The Houston Texans are in control of the AFC South with a 7-4 record, yet haven’t lived up to the preseason expectations of Super Bowl contenders to this point. Houston hasn’t played at the level of the Kansas City Chiefs and Buffalo Bills through the first 11 weeks, while the Baltimore Ravens and Pittsburgh Steelers have also emerged as Super Bowl contenders in the conference.
Where do the Texans stand in this equation? Houston faces the Tennessee Titans on Sunday (1 p.m. EST, CBS), a team that is in year one of a rebuild and trying to build momentum for 2025 and beyond. This game could be the quintessential “trap game” for the Texans, who are trying to break through in that pantheon of Super Bowl contenders in the AFC.
NFL on CBS play-by-play announcer Tom McCarthy is calling Sunday’s game between the Texans and Titans and discussed the upcoming matchup:
What have you noticed this year with C.J. Stroud compared to last year?
McCarthy: “Well I think he’s been under pressure a lot more and I think that’s a good thing for his development. Teams are trying to disrupt him a little bit more, and I know the numbers aren’t as good as they were last season. Just think about the fact that if he gets 265 yards (Sunday), he’s going to reach 7,000 yards in 27 games. There’s only six quarterbacks in NFL history that have done that.
