Houston Texans NFL Power Rankings: Week 8

So much for that win in London! Following Houston's fantastic victory against the Jacksonville Jaguars one week ago to improve to 2-4, last Sunday's game against the New York Giants was supposed to be another step back towards contention. Instead, both Houston's offense and defense fell back on their old habits of poor blocking and poor tackling, penalties galore, and the like as the Texans lost to the Giants 27-21 in overtime. This loss practically wiped out any hopes for a comeback season in Houston, giving the team a record of 2-5 and with some serious questions to answer during the bye week.

One of the most stunning developments of this game was Giants QB J.J. McCarthy, who was starting his first game with New York after being traded by the Minnesota Vikings. He was such a colossal disappointment in Minnesota that head coach Kevin O'Connel went from drafting him tenth overall in 2024, to the birth of "nine" in 2025 after multiple grizzly performances, to demoting him to third-stringer in 2026 – behind QB Carson Wentz! Today marks a month since the Giants decided to deal a 2027 fifth-round pick to the Vikings for McCarthy, and they are looking like geniuses for that decision. In his first start since Minnesota's 2025 regular season finale against the Green Bay Packers, McCarthy demolished what little reputation the Texans' defense had left from last year, repeatedly targeting Giants star WR Malik Nabers and rookie Malachi Fields, who both combined for 11 receptions and 194 yards on just 14 targets. They practically embarassed the entire Texans' secondary with those two receivers, which alone should give you idea on how far the Texans have fallen, especially without S Jalen Pitre on the field.

And once you get over the J.J. McCarthy angle of this loss, it only gets worse from there! Giants RBs Cam Skattebo and (former Texan) Devin Singletary gashed Houston's defense over and over again, both finishing the game with a combined 165 rushing yards and two touchdowns on just 22 carries. Practically all of the Giants' RBs were placed in the doghouse by head coach John Harbaugh last week as he aired his frustrations over their issues thus far, and the Texans defense became the catalyst to their "get right" game! Cam Skattebo and Devin Singletary – a RB that the Texans' coaching staff and defense should know how to stop from his year here in 2023 – had their bounce back games against the Houston Texans! And RT Jermaine Eluemunor was gassed up in the Giants locker room postgame, too:

Maybe it's fitting the Texans lose like this a week before Halloween, because this might as well be a nightmare come to life! The shadow cast by Houston's losing record grows ever longer as the days grow shorter, and the sense that time is running out climbs up their minds as a chill raises the hairs on their backs. At 2-5, Houston's fight or flight response has been activated, but has the air of desperation come too late for these Texans? Well, let's take a look at where everyone is ranking them following their 27-21 overtime loss to the New York Giants:

18. Houston Texans (2-5) (Last Week: 22)

Another tough loss has landed on the Texans' ledger, reducing their room for error going forward. It's fair to say this defense is no longer deserving of its respected reputation — especially when reflecting on how Devin Singletary ran right through the heart of the unit to a game-winning touchdown . I do believe C.J. Stroud will continue to keep Houston competitive. I'm keeping an eye on that connection with Marvin Harrison Jr. too; Stroud's touchdown pass to his former Ohio State teammate on Sunday was exquisite.

Week 7 result: Lost to the Giants 27-21 (OT) Week 7 ranking: 16

Best offseason addition: TE Foster Moreau

The Texans didn't have many big offseason acquisitions, but Moreau has provided help in the run game. And he has been a good red zone threat with three total touchdowns. Moreau has played 43% of the snaps, eating into the playing time of tight end Dalton Schultz , who is down from 70% in 2025 to 57% this season. Moreau helps Houston's offense not be predictable when he's in the game. Even though Houston has just two wins, its offense is averaging 24 points per game. And Moreau is a noteworthy part of the unit.

Last week's ranking: No. 14 Last week's result: lost to Giants, 27–21 (OT) This week: idle

I know great defenses are difficult to maintain from year to year, but the Texans' fall from grace remains one of the most stunning moments in recent history. J.J. McCarthy would have been ripped to shreds by almost the exact same cast of characters a year ago (no offense). How do you not evolve over the course of an offseason?

Week 7 Result: Lost vs. New York Giants 27-21 (OT)

Back-to-back wins briefly revived Houston's season. Sunday's loss exposed how much work remains.

There are a number of reasons why the Texans have struggled, but the most surprising has to be the team's defensive collapse. Last year, Houston led the league in total defense and ranked first in the AFC in scoring defense. This season, Houston's defense has been average—on a good day.

The Texans allowed 420 yards of offense in Sunday's overtime loss, including 188 yards and four scores on the ground.

