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A thin Texans receiving core gets even thinner
Despite leading the AFC South, the Houston Texans have been on shaky ground with their offense so far this season. The ground gets even shakier now, as NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport reports that wide receiver Stefon Diggs tore his ACL and is out for the rest of the season.
This is a massive blow to the Texans’ offense, who came into the season with high expectations but have fallen short in many areas. They’re 19th in EPA per play, and despite high level play from QB CJ Stroud, everything else around the signal caller has become kinda weird. The Texans can’t run the ball, their pass protection might be worse, and the receiving core has taken a massive hit with Diggs out. This is on top of losing superstar WR Nico Collins to a hamstring injury that’s had him on IR, with no timetable for his return.
What this means for Houston is that the other receivers down the depth chart must step up. WR Tank Dell is a fun piece to have in the offense, but now he needs to step up and be the number one receiver while Collins returns to form. This could also mean more reps for receivers Xavier Hutchinson and Robert Woods. Woods is a reliable receiver and a good blocker for the position, but Hutchinson could help elevate that offense without Diggs. However, the Texans are third in the NFL in percentage of snaps with two tight ends on the field, so this could lead to more of TE’s Cade Stover and Dalton Schultz in the passing game.
Houston’s schedule doesn’t get any easier after this, either. After a Halloween night tilt with the Jets, they face the Lions, Chiefs and Ravens to round out the season. the margin for error gets much thinner as the road to the playoffs gets a little more crowded. They’ve built themselves a pretty good lead in the division, especially with the Jaguars and Colts having no idea what they’re doing and the Titans actively tanking.
However, this injury is going to play a big role in their shot at going beyond the divisional round.
