Tag: Texans 2024 Season

Sports Illustrated come up with bold prediction for Texans’ 2024 season

While the Houston Texans were aggressive this offseason in adding talent, one publication thinks another 10-7 is on the horizon.

It’s the offseason, meaning bold predictions are running a muck around websites entering July. Some are lukewarm at best. Others feel like they’re so far out of context that it’s laughable at best.

Sports Illustrated’s Conor Orr recently shared his 100 bold predictions for the 2024 NFL season, with each team being mentioned at least once. They ranged from Caleb Williams finishing with more touchdowns as a rookie than Peyton Manning to a coach being traded to a franchise this offseason.

As for the Houston Texans? Orr thinks the defending AFC South champions will remain competitive under DeMeco Ryans in Year 2, but they won’t improve their 10-7 win total.

This is my first truly hot take of this piece. I am very excited to argue with a still-nascent fan base that just logged onto football for the first time in four years in 2024 to fight about how I don’t understand the game (true, I’ll admit it), or that I’m irrelevant and my predictions don’t matter (also true!) or that I’m the same clown who loudly projected the Patriots would win the AFC East last year (how am I still working?). I love the Texans, but their schedule rips this year and it’s going to be hard to replicate previous success even through the clear and obvious upgrades they made this offseason. This is not an anti–C.J. Stroud or DeMeco Ryans take. It is a pro-parity take, though, and when a team upshifts into a schedule that, after Week 7, becomes a bit of a minefield, there’s no telling what might happen.

It’s not that Orr thinks Houston will regress. He still thinks double-digit wins are on the table as Stroud builds off his historic rookie campaign that awarded him Offensive Rookie of the Year honors.

But an improved record doesn’t necessarily mean a better franchise. The Texans played a fourth-place schedule and faced off against the NFC South as their NFC counterpart en route to the first division title in four years.

The four franchises combined for a 27-41 overall season, while Houston also dropped games to Cleveland and Baltimore during the regular season. And sure, while the Texans managed to two of the league’s top passers, they also collapsed in MetLife Stadium against the Zach Wilson-led Jets and Carolina amid a 2-15 season.

Houston is trading out matchups with the NFC South for the NFC North. Chicago and Minnesota look improved following free agency and the draft. Green Bay seems to have its franchise quarterback in Jordan Love after his breakout season. And remember that Detriot was a handful of plays away from making the Super Bowl for the first time in franchise history.

The Texans also take on the AFC East instead of the North. That division features a three-headed monster atop in Miami, New York and Buffalo. And given that Houston fell apart on the road against a rookie passer on a lackluster squad, dropping a game against New England isn’t far-fetched.

Yes, the Texans are still a playoff team despite upgrading their level of competition, but Orr isn’t wrong to think talks of a 13-win season feel extreme for the time being. The good news is someone will be incorrect at the end of the year.

Will it be Orr? The Texans start their question to 11-plus wins once training camp begins on July 18.

Former Texans CB Steven Nelson takes shrouded shot at DeMeco Ryans

Steven Nelson did not hold back when taking a shot at Texans head coach DeMeco Ryans over the weekend.

Steven Nelson spent two seasons with the Houston Texans as the team’s No. 2 cornerback. It seems as if a reunion isn’t in the works anytime soon.

The 31-year-old defensive back took shots at the local sports franchises on his X account after Thursday’s storm killed at least seven people and left nearly 1 million residents without power. On Saturday, Nelson took an apparent veiled shot at Texans coach DeMeco Ryans, posting to his Instagram story:  “Let’s go milk dud man. It’s your time to shine. Damn all that meathead persona. Time to get your hands dirty for the city.”

In another post that later was deleted, Nelson directly called out the second-year head coach, stating it’s, “Milk Dud Ryans’ time to show up for the city.”

This isn’t the first time Nelson has dabbled in beef with the Texans’ personnel. Last offseason, he called out general manager Nick Caserio after the two sides couldn’t agree on a contract extension, taking a jab at his iconic vest look by tweeting, “Can’t trust a MF that wears these for every day of the week. Clown freak.”

Caserio later laughed off the comment after Nelson reported to camp, stating that Nelson isn’t a fan of his wardrobe collection. 

Nelson, who also hosts ‘The Corner Suite’ podcast, later posted and deleted a comment on why he called out Ryans, stating that, “(I) talk heavy bc I can.”  

A former standout at Oregon State, Nelson joined the Texans in 2022 after spending a season with the Philadelphia Eagles. Signed a two-year deal worth $9 million, Nelson was consistent, breaking out with five interceptions in 2023 en route to helping Houston secure its first division title since 2019. 

While Nelson remains a free agent, he claimed in a previous tweet that he wouldn’t sign for less than his asking price. Entering OTAs, he remains a free agent. 

Recently, Nelson gave back to Houston residents, donating water, canned goods, potatoes and rice in Atascocita off FM1960. 

Returning to the Texans already seemed far-fetched for Nelson after Houston agreed to terms with former first-round picks Jeff Okudah and C.J. Henderson. In the draft, the Texans used their first selection on Georgia standout Kamari Lassiter, who should compete for first-team reps both on the outside and in the nickel.