Overview of the Houston Texans Defense
The ascension of Houston's defense began with the hiring of head coach DeMeco Ryans in 2023. It started slowly, as rebuilds usually do. By the start of the 2024 campaign, the Texans were playing good defense. Last year's unit took it to a whole new level.
The 2025 Texans had a championship-caliber defense. At 17.3 points per game, only the Seahawks were better. Two teams created more turnovers than Houston's 29, and six clubs bettered their total of 47 sacks. The pass defense was stingy, allowing the 7th fewest yards per attempt and the third-lowest completion percentage. The run defense was on par as well, ranking 4th in yards and 6th in yards per carry. It's hard to find even a minor category in which the Texans were not top ten.
With no glaring holes to plug, the organization made no high-profile moves on defense. Free agency brought them safety Reed Blankenship, who should land a starting role. They also added tackle Logan Hall and edge Dominique Robinson, who should contribute in backup roles. The draft netted four defenders, including tackle Kayden McDonald in round two and linebacker Wade Woodaz in the fourth. McDonald should see rotational action right away. Woodaz could eventually be a starter.
With no major defections and a little talent boost down the depth chart, another outstanding season is likely on tap.
Houston Texans Defensive Line
The Texans boast an elite tandem of edge defenders in Danielle Hunter and Liam Anderson. When the team used the third overall pick on Anderson in 2023, they put a cornerstone in place. He has not disappointed. Like many young edge defenders, Anderson was a little slow out of the gate. His learning curve was sharper than most. The light came on midway through his rookie season, leading to six sacks over his final six games.
In 2024, Anderson picked up right where he left off. He missed four games with minor injuries and was rested in Week 18. In twelve games, he totaled 27-10-11 with 2 forced fumbles and was on pace to go 38-15-15.5. It came together for Anderson in his third season. At 35-19-12 with 5 turnovers, 3 swatted passes, and a score, he made the top 10 for the first time, ranking sixth. At age 24, he is just entering his prime. Anderson is set to reside in the top ten for the next several years.
The difference between Anderson and Hunter in 2025 was pretty much Anderson's touchdown. At 28-26-15 with 4 turnovers and 3 batted passes, Hunter ranked seventh, five points and one slot behind his teammate. At age 31, Hunter is simply an older version of Anderson. He put up 12.5 sacks as a second-year player in 2016, and the only things that have stopped him from reaching double-digit sacks every year since are a shoulder injury in 2017 and a scary neck injury that caused him to miss the 2020 season and much of 2021. Hunter has 14 or more sacks in four of his last five seasons and has reached double-digits in seven of the eight campaigns in which he played at least 12 games.
The move to Houston in 2023 did not affect Hunter's big-play numbers. However, it did take a toll on his tackle production. Throw out his injury-shortened 2021, and Hunter had four consecutive seasons with at least 46 solo tackles and 65 combined, leading up to his signing with the Texans. In his two years with Houston, he has 59 tackles and 41 assists combined. He may not be the elite option he once was, but Hunter remains a dependable target as an ED1.
The Texans are not a team that uses a lot of rotational players on the edge. Hunter led the squad with 728 snaps, with Anderson seeing 694. Backups Derek Barnett and Dylan Horton collected 594 between them. It would be nice to see 750 snaps from the starters, but keep in mind that the Texans only faced 938 plays, so Anderson saw 74% of the snaps.
Barnett has been a quality veteran backup for the team over the last two and a half seasons, contributing 12.5 sacks over that time. He will not be back for 2026, so the organization added former Bear Dominique Robinson to fill that role. This is a step down that could be a problem if one of the starters is injured. Robinson collected 2 sacks over four seasons with Chicago. Horton returns as the other backup. With three full seasons under his belt, he is still looking for the first full sack of his career.
After moving to a 4-3 base defense in 2023, Houston's interior line was not fantasy-friendly for a couple of seasons. That changed last year when fourth-year man Tommy Togiai quietly stepped up. He debuted in week three and was hit or miss over his first few games. From week 10 through the end of the season, however, Togiai averaged almost 9.5 points per game and was the number three tackle.
Togiai is a well-kept secret because he was not flashy. Nearly all of his production came in the tackle columns. When all the numbers were counted, he was 27-32-1.5 with 4 batted passes and a fumble recovery for a score, on 459 plays. That is a lot of production per snap. If he continues in the starting role and picks up another 100+ snaps, this guy could be a draft-day steal. With the additions of Logan Hall in free agency and Kayden McDonald in the draft, there is no guarantee about what anyone's role will be.
Togiai put up good numbers for us. The question is, did he perform well enough for his team to keep the job? The fact that the organization committed a second-round pick to the position magnifies that question. That said, Togiai works as the three-technique. I expect McDonald to be groomed for the nose tackle spot, currently held by 32-year-old Sheldon Rankins.
McDonald checks in at 326 pounds and is a talented run defender. He uses leverage and jarring first contact to get off blocks quickly and make plays in tight spaces. His skillset and play draw favorable comparisons to DJ Reader, who was among the best run-stopping interior linemen in the game for several years.
The most intriguing thing about McDonald is his college production. He was a one-year starter for Ohio State as a junior. In 14 games, he racked up 31 tackles and 34 assists. McDonald doesn't have a lot to offer as a pass rusher, though he did manage 3 sacks in 2025.
Rankins is signed through the 2027 season and should hold onto the starting job this year, though he could share time with the rookie. Rankins' cap number for 2027, however, is 9.4 million. If McDonald performs well, the team could save a lot of money by letting the veteran go.
The competition that most concerns me with Togiai comes from former Buccaneers' second-round pick Logan Hall. While he failed to perform to expectations during his time in Tampa Bay, Hall started a lot of games. His best season was 2024, when he recorded 28 combined stops and 5 sacks.
My guess at this point is that Togiai and Rankins will be the starters in roughly a 60/40 time share with Hall and McDonald. If he picks up where he left off last year, that will be enough opportunity for Togiai to have a fantasy impact.
- Edge Liam Anderson Jr. – Strong ED1 with elite upside
- Edge Danielle Hunter – Strong ED1 with top 5 potential
- Edge Dominique Robinson – No impact expected
- Edge Dylan Horton – No impact expected
- DT Sheldon Rankins – No fantasy impact
- DT Tommy Togiai – Potential DT1 with some risk
- DT Logan Hall – No grand expectations
- DT Kayden McDonald – Dynasty prospect with a high ceiling
Houston Texans Linebackers
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