With the NFL offseason almost wrapped up and training camp coming to a close soon, it’s a good time to take a look at each NFL team’s offseason recap as we get just a few weeks away from the start of the regular season. Let’s take a look at the Houston Texans’ new team and analyze the team’s incoming and outgoing players as they shape up for the 2026 season.
The Houston Texans are coming off of a 12-5 season where they won a Wild Card game before losing in the Divisional Round to the New England Patriots. The Texans made it a priority to improve their offense this offseason, making numerous moves to the weapons around quarterback C.J. Stroud as well as bolstering up the offensive line.
David Montgomery was one of the biggest offensive additions for the Texans this offseason, making a trade with the Lions to acquire the running back in exchange for Juice Scruggs, a 2026 fourth-round pick and a 2027 seventh-round pick. In 17 games with the Lions last season, Montgomery ran for 716 yards and eight touchdowns. Montgomery’s experience and physicality should pair well with Houston’s main back from the 2025 season in Woody Marks.
Houston also added to their stellar secondary unit, signing safety Reed Blankenship to a three-year, $24.75 million deal. In 16 games with the Eagles last season, Blankenship totaled 83 total tackles, one forced fumble and one interception. Houston’s secondary is coming off an incredible season, with Derek Stingley Jr., Calen Bullock, Jalen Pitre and Kamari Lassiter all having career years, and each of them having four interceptions on the season. Blankenship is already bolstering an elite group, and Houston’s secondary should trouble opposing offenses.
Houston also made a conscious effort to improve their offensive line, something that gave Stroud and the offense trouble in 2025. The Texans signed Evan Brown, Wyatt Teller and Braden Smith to new deals in the offseason to ensure their offensive line performance improves in 2026.
The Texans didn’t have a ton of losses in free agency, but one of their biggest losses was trading tackle Tytus Howard to the Cleveland Browns for a fifth-round pick. Howard had spent his entire career in Houston and locked down their tackle spot from 2019-25. Howard’s consistent presence will be missed, but Houston made considerable efforts to replace him and improve the line during the offseason.
The Texans also decided to release two veterans in Joe Mixon and Jimmie Ward over the offseason. Although both Mixon and Ward missed the 2025 season due to injuries, they were solid players for the franchise in 2024, but Houston decided to move on from both veteran players. The additions of David Montgomery and Reed Blankenship effectively replace both while keeping the team younger and healthier.
The Texans had eight overall selections in the NFL Draft, with a large focus on beefing up the trenches with young talent. Their first-round pick was used on guard Keylan Rutledge out of Georgia Tech with the 26th overall pick. Houston actually traded up to get Rutledge, clearly seeing him as a core piece within their interior offensive line for the future.
Just ten picks later, the Texans were able to draft defensive tackle Kayden McDonald from Ohio State with the 36th overall pick in what was called one of the draft steals at the time. Not many fans or analysts expected McDonald to last into the second round, and the Texans pounced to get the 2025 first-team All-American. He’s currently on injured reserve with an ankle injury but should be an exciting player to keep an eye out for on an already dominant Texans defensive line.
Other notable picks for the Texans included Michigan tight end Marlin Klein (No. 59), guard Febechi Nwaiwu (No. 106), linebacker Wade Woodaz (No. 123) and safety Kamari Ramsey (No. 141).
The Texans attacked the offseason and made strong efforts to improve their deficiencies and problems in 2025. They made numerous offensive line additions through the draft and free agency, and Stroud should benefit from it. David Montgomery should also take some pressure off of Stroud, and Houston now has a highly capable running back duo they can lean on. Tank Dell returning from injury sometime this season could also help take the offense to the next level and give Stroud back one of his favorite targets from his first two seasons in the league.
Defensively, the Texans are just as sound as ever. Houston maintained their biggest strength by extending both Will Anderson Jr. and Danielle Hunter, while also adding Reed Blankenship and Logan Hall in free agency. Kayden McDonald should also be an exciting and impactful player for the Texans once he returns from IR.
Houston is well-positioned as one of the top contenders within the AFC this year following their run to the Divisional Round last season and the improvements they’ve made on both sides of the ball in free agency. The biggest question for the Texans this season is whether Stroud and the offense can take the next step. Stroud had an inconsistent third-year season last year, and the Texans’ success this season will be reliant on which version of Stroud comes to play this year. That being said, they have one of the best defensive units in the entire NFL, so if Stroud can show improvement in Year 4 and cut down on turnovers, Houston could be one of the toughest teams to take down come playoff time.
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