The Houston Texans pulled off one of the best shockers in AFC Conference history this season, overtaking the Jacksonville Jaguars on their way to a 10-7 record and AFC South crown.
The Texans are being commandeered by first-year Coach DeMeco Ryans, who admitted a crucial truth about the team recently. Texans GM Nick Caserio shared his NSFW thoughts on potentially heading back to New England to rejoin the Patriots franchise.
Now that the Texans are back in the playoffs, fans and analysts alike are waiting with bated breath for the team's Saturday, 4:30 p.m. ET clash with Joe Flacco, Kevin Stefanski, Myles Garrett and the Cleveland Browns.
The Texans have a talented team led by a rising star quarterback, so why aren't they being mentioned as a possible Super Bowl contender in most circles? Let us count the ways.
Fatal Flaw: The Texans Are Inexperienced At Key Positions
Heading into the playoffs, the Texans are one of the youngest teams out there.
The youngest team distinction belongs to Jordan Love and the Green Bay Packers, but the Texans aren't far off, especially taking into account their rookie head coach.
The 2023 campaign was Coach Ryans' first, and while he has proven to be a brilliant tactician at times he still has a lot to learn.
Rookie quarterback CJ Stroud also could have some growing pains in round one of the playoffs and beyond.
Stroud failed to win the biggest games at Ohio State University, never beating arch rival Michigan over the course of his otherwise storybook career.
Stroud did lead the Buckeyes to a near-upset of defending champion Georgia, his Buckeyes coming up a last-second field goal short.
Meanwhile Stroud's favorite target Nico Collins is also a young player just coming into his own. Collins' 2023 output of 80 receptions was more than double what he had in his first two seasons. For Collins to lead the Texans to wins this weekend and beyond, he will need to mature in a hurry as the team's focal point on offense.
The inexperienced nature of the young Michigan and Ohio State WR-QB duo means that this first game could be a tough one for the Texans' offense, putting the onus on the defense to lead the way while the Texans' young stars and coaching staff figure things out on the offensive side of the football.
No rookie QB has ever started in or won the Super Bowl.
Stroud has the talent to be the first, but it's going to be an uphill battle against a veteran Browns team and similarly experienced contenders in the AFC Conference this postseason.
Coaching wise, two rookie coaches have won the Super Bowl: George Seifert with the San Francisco 49ers and Don McCafferty of the Baltimore Colts.
A first-round win isn't out of the question, but the Texans are a longshot to win it all in 2023-2024 because of their relative lack of experience.
Texans Favored vs. Browns
The Texans are 2.5 point favorites heading into Saturday night's game, a testament to the QB play of Stroud.
Stroud will take on Flacco, the comeback player of the year in many NFL fans' eyes who came seemingly out of nowhere to lead the Browns to a successful season.
Flacco has a big arm that helps him to make tough throws at unexpected times. For the Texans to win, the youth and energy of Stroud will have to overcome the steady hand of Flacco and the sharp mind of the Browns' Coach of the Year candidate Stefanski.
It's a tall order for such a young Texans team. One thing's for certain as Saturday draws near: the Texans will grow tremendously both from playing this game and from reevaluating things afterward, considering their relative lack of experience compared to other playoff teams in this year's NFL Playoffs.
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