Tag: Texans vs. Titans

All 32 NFL quarterbacks (including C.J. Stroud) ranked by Total QBR

Here’s where Houston Texans QB C.J. Stroud stacks up among other passers in QBR entering Week 12.

C.J. Stroud might not have thrown a touchdown on “Monday Night Football,” but he regained his mojo and secured a win.

Houston Texans care more about the latter than the numbers attached to No. 7’s stat sheet.

The second-year passer posted a Total QBR rating of 51.6 in the team’s 34-10  win over the Dallas Cowboys at AT&T Stadium, bringing his season-long Total QBR average to 54.4.

That’s a slight improvement from last week’s rating (54.1), but Stroud’s ranking dropped two spots to No. 21  among starting QBs.

Stroud’s traditional passer rating this season is 88.0, which ranks 24th overall.

Unlike a traditional passer rating, the Total QBR “incorporates all of a quarterback’s contributions to winning, including how he impacts the game on passes, rushes, turnovers and penalties,” according to ESPN.

The metric considers scenarios that a traditional passer rating overlooks and considers “a team’s level of success or failure on every play to provide the proper context and then allocates credit to the quarterback and his teammate to produce a clearer measure of quarterback efficiency.”

With that context in mind, here’s a look at how Stroud stacks up against the NFL’s other starting quarterbacks this fall.

NFL QBs ranked by Total QBR after Week 11

  1. Joe Burrow: 76.1
  2. Lamar Jackson: 75.0
  3. Kyler Murray: 74.9
  4. Josh Allen: 72.7
  5. Jayden Daniels: 67.6
  6. Brock Purdy: 67.4
  7. Patrick Mahomes: 67.0
  8. Derek Carr: 62.1
  9. Jalen Hurts: 62.0
  10. Matthew Stafford: 60.6
  11. Tua Tagovailoa: 60.4
  12. Drake Maye: 59.6
  13. Jared Goff: 59.4
  14. Jordan Love: 59.3
  15. Kirk Cousins: 56.3
  16. Justin Herbert: 56.3
  17. Baker Mayfield: 56.2
  18. Sam Darnold: 55.7
  19. Geno Smith: 55.4
  20. Bo Nix: 55.3
  21. C.J. Stroud: 54.4
  22. Aaron Rodgers: 51.0
  23. Jameis Winston: 61.0
  24. Russell Wilson: 59.5
  25. Anthony Richardson: 45.9
  26. Caleb Williams: 44.5
  27. Gardner Minshew: 39.1
  28. Will Levis: 32.6
  29. Bryce Young: 32.5
  30. Cooper Rush: 28.4
  31. Mac Jones: 17.7
  32. Drew Lock: 8.7

Stroud and the Texans return home to face off against the Tennessee Titans in Week 12.

Texans receive positive news on DE Will Anderson Jr.’s status for Week 12

Will Anderson Jr. was back at practice for the Houston Texans on Wednesday for the first time in two weeks.

(This story was updated because an earlier version included an inaccuracy.)

Will Anderson Jr. is inching his way back to 100 percent.

Anderson, the Houston Texans’ leading pass-rusher and a favorite to win Defensive Player of the Year, returned to practice for the first time in two weeks after dealing with an ankle injury.

The Texans listed him as limited on the injury report, but simply putting weight on the ankle is a positive sign for the second-year defensive end entering Week 12’s showdown against the Tennessee Titans.

“We’ve been missing him the past couple of weeks,” Texans coach DeMeco Ryans said. “His leadership style, his play style, his demeanor all around. So it’s good to have him back at practice.”

Anderson, the reigning Defensive Rookie of the Year, hasn’t played since the second quarter of Week 9’s loss against the New York Jets on Halloween. After trying to return to the game, the Texans ruled him out and he hasn’t been on the field since.

A team captain and force in the trenches, Anderson was having a monster start to the 2024 season before missing the past two games against the Detroit Lions and Dallas Cowboys. Not only did he lead the NFL with 11.5 tackles for loss, but his 7.5 sacks also ranked top-three among all defensive players through the first nine weeks.

