Where do the Houston Texans rank entering the 2026 summer ahead of a new season?
It was a quietly productive offseason for Houston following its playoff loss to New England. After moving off of Tytus Howard, the Texans shored up the offensive line in free agency with the signings of Braden Smith and Wyatt Teller. On defense, Houston extended several candidates, including All-Pro Will Anderson Jr., and brought in outside names like defensive back Reed Blankenship and defensive tackle Logan Hall.
Eight players were selected last month during the NFL draft. Several, including offensive lineman Keylan Rutledge and defensive tackle Kayden McDonald, should be Day 1 contributors. Others, like tight end Marlin Klein and defensive back Kamari Ramsey, are likely long-term depth pieces to shore up question marks for the future.
So, where does Houston rank entering the summer?
Sports Illustrated’s Connor Orr recently revealed his newest power rankings after the draft. While the Texans didn’t take the top spot in the AFC, they did rank fourth among contenders in the conference and sixth overall, trailing the Buffalo Bills (No. 3), Denver Broncos (No. 4) and Kansas City Chiefs (No. 5).
When prompted to break down the Texans’ ranking, Orr pointed to the additions of Rutledge and McDonald as game-changers for the trenches, thus creating more stability in the weakpoint of the squad from last year.
“Keylan Rutledge and Kayden McDonald with the first two picks is a dream scenario for Houston,” Orr wrote. “This offensive line will have at least three new starters, and McDonald gets to slot in behind Sheldon Rankins, one of the more underrated modern defensive tackles, whose evolved understanding of the defense allows playmakers behind him more opportunities. McDonald is going to swallow blocks and set the Texans’ screaming linebacker corps free.”
Houston returns nine starters from the No. 1 defense a season ago. McDonald won’t be a Day 1 starter opposite the recently-signed Sheldon Rankins, but he is expected to rotate in with Tommy Togiai on run-heavy snaps to contain backs from breaking to the outside.
As for Rutledge, while he played guard in college, some believe he’s destined to shift inside even more to center. Jake Andrews started there last fall, but it would be far from shocking to see the Georgia Tech standout shift inside and build a rapport with C.J. Stroud.
To read the entire power rankings, click the link here.
This article originally appeared on Texans Wire: Texans Power Rankings: Houston’s newest addition shore up trenches and top 10 spot
Reporting by Cole Thompson, Texans Wire / Texans Wire
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