The offense isn't without blame—taking on a Giants team short its best edge-rusher and green-dot linebacker, Houston had just 237 yards of offense and was 3-for-12 on third down.

The Texans head into their bye week facing an unpleasant reality: There will be no return to the playoffs in 2026.

Losing at home to the Giants just might be the death blow in their chances of winning the AFC South. The defense just isn't good enough.

24. Houston Texans (20): It may be a lost season in H-Town, but not if you're Tank Dell. Welcome back, boss, and props.

The Texans' loss Sunday was one of the most damaging of the entire NFL season. They were double-digit favorites to beat the Giants, and a win over New York would have put Houston at 3-4, not far behind 4-2 Jacksonville with a head-to-head win over the Jaguars. And the Texans had a massive letdown in an overtime loss to the Giants. At 2-5, their margin of error is incredibly slim with 10 games to go.

At this point it's clear the Texans are nowhere near as good on defense as expected. They were 16th in defensive DVOA through Sunday's games and 24th in EPA ( expected points added ) allowed. Needing a stop in overtime Sunday, Houston allowed runs of 42 and 30 yards on back-to-back plays that ended the game.

"No magical elixir is going to drop out of the sky and … fix it," Texans head coach DeMeco Ryans said according to AP. "We fix it by putting the work in and getting better at fundamentals of football and that's where we've got to just own it. As coaches, as players, we've all got to own it and we've got to find a way to turn this thing around."

The Texans were supposed to be Super Bowl contenders. Their defense was supposed to be among the best in the NFL. Instead, the unit ranks 24th in EPA per play and has gone from generating the second-most pressure in the league to the ninth most.

23. Texans (No. 19; 2-5): Has an elite defense ever fallen apart this quickly?

Average Ranking: 21.44 (Last Week: 16.78)

Sports Illustrated analyst Conor Orr was one of the last pundits listed here that was clinging on to the concept of a Texans comeback this year, but now even he has given up. Orr was all-in on the Texans this year, writing a big piece on their defense back in August, pairing that story with a massive cover shoot of DE Will Anderson Jr., and declaring they would go 13-4 and win the Super Bowl this season! Following this long, Orr had this to say on the Heed the Call Podcast:

"We talked a couple weeks ago about how, uh, if you had an "ugly baby," or you didn't like it, you could put it in the German, uh, in the "German Drawer" and it just goes away forever. I'm putting it in…I'm putting the Texans in the drawer. I'm getting rid of them, they're done. It was a baby – I loved it, I brought it into this world, um, but um, I'm finished taking of it. I'm good." – Conor Orr, NFL Week 7 Recap of EVERY Game!, Heed the Call Podcast

Going from the preseason Super Bowl winner to a "German Drawer" not even halfway through the season? Well…yeah, that about sums it up for me, too. This was about as close to a "dream team" I think the Texans have ever had, and, despite the midseason adjustments they've made, are truly a bad football team. ESPN is still giving the Texans a 23.6% chance of making the playoffs largely because of how comparatively easy their remaining schedule is, but following this loss to the Giants, I don't know if the Texans can be trusted to beat anyone.

Like many bad teams, the avenues to defeating the Texans seem to be growing by the week, and nothing about their team can be deemed "consistent" besides their poor run-blocking and tackling. On the flip side on Giants RT Jermaine Eluemunor's great game was Texans LT Aireontae Ersery's bad game, giving up multiple pressures, penalties, and once again being a non-factor in the rushing attack. On the flip side of LB Azeez Al-Shaair's poor tackling performance was Giants' rookie LB Arvell Reese's second game with 5+ tackles, a tackle-for-loss, and a QB hit. You could play this game all over the field when comparing the Giants and Texans, as there were a lot of players on Houston's roster that deserve a share of the blame for this loss.

I was a bit more suspicious of the Texans coming into the regular season because of a rash of injuries that ran through the team throughout the offseason and their (in my view) mediocre draft haul back in April, but even I wasn't expecting a collapse this dramatic. This game was supposed to provide some answers to those desperate for the team to get back on track, and instead, there are now only more questions. QB CJ Stroud may have saved the team from a crisis last week, but that optimism was very, very short lived.

What do you think, though? Are the Texans still capable of mounting a comeback following their bye week, or will things only stand to get worse until bigger changes are made? Will this season become a big enough meltdown that job security will be a question for Nick Caley, Matt Burke, DeMeco Ryans, or even Nick Caserio? Do any of these staffers deserve the blame, or are there players the Texans should be prepared to move on from following this year's horrifying start? At this point, should the Texans even entertain the idea of copying the Indianapolis Colts and becoming a "dealer" at the trade deadline? Let us know your thoughts down in the comments below!