Anderson also was coming off winning AFC Defensive Player of the Month for October after finishing with 17 tackles, including an NFL-best seven for loss, five sacks, a pass breakup that resulted in an interception and a fumble recovery. His return would be welcomed opposite four-time Pro Bowler Danielle Hunter.

Even with the injuries to receivers Stefon Diggs and Nico Collins, Houston’s defensive line might be the thinnest. Even after signing multiple players, the Texans have yet to see all four of their projected starting defensive linemen on the field at the same time this season.

Defensive tackle Mario Edwards Jr., who had been suspended for four games for violating the league’s drug policy, returned to the lineup last week.

Denico Autry, who had been suspended the first six games for violating its policy against performance-enhancing drug use, came back right when Edwards was put on the suspended list.

Meanwhile, starting defensive tackle Foley Fatukasi missed last week’s game with a foot injury.

Having a dominant defensive line could be trouble for the Titans’ front five protecting Will Levis. Tennessee has allowed 33 sacks on the season, including 27 against the second-year starter.

Kickoff is scheduled for noon CT at NRG Stadium.

All 32 NFL teams (including the Texans) ranked by FPI ratings

Here’s how the Texans rank in FPI rankings among all 32 other NFL teams entering Week 12’s matchup against the Tennessee Titans.

Eleven games into the season, the Houston Texans (7-4) have a -1.9 Football Power Index (FPI) rating from ESPN, which ranks 13th among all 32 teams.

The Tennessee Titans (2-8), who play host to Houston in Week 11 on ‘Monday Night Football’, are ranked 28th with a 5.6 FPI rating.

FPI is “a measure of team strength that is meant to be the best predictor of a team’s performance going forward for the rest of the season,” according to ESPN.com. “FPI represents how many points above or below average a team is. Projected results are based on 10,000 simulations of the rest of the season using FPI, results to date, and the remaining schedule.”

So with that background in mind, here’s a look at how the league’s 32 teams stack up based on FPI going into Week 12 of the 2024 NFL season.

  1. Detroit Lions (9-1): 8.7
  2. Baltimore Ravens (7-4): 6.4
  3. Buffalo Bills (9-2): 6.2
  4. Kansas City Chiefs (9-1): 5.1
  5. Green Bay Packers (7-3): 5.0
  6. Philadelphia Eagles (8-2): 4.5
  7. San Francisco 49ers (5-5): 3.9
  8. Minnesota Vikings (8-2): 2.9
  9. Houston Texans (7-4): 1.9
  10. Pittsburgh Steelers (8-2): 1.8
  11. Tampa Bay Buccaneers (4-6): 1.4
  12. Arizona Cardinals (6-4): 1.4
  13. Washington Commanders (7-4): 1.3
  14. Los Angeles Chargers (7-3): 1.1
  15. Cincinnati Bengals (4-7): 0.3
  16. Los Angeles Rams (5-5): -0.1
  17. New York Jets (3-8): -0.2
  18. Miami Dolphins (4-6): -0.3
  19. Atlanta Falcons (6-5): -0.7
  20. New Orleans Saints (4-7): -0.7
  21. Cleveland Browns (2-8): -1.1
  22. Seattle Seahawks (5-5): -1.1
  23. Denver Broncos (6-5): -1.2
  24. Chicago Bears (4-6): -1.4
  25. Indianapolis Colts (5-6): -2.1
  26. Las Vegas Raiders (2-8): -4.9
  27. New England Patriots (3-8): -5.4
  28. Tennesee Titans (2-8): -5.6
  29. Jacksonville Jaguars (2-9): -5.9
  30. Carolina Panthers (3-7): -7.5
  31. New York Giants (2-8): -7.7
  32. Dallas Cowboys (3-7): -8.8

The Texans will aim to improve their rating when they take on the Titans in Week 12 in what should factor in the AFC South division race. Houston has moved up four spots since last week.