Houston Texans Fantasy Football News | Shark Bites

Texans RB Dameon Pierce found paydirt in Week 3 vs. the Jaguars with 14 carries for 31 yards and 1 rushing TD. The second-year back ceded a concerning amount of work to teammate Devin Singletary (9 carries, 41 yards), however. The big thing Pierce had going for him entering the contest was his 61.5% workshare of the Texans' RB touch opportunities. The narrowing of that split between himself and Singletary should raise an eyebrow ahead of their next matchup vs. the Steelers in Week 4.

Texans QB C.J. Stroud tallied 20 completions on 30 attempts for 280 and 2 TDs in Week 3’s surprise victory over the Jaguars. The rookie signal-caller is starting to heat up, and it seems fairly evident that the Houston offense is committed to throwing the ball. This is a team that held a lead throughout the entire contest and still recorded 30 pass attempts. At this rate of volume, Stroud may be sneaking his way up the list for streaming considerations in 1QB leagues. We’ll see what this bunch can accomplish next week in a tough test against the Steelers.

Bengals TE Irv Smith (hamstring) is listed as doubtful for Monday night's game vs. the Rams. He seemingly hurt his hamstring on Friday and was limited in Saturday's practice. Smith should obviously be on fantasy benches for Week 3. His absence will leave Cincinnati with TEs Drew Sample and Mitchell Wilcox.

Bengals TE Irv Smith was added to the injury report and limited in practice on Friday with a hamstring. His status for Monday night's game vs. the Rams is now up in the air. We'll get another update on Smith on Saturday afternoon.

The Lions fear S C.J. Gardner-Johnson tore a pectoral muscle in Sunday's loss to the Seahawks, NFL Network reports. If confirmed, that would knock Gardner-Johnson out for at least a while -- and likely the rest of the season. We'll watch for confirmation.

Texans WR Nico Collins led the team in receiving with 7 catches, a monstrous 146 receiving yards, and a TD in Week 2 vs. the Colts. Rookie Nathaniel ‘Tank’ Dell saw the most targets (10) and racked up 7 catches for 72 yards and a TD in the contest. Robert Woods was heavily involved again, logging 6 catches for 74 yards. As long as Houston continues to play from behind on a weekly basis, there’ll be plenty of fantasy scoring opportunities for these pass-catchers. Week 3 vs. the Jaguars projects to be another game in which the Texans will have to throw a lot to keep up.

Texans RB Dameon Pierce had another disappointing outing in Week 2, racking up 35 total yards on a combined 18 touch opportunities vs. the Colts. The second-year back is still by far and away the Houston backfield leader, though. Teammate Devin Singletary only saw 5 touches, and fellow RB Dare Ogunbowale’s pair of carries didn’t make much of a dent. Fantasy managers should be encouraged by the volume that Pierce sees weekly, though tempering expectations from here on out will be vital. Week 3 vs. the Jaguars will provide Pierce another opportunity to improve.

Texans QB C.J. Stroud tallied 30 completions on 47 attempts for 384 and 2 TDs in Week 2’s loss vs. the Colts. The rookie also ran the ball 3 times with only 1 rushing yard. Stroud has now thrown the ball at least 40 times in each of the first two games of 2023. Considering how often Houston will likely be playing from behind, he should be a useful asset in 2QB or superflex leagues as time goes along. We’re still a ways away from trusting Stroud in a 1QB format, though his performance on Sunday certainly helped his case. Next week, he and the Texans will travel to Jacksonville to take on the Jaguars.

Bengals RB Joe Mixon dominated backfield work in Sunday's win over the Ravens but managed just-OK fantasy production. He garnered 13 of the team's 14 RB carries, gaining 59 yards (4.5 per rush). Mixon also claimed 5 of the 7 RB targets, catching 4 for 36 yards (9.0 per catch). Mixon has yet to find the end zone for a Cincinnati offense that has underperformed in two straight games. But Mixon's role makes him a weekly starter for most fantasy lineups. He gets a winnable matchup with the Rams in Week 3 before a tough rushing spot at Tennessee in Week 4. The status of QB Joe Burrow's calf -- which he tweaked against Baltimore -- could affect the whole offense.

Texans QB C.J. Stroud (shoulder) is active for today’s game vs. the Colts. He dealt with right-shoulder soreness late in the week, adding risk to his Week 2 fantasy profile. Stroud is only a low-end option in superflex leagues.

Texans QB C.J. Stroud (shoulder) is expected to play vs. the Colts today, per NFL Network's Ian Rapoport. Stroud was added to the injury report and limited in practice on Friday with a sore right shoulder. He's no better than a low-end QB2 in Week 2 fantasy lineups, but his availability is good news for Houston's offense.

The Texans have ruled S Jalen Pitre (bruised lung) and S Jimmie Ward (hip) out for Sunday's game against the Colts. That leaves Eric Murray and M.J. Stewart as the starters. Both carry some mild IDP intrigue. Indy supplied 15 total tackles to Jacksonville's starting safeties in Week 1.

Texans WR John Metchie (hamstring) is not listed on the final Week 2 injury report after putting in a full practice on Friday. He’ll make his regular-season debut vs. the Colts this weekend. Metchie’s return is good timing with WR Noah Brown on IR. But it’s unclear who will pick up Brown’s snaps between Metchie, Tank Dell, and Xavier Hutchinson. None of those guys can be trusted in Week 2 fantasy lineups.

Texans QB C.J. Stroud (shoulder) was added to the injury report and limited in Friday's practice. He's listed as questionable for this weekend's game vs. the Colts. Per insider Aaron Wilson, Stroud "didn't do much" on Friday to "rest sore right, throwing shoulder, but is expected to try to play against Colts." That doesn't sound great. Hopefully Stroud wasn't in your Week 2 fantasy plans. QB Davis Mills will start on Sunday if Stroud can't. The situation adds downside to Houston's pass-catchers.

Texans OC Bobby Slowik said he should have given RB Dameon Pierce more work in Week 1. The second-year man tallied only 11 carries in a blowout loss. “DP should touch the ball more than he did,” Slowik said. “That's definitely something we want to do. That's our starting identity. We're here to run the ball.” Houston should be able to stick with the run on Sunday as they head home to face Indianapolis. Pierce projects as a top-24 option in our Week 2 RB rankings.

Texans WR John Metchie (hamstring) got in a limited practice on Wednesday. He was sidelined all three practices last week, so this is an upgrade. Houston could use Metchie with WR Noah Brown on IR, but he's not a Week 2 fantasy option.

Texans WRs Nico Collins and Robert Woods combined to draw nearly half of QB C.J. Stroud's 44 pass attempts in Sunday's loss to the Ravens. Collins led the team with 11 looks, catching 6 passes for 80 yards. Woods drew 10 targets and caught 6 for 57 yards. No other Texan drew more than 4 looks. WR Tank Dell, WR Noah Brown, and RB Mike Boone tied for third with 4 apiece. Target shares in the 22%+ range would make Collins and Woods decent-to-good PPR options going forward. Each is a fine reserve option in leagues of 12+ teams.

Texans QB C.J. Stroud threw for 242 yards in Sunday's season-opening loss to the Ravens. He took 5 sacks and lost a fumble but avoided INTs while attempting 44 passes. The most notable moment from Stroud's debut might have been when he caught his own first NFL pass attempt. Stroud's throw got batted into the air just short of the line of scrimmage. So Stroud charged ahead, caught the ball, and made it back to the line for no gain. That gave him just 1 catch fewer than TE Dalton Schultz collected for the game. Stroud's not a fantasy option outside of 2-QB and superflex leagues.

Jaguars QB Trevor Lawrence threw 32 times for 241 yards and two TDs in Sunday's win over the Colts. WR Christian Kirk saw just three targets (9.4% share), catching one for nine yards. WR Calvin Ridley, WR Zay Jones, TE