The Cowboys are exactly where you’d expect to find them on a contested-catch leaderboard. The rest of the top five? That’s where this season starts getting interesting.
Dallas sits on top with 55 contested catches, and the reason is obvious: CeeDee Lamb and George Pickens give the Cowboys two receivers built to win in traffic. Lamb has turned 52.9% of his contested targets into catches through seven games, while Pickens is at 45.5%.
The Green Bay Packers are the other team that feels easy to explain. They’ve piled up 33 contested catches, and Matthew Golden plus Christian Watson have become a significant part of the passing game. Golden has 540 receiving yards through seven games, while Watson has 595 yards and six touchdowns.
After that, the board gets a lot more surprising.
Houston is second in the NFL with 39 contested catches, and Nico Collins has been a huge reason why. He leads qualified receivers with a 66.7% contested catch rate.
Pittsburgh is right there too with 34 contested catches, even though the Steelers entered the season without what many would consider one of the league’s deepest receiver rooms. DK Metcalf is the headliner there.
New Orleans rounds out the top five with 32 contested catches, and that’s not a team many would have circled before the season. Chris Olave and Devaughn Vele have both chipped in, with Olave winning 50% of his contested chances and Vele converting 45.5% of his contested targets.
So while Dallas and Green Bay make sense at the top, the presence of the Texans, Steelers and Saints ahead of plenty of more celebrated passing attacks is the real story here.
In Other News...
Texans Roster Questions Are Suddenly Getting Harder To Ignore
The AFC South has become a lot less predictable in a hurry, and that matters in Houston as much as anywhere. Indianapolis has already moved defensive tackle DeForest Buckner and guard Quenton Nelson, and there is even talk that the Colts could shop Jonathan Taylor for the right return. Around the division, that kind of shifting roster landscape puts even more pressure on teams trying to sort out where they stand before the season gets any deeper.
For the Texans, the timing only adds to the scrutiny after a recent loss left Nick Caserio talking about personnel decisions. The general manager said Houston will evaluate its options after the Week 8 bye, but there are no immediate calls coming from the front office yet. That leaves the Texans in a familiar spot for a team chasing stability in a division that suddenly looks like it could keep changing under their feet. [Read more 🡒]
Texans Bye Week Has Turned One Coaching Debate Into A Flashpoint
The Texans bye week has given the organization time to look hard at a coaching staff under growing pressure, and the conversation has quickly moved beyond the usual midseason introspection. What began as a rough patch on offense has widened into a broader concern about the entire operation, with the offensive line drawing the sharpest scrutiny as the units play has slipped and the team has struggled to find stability.
But the issue is not limited to one side of the ball. Defensive coordinator Matt Burke, special teams coordinator Frank Bush and offensive coordinator Nick Caley are all part of the larger debate over who should be accountable for a season that has gone sideways, and the uncertainty around potential staff changes has become one of the more pointed storylines around the team during the break. [Read more 🡒]
Texans Suddenly Need Backfield Help Before Week 9
Houston had to move quickly to bolster its backfield, and the Texans did exactly that by claiming Emari Demercado off waivers after the Cowboys let him go. Demercado brings four NFL seasons of experience with him, along with previous stops in Arizona and Kansas City, and he appeared in two games for Dallas this season before becoming available.
For Houston, the timing matters as much as the name. The Texans are dealing with injuries at running back, including David Montgomery, so adding another experienced body gives the staff some needed flexibility heading into Week 9. Whether Demercado settles in as simple insurance or becomes part of the mix, the move underscores how thin things have become behind the starters. [Read more 🡒]