Even as a relatively young NFL franchise — they began play in 2002 – the Houston Texans have established their fair share of rivalries over the past 19 seasons.

In the AFC South, the Texans share their division with the Indianapolis Colts, Tennessee Titans, and Jacksonville Jaguars, and they have always seemingly been in the fight to win the division up until the final week of the year. They have made the playoffs on six different occasions, having to play on Wild Card weekend in 2011, 2012, 2015, 2016, 2018, and 2019. They've advanced onto the Divisional Weekend four of those times.

While they have never made it past the second weekend of the playoffs, they do have a relatively high amount of success for an expansion team, even with a 131-157 record working against them in that category. Even having established some noteworthy rivalries against teams outside of their division and conference, here are the top five rivalries, all time, for Houston.

New England Patriots
All-Time Record: 2-10

Any and all teams have had a tough time going up against the Tom Brady-led New England Patriots. But since he migrated to the NFC South division and the warm climate of Tampa Bay, maybe the Texans finally have a chance to improve their lopsided all-time record against them.

For both Deshaun Watson and DeAndre Hopkins, their efforts have seemingly fallen on deaf ears when facing off against New England — even in the postseason. Two of their ten losses have come in the postseason against the Patriots. And even though Houston won their most recent regular-season matchup (28-22 on 12/1/19), eight losses preceded that victory.

The rivalry has seemingly started brewing over the past few seasons between these two teams, and even though they do not play each other every single year, there may be something here to watch moving forward, even with Brady having left.

Dallas Cowboys
All-Time Record: 2-3

In the franchise’s inaugural 2002 season, they became only the second team in NFL history to win their first-ever game in the league by defeating their in-state rivals, the Dallas Cowboys, by a score of 19-10. And while these two teams play each other once every four seasons, there seems to be enough there to cause a bit of a rivalry.

Being professional teams from the same state that play the same sport can easily lead to a bit of animosity between the two. And while the Cowboys have a much more storied history and have been the better team ever since Houston entered the league, the battle between Dak Prescott and Watson to be the best young-stud quarterback in the Lone Star State has somewhat helped brew a rivalry.

Like the Patriots, the Texans have won the most recent affair between these two (19-16 on 10/7/18), and they play again in the preseason on Sept. 3.

Kansas City Chiefs
All-Time Record: 5-7

Seemingly always putting up high-scoring affairs, the Kansas City Chiefs offer up an image of what the Texans wish they looked like, at least on offense, And while Watson is no Patrick Mahomes, their styles of play can translate between the both of them to the point where they start to blur the lines of what it takes to be a star QB and a star franchise leader.

The Chiefs spotted the Texans 21 points in the first quarter of their AFC Divisional Game in January. Yet, they came storming back to take a 28-24 lead at half, never looking back and won handily 51-31. Speaking to the consistent downfalls that head coach Bill O’Brien brings to the table, the Texans fell apart after their onslaught of a first quarter, and that game was the most recent installment in what has blossomed into a rivalry filled with players of current star power and potential star status.

Indianapolis Colts
All-Time Record: 9-28

Their first divisional entrant on this list, the Indianapolis Colts have easily had Houston’s number, currently holding a 19-game advantage in the win column. As they do face off twice a year, the Texans still have not been able to crack the code that is the Colts, even with their roster consistency.

Since 2012, the Texans have won 6 of the 17 matchups between the two, but they lost the lone postseason matchup in 2018, even though it was in Houston. Even as Andrew Luck ceremoniously departed for retirement, the Colts have continued to pour it on under head coach Frank Reich.

Tennessee Titans
All-Time Record: 17-19

The most manageable deficit to overcome between all listed teams, the Tennessee Titans were ranked as Houston’s top rival, according to an SB Nation fan poll conducted in 2018. 63% of the vote went towards Tennessee, showing that the two middling franchises in the AFC South have been fighting each other for more ground in trying to win the division.

The Titans seem to have found some semblance of roster consistency with both Ryan Tannehill and Derrick Henry, and with the Texans running out Watson and a new running back behind him in David Johnson, it will be interesting to see what this rivalry turns into in 2020 and beyond.