NFL: Projecting final records for all 32 teams
By Brad Rowland
Houston Texans
2013 was a disaster for the Houston Texans, and it was the classic situation of a team going in the tank along with its quarterback. However, Matt Schaub is now in Oakland (and acting as a backup!), paving the way for Ryan Fitzpatrick and what appears to be a healthy offense. The 31-year-old Fitzpatrick has never been an excellent player in the league, but he completed 62% of his passes in 2013 and because the Texans have three quality skill players in Arian Foster, Andre Johnson and rising sophomore DeAndre Hopkins, a “game manager” would be helpful.
Defensively, the Texans have a chance to be excellent. Houston’s best player is defensive lineman J.J. Watt, who was freshly-minted with the largest contract for a defensive player in NFL history, and they’ll pair him with top overall pick Jadeveon Clowney to form a dynamic tandem. The Texans were 18th in DVOA on defense last season, but they were battered by injuries (Brian Cushing, etc.) and with Clowney in the mix and better health, a top-10 unit is in play.
Even with the disastrous circumstances, Houston was violently unlucky on the way to 2-14 last season, and I’m betting on some positive bounces on the way to an above-average season in 2014.
The Pick: 9-7