If you watched the Houston Texans defense in 2025, you saw a unit that looked like it had built a brick wall across the line of scrimmage. For most of the year, this group didn’t just slow down opposing offenses - they flat-out erased them. By nearly every metric, Houston’s defense wasn’t just elite; it was brushing up against historic territory.
But here’s the thing about the NFL: success isn’t a static achievement. What worked in 2025 won’t guarantee anything in 2026.
Injuries happen. Roster turnover is inevitable.
And the cap doesn’t care how dominant your defense was last fall. If the Texans want to stay on top - and all signs suggest they do - the work has to continue, especially when it comes to the interior of their defensive line.
That’s where things get interesting.
Despite how dominant the Texans were up front, the interior D-line is shaping up to be one of the team’s biggest offseason question marks. Injuries hit hard last season.
Tim Settle Jr. and Folo Fatukasi both went down with season-ending issues, which forced Tommy Togiai into a bigger role. And to his credit, Togiai delivered.
He became one of the unsung heroes of the Texans’ defensive surge - a rock in the middle who earned the respect of teammates and coaches alike.
But depth was tested, and it’s about to be tested again.
Sheldon Rankins, Settle, Fatukasi, and Naquan Jones are all set to hit free agency. Mario Edwards, a key rotational piece, is widely considered a likely cap casualty. That leaves Togiai as the only returning member from that interior rotation - and while he’s proven he can hold his own, Houston can’t afford to go into 2026 with such a thin group in the trenches.
So where does that leave them? Enter John Franklin-Myers.
The 29-year-old defensive lineman, most recently with the Denver Broncos, isn’t a household name - not yet, anyway - but he’s quietly been one of the most disruptive interior defenders in the league. He’s also the only interior D-lineman to crack ESPN’s top 50 free agents list this offseason, which says a lot about how he’s viewed around the league.
Over the past two seasons, Franklin-Myers has racked up 96 pressures and posted a 15.2% pass-rush win rate - fifth-best among all defensive linemen in that span. That’s not just solid production; that’s elite efficiency on the interior, a position where disruption can often go unnoticed.
Pro Football Focus’ Bradley Locker recently made the case that Franklin-Myers should be Houston’s top free agent target, and it’s hard to argue with the logic. He’s a perfect fit for what DeMeco Ryans wants up front - versatile, tough, and relentless. And in a defense that already features edge rushers like Will Anderson Jr. and Danielle Hunter, adding a pass-rushing threat from the inside could take this unit from dominant to downright terrifying.
Picture it: Togiai anchoring the middle against the run, Franklin-Myers collapsing the pocket from the inside, and Anderson and Hunter screaming off the edge. That’s the kind of front that makes offensive coordinators lose sleep - a group that can win with speed, power, and depth.
The Texans don’t need to rebuild their defense - they just need to reload. And if they want to stay in the conversation as the league’s best, reinforcing the interior line is a must. Franklin-Myers might not be the flashiest name on the market, but he might just be the most important one for Houston’s offseason plans.