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The Houston Texans shocked the NFL world in 2023, but they won't be sneaking up on anyone in 2024.
Houston went from 3-13-1 in 2022 to AFC South champions at 10-7 in 2023 in large part because of quarterback C.J. Stroud. The Ohio State product won the Offensive Rookie of the Year and led his team to a playoff victory in his very first season.
Stroud and the Texans will now be firmly under the spotlight during the 2024 season as potential Super Bowl contenders. Here's a look at the team's schedule for the upcoming campaign.
2024 Houston Texans Schedule
Full schedule information available on the team's official website.
Analysis
It has been a while since the Super Bowl could be realistically discussed as a possibility for the Texans, but they are surely eyeing the Lombardi Trophy this season.
After all, Stroud is already one of the best quarterbacks in the league. He will have no shortage of weapons with Diggs, Nico Collins and Tank Dell on the outside, Mixon in the backfield, and tight end Dalton Schultz making plays across the middle.
It's one of the best offenses in the AFC on paper, and it will be even better if Stroud makes a jump from his rookie campaign into his second year.
The defense might also improve with Hunter and Will Anderson Jr. creating quite the one-two punch of pass-rushers. Opposing offensive lines will have to double at least one of them on a regular basis, which will open up blitzing lanes for the other and allow the middle of the defensive line to stuff the run game.
Improvement on both sides of the ball will be needed because the schedule doesn't offer too many breaks.
Houston plays the NFC North, which features two playoff teams from a season ago in the Detroit Lions and Green Bay Packers. The Chicago Bears and Minnesota Vikings are also loaded with weapons with Justin Jefferson, DJ Moore, Keenan Allen, Jordan Addison, T.J. Hockenson, Rome Odunze, Aaron Jones and more, so there are no easy wins in that grouping.
It also faces the AFC East, which means games against two playoff teams in the Buffalo Bills and Miami Dolphins, as well as a matchup with a New York Jets squad that figures to be much better with a healthy Aaron Rodgers.
Throw in first-place matchups against Patrick Mahomes' Kansas City Chiefs and Lamar Jackson's Baltimore Ravens, as well as the additional cross-conference showdown at the Dallas Cowboys, and there isn't much breathing room outside of the division for the Texans.
Even the games inside the AFC South figure to pose a challenge, as the Jacksonville Jaguars and Indianapolis Colts each finished with winning records last season.
The Texans have a playoff roster, but they will need to manage a loaded schedule to reach the postseason.
Pivotal Matchups
Divisional matchups are important for every team in the NFL, and the Texans are no different.
In particular, the games against the Jaguars and Colts stand out since Houston finished one game ahead of each of them last season. The win over Indianapolis in Week 18 propelled the Texans to a playoff spot and the eventual division title, underscoring the importance of the head-to-head matchups.
There is also the underlying story of clashes between young quarterbacks in the division with Stroud in Houston, Trevor Lawrence in Jacksonville and Anthony Richardson in Indianapolis.
It wouldn't be a surprise to see them battle for years to come, and Stroud can maintain his division crown with some head-to-head wins in 2024.
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Houston also has realistic Super Bowl aspirations. If that is the territory it is going to live in, it will have to figure out a way to compete with the Ravens, Chiefs and Bills.
Storylines will be in full supply for all of those games, including Diggs facing his former team in the Bills. The Baltimore game will be a postseason rematch, and Mahomes' Chiefs are the gold standard that every team in the league is trying to prove itself against during head-to-head matchups.
Houston's season came to an end when it lost in Baltimore in the playoffs. Perhaps things would have gone differently for the Texans if they were playing at home.
The only way the Texans will earn home-field advantage against some of these teams this time around is by winning some of the head-to-head games in the regular season.
