HOUSTON – Reflecting on the first month of the NFL season involves looking in the mirror.
The Texans love their 3-1 record. The defending AFC South champions don’t necessarily like everything that the reflection looking back at them reveals.
Four games into the NFL season, heading into a litmus test of an AFC clash Sunday against the Buffalo Bills, the Texans are the only team in the league with a winning record with a negative point differential. And the Texans have played some sloppy football along the way, including an unwanted distinction.
They are the penalty leads with 40 infractions for 326 yards, including 11 total assessed against Pro Bowl left tackle Laremy Tunsil individually.
Despite injuries, including three missed games by Pro Bowl running back Joe Mixon, an embarrassing blowout road loss to the Minnesota Vikings, a sputtering running game and a lack of explosive plays in the passing game despite the precision of Pro Bowl quarterback C.J. Stroud and the presence of NFL receiving yardage leader Nico Collins and Pro Bowl wide receiver Stefon Diggs, the Texans are winning.
There are no style points in football.
“For sure, 3-1 is good, but we’re 3-1 and we haven’t played our best football yet,” Texans veteran right tackle Tytus Howard told KPRC 2. “We still have more to unlock. When we do that, the sky is the limit. It’s a great thing. We can do even better. We haven’t played our best football yet.”
Nonetheless, the Texans are currently the second seed in the AFC and lead the AFC South division with a pair of wins over the Jacksonville Jaguars and Indianapolis Colts.
Behind the play of Stroud, a strong receiving corps and a stout defense headlined by Pro Bowl defensive ends Will Anderson Jr. and Danielle Hunter, linebacker Azeez Al-Shaair and cornerback Derek Stingley Jr., the Texans have a ton of talent across their roster.
While the Texans, a playoff team last season, have displayed signs of growth, there are also several areas where they still need to improve.
What that means for a returning playoff contender in first place is they’ve found ways to win under coach DeMeco Ryans while not playing as well as they’re capable of. Especially not in a 34-7 defeat to the Vikings on the road. It also means there’s an opportunity to fix the mistakes and become a more efficient squad.
The Texans have 79 points scored and 94 points allowed, good for a -15 differential.
“Excited for where we are, really happy about that and excited for the future,” Texans principal owner and CEO Cal McNair said during a community event at Stephen F. Austin High School. ”I think our team can play a whole lot better and we’re looking forward to them putting together a really good game this Sunday and see where we stack up against a good Bills team coming in. So, we’re really excited about where we are and where we’re headed.”
The Texans rank eighth in total offense, but just 18th in scoring with a 19.8 average per game despite a lot of investments in the offensive line and receiving corps. Not having Mixon again due to a sprained ankle suffered on an illegal hip drop tackle from Chicago Bears linebacker T.J. Edwards is a factor.
They rank 22nd in scoring defense, fifth in total defense, ranking fourth against the pass and 13th in run defense.
“Most definitely never satisfied,” Anderson said. “If you look back, we’ve barely been winning. We have to be better, be detailed and intentional and execute in our jobs. We have a lot of ball left to play. We need to see where our mistakes are and get on top of those things, so they don’t trick down to the rest of our season. We can focus on not jumping offsides and only focus on our record.”
The Bills represent a challenge. Led by star quarterback Josh Allen, they rank second in the NFL in scoring with a 30.2 average per contest. They’re 11th in scoring defense, 14th in total defense.
Allen has completed 69.3 percent of his throws for 814 yards, seven touchdowns and zero interceptions for a 116.3 passer rating. He’s only been sacked five times. Running back James Cook has rushed for 227 yards and three touchdowns. They’re playing without leading receiver Khalil Shakir due to an injury and are expected to plug in Curtis Samuel and lean on tight ends Dalton Kincaid, Dawson Knox and rookie receiver Keon Coleman.
The Texans are focused on themselves and fixing problems as much as a formidable Bills squad.
“For the first quarter of the season, we are where we should be,” Texans coach DeMeco Ryans said. “We are 3-1 and we still have a lot to improve upon and I am excited with where we are, and we are getting better. In certain facets of our game, we are getting better and that is always the goal of the season, is Can your team continue to progress and get better as the season goes forward. We are not a finished product right now and we still have a long way to go to becoming a really good football team that is us handling all the details, all the small things and being on it. That is when we will become better.
“For me, it is about how much better can our team get in October. With the opponents that we have faced, now it is a matter of we know we played sloppy football in the first month of the season, not Texans football. So, for our team and our message for us is how much better can we get?”
Stroud represents the bright spot for the Texans.
He has continued to make strides in his overall game.
He’s coming off his top performance of the season, passing for 345 yards, two touchdowns, including the game-winning pass to running back Dare Ogunbowale and no interceptions against the Jaguars.
“You can tell that we can definitely be better,” Stroud said. “But to sit 3-1 from the first quarter of the season is definitely a win in my book. But definitely got to clean up a lot of things to get better. But I think it’s very adamant and very noticeable we can get better.”
Aaron Wilson is a contributor to Sports Talk 790.