The Houston Texans are 0-4, and Week 5 against the Tennessee Titans feels like a turning point they can’t afford to miss. If Houston is going to get its first win of 2026, it won’t happen on hope alone. A few key players have to clean things up, fast.
David Montgomery is one of the biggest names in that group. His debut against the Buffalo Bills was loud: three touchdowns and nearly 80 all-purpose yards.
Since then, though, the ground game has gone flat. In the games Montgomery has played after that opener, he has 27 carries for 67 yards, which works out to less than 2.5 yards per carry.
That lack of burst has taken a real toll on Houston’s offense, and it has even opened the door for Woody Marks to take close to 50% of the snaps in the backfield. Against a Titans team that hasn’t looked sharp, the Texans need Montgomery to justify the price they paid - a fourth-round pick and Juice Scruggs - earlier this offseason.
Dalton Schultz is another offensive player who needs to snap back into form. His Week 2 showing against the Cincinnati Bengals was exactly the kind of production Houston hoped for, with 12 catches for 140 yards in a game Nico Collins missed.
But the Texans haven’t featured Schultz much, or really any of their tight ends, over the last two games. That decision has raised some eyebrows, and Houston would benefit from getting a reliable pass-catching threat like Schultz involved again.
On defense, Kamari Lassiter has to steady the ship. Two of Houston’s first four games have featured some of his roughest moments as a pro.
Against Buffalo, he allowed Josh Allen a perfect passer rating when targeted. Against the Dallas Cowboys, he gave up 136 yards and eight receptions on the 11 plays he was targeted, helping CeeDee Lamb put together a career day.
If the Texans want their secondary to function the way it’s supposed to, Lassiter has to be a much more dependable partner for Derek Stingley.
Reed Blankenship also needs a cleaner Week 5. Houston brought him in this offseason to add consistency, talent, and leadership to a safety room that had seen plenty of turnover during 2025.
So far, the fit has been rocky. Blankenship did pick off his first pass for the Texans in Week 3 against the Indianapolis Colts, but he has also allowed at least a 109.0 passer rating when targeted, and his zone-heavy style hasn’t meshed well with a secondary built around man coverage.
If that doesn’t improve, the coaching staff could eventually turn to newly-healthy veteran M.J. Stewart at strong safety.
The Texans need answers all over the field, and Week 5 gives them a chance to find them.
In Other News...
Former Texans RB Joe Mixon Suddenly Faces A Troubling Reality
Joe Mixons next stop hit an early snag this week when the Seahawks passed on adding the former Texans running back to their practice squad after he went through a physical. Seattle had room to explore the move after placing another back on injured reserve, but the workout did not lead to a deal, leaving one of Houstons recent backs still searching for a landing spot.
Mixon is now a free agent, a status that carries extra weight after a foot injury last season complicated his availability. For the Texans, it is another reminder of how quickly the running back market can shift, even for a player with his kind of track record, and how uncertain the path can be once a team decides to keep looking elsewhere. [Read more 🡒]
Will Anderson Jr. Puts Texans Defense On Notice After Another Collapse
Will Anderson Jr. did not try to soften the latest letdown after Houstons loss to Dallas, instead turning the focus squarely onto a defense that again came up short when the game was there to be finished. The offense did its part, with C.J. Stroud and company giving the Texans enough to work with, but the postgame message from Anderson was clear: a strong showing on one side of the ball does not matter if the defense cannot close.
The Texans are still searching for their first win at 0-4, and the frustration is growing because this was not an isolated slip. Houston has now watched late leads slip away in consecutive games, and Anderson stressed the need for accountability from the unit charged with protecting them. For a team trying to build around a young quarterback and a promising defensive core, the margin for these missed opportunities is getting thinner by the week. [Read more 🡒]
Texans Fans Suddenly Face A Real DeMeco Ryans Debate
The Texans 0-4 start has pushed the conversation in Houston beyond the standings and straight into bigger questions about DeMeco Ryans future. Around the league, the instinct in moments like this is to wonder how hot a coachs seat has become, but ESPNs Dan Graziano is arguing that Ryans does not belong in that bucket, even with the losses piling up.
Graziano points to what Ryans has already done in Houston, including playoff appearances, and notes that he still has the kind of backing that matters most inside a building: from the fans and from ownership. In his view, one rough season should not override the larger body of work, which leaves the Texans in an awkward place, trying to steady the present while the outside debate keeps inching toward a question the organization does not seem eager to answer. [Read more 🡒]