The last time the Houston Texans were above .500 was on Sept. 12, 2021 — the season opener.
That’s two years, 26 months, and a span of 791 days since the last time the Texans had a winning record. Now, the Texans went into Paycor Stadium and toppled an annual AFC title game threat in the Cincinnati Bengals on Sunday. And in the process, the Texans have gone from a yearly punchline in the NFL to one of the league’s best surprises — and now a postseason threat.
DeMeco Ryans’ Message Rubbing Off on Texans Players
How have the Texans immediately turned it around in such a short time under DeMeco Ryans? It’s through one simple message that he revealed after the thrilling 30-27 road win.
“We’ve talked about it on Saturday night: Whatever it takes, finish every snap. And I told the guys if it comes down to the last snap, we still find a way to finish,” Ryans told reporters after the three-point victory.
MORE: Houston Texans Depth Chart
The drive began with an incompletion. The subsequent play was a simple four-yard run. But the third play elevated the Texans’ chances of finishing the final snap: C.J. Stroud hitting Dalton Schultz on a 25-yard strike to get into Cincy territory.
This is such cold-blooded stuff from CJ Stroud. Clutch drive. Third down. Loudini bringing all the goodies. Play clock running down. He doesn't care: stick, shuffle, climb, throw pic.twitter.com/zWWcJTSpeC
— Ollie Connolly (@OllieConnolly)
Then, Noah Brown continued the “finish” theme Ryans is instilling by finishing this run after the catch to get Houston into field goal range.
What a play from Noah Brown in the clutch! https://t.co/G4bYRzPLiN pic.twitter.com/3OMYEBuX0R
— Bradeaux (@BradeauxNBA)
The Texans did indeed have the final snap. They positioned themselves for the final 38-yard field goal attempt by Matt Ammendola. And they all saw the ball split the uprights to break the tie one last time.
HERE IT IS ‼️ pic.twitter.com/HNDGyUUegy
— Houston Texans (@HoustonTexans)
It marked the second straight week the Texans found a way to snatch the lead for good in the fourth quarter. They pulled a similar stunt with the defending NFC South champs, the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, in town. Now, they took down the AFC North champs and conference runner-up.
Again, Ryans’ message about finishing is reverberating inside the Texans’ locker room.
DeMeco Ryans talks to his team in the locker room after a their big win on the road 😤 pic.twitter.com/YqZ7XZMAfU
— NFL on CBS 🏈 (@NFLonCBS)
Is It Time To Start Thinking Playoffs for the Texans?
Now at 5-4, the Texans have remained in the playoff race during the month teams start cranking up their playoff push: November.
And outside of the emotional Bengals win, Houston has delivered the kind of performances that speak to a playoff contender in the making.
The Texans trounced a pair of 6-3 teams in the AFC South-leading Jacksonville Jaguars and Pittsburgh Steelers for their first two wins. They then ended a final 12-play drive against the New Orleans Saints with a Steve Nelson interception. Now, Houston earned back-to-back fourth-quarter wins against two playoff teams from a year ago.
The rest of the way is beginning to shape up nicely for Ryans, Stroud, and a Texans team that is clearly making an attempt to end their playoff drought since 2019.
The Arizona Cardinals, currently a league-worst 1-8, are next on deck. Then a Jaguars team that got smacked by 20 points and ran out of their building by the San Francisco 49ers 34-3 on Sunday comes after the Cards in a home division showdown for Houston. Then it’s the Denver Broncos at NRG Stadium to kick off December.
Including the Cards and Broncos, Houston has four games left against teams below .500. Furthermore, the best team that remains on the Texans’ schedule is the 6-3 Cleveland Browns on Christmas Eve — and that’s a home game for the Texans.
The league has gone from thinking of the Texans as a last-place dweller to a potential playoff contender. This is a team no longer wavering or showing an inability to close out games. Ryans has the Texans playing to the final snap, regardless of who the opponent is.
“No one wavered on our sideline,” Ryans said. “Everyone believed that we were going to win.”
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