In every game last season, including the playoffs, in which the Houston Texans scored at least 20 points, they won. Houston also won its last 17 games when scoring at least 30 points, dating back to 2021.
That streak was snapped after one game in the 2026 season, when the Texans put up 31 points but lost to the Buffalo Bills in the opener.
Last season when the Texans faced the Bills, Buffalo was held to just 19 points and Houston won. A similar performance was expected out of the defense going into this game. So, to see them give up 36 points was jarring to a lot of Houston fans.
However, quarterback C.J. Stroud defended his defense after the game.
CJ Stroud on the Texans defense after the loss to Buffalo: “I have the utmost respect for our defense.
I play against them everyday. I think they’re amazing. It didn’t shake our way today but if we get a couple of those turnovers at the end we’re smiling up here. I have total… pic.twitter.com/5Aj3bGHzcV
— Houston Stressans (@TexansCommenter) September 14, 2026
“I think I have the utmost respect for our defense,” Stroud said. “I play against them every day. I think they're amazing. It didn't shake our way today. If we get a couple of those turnovers at the end, I think we're smiling up here. I have total respect for those guys. I think if we keep playing, we keep doing what we need to do, we'll be exactly where we need to be.”
Since DeMeco Ryans became the head coach in 2023, there have been nine games when Houston gave up at least 30 points including the loss to Buffalo. That only happened once last season and the Texans still won.
Despite how much respect Stroud has for the defense, their performance in the season opener is concerning, especially considering the fact that they did not generate a single turnover. Last season, the Texans only went two games without forcing a turnover.
There was only one game in 2025 when Houston lost the turnover battle by at least two; that was against the Jacksonville Jaguars in Week 3, a game in which
There is still a lot of time left in the season to turn things around, starting with their game next week against the Cincinnati Bengals. However, the Texans will need to make a lot of adjustments to contain Cincinnati’s high-powered offense and avoid starting the season 0-2 once again.
This article originally appeared on Texans Wire: Texans QB CJ Stroud defends defense after implosion vs. Bills
