their first All-Pro nod.
This season, it's Will Anderson Jr. and Derek Stingley Jr. who earned 1st Team recognition, while Danielle Hunter has been named a 2nd Team All-Pro for the second time in his NFL career. Hunter, who became the 46th player in NFL history with at least 100 career sacks this season, finished the season with the 3rd most sacks in the NFL (15.0). It's Hunter's 4th career season with at least 14 sacks in a season, making him one of only 13 players in NFL history to accomplish the feat.
While Anderson and Stingley are perhaps the most obvious All-Pro candidates on the Texans roster, it's fair to say that they're also the most deserving. Along with single-season sack leader Myles Garrett and Micah Parsons, Anderson was a no-brainer to earn a 1st Team distinction this season. The 3rd-year edge rusher set career highs in sacks (12.0), tackles (54), tackles for loss (20), QB hits (23), forced fumbles (3) and fumble recoveries (2). He also led the NFL in total QB hurries.
“That’s crazy,” Anderson said of earning his first ever All-Pro nod. “It means a lot. It’s such a blessing. I have to give credit to my guys. I wouldn’t be here without them.”
Derek Stingley Jr., on the other hand, is no stranger to earning this honor. This is the second consecutive season in which Stingley has been named a 1st Team All-Pro, and even though some stats suggest that 2025 was actually a down season for the 24-year-old cornerback, his reputation clearly hasn't taken a hit, and for the record, it shouldn't have. 4 interceptions, 1 defensive touchdown and a 43% completion percentage when targeted is a down season for Stingley, but for most defensive backs, that would be the best possible campaign one could imagine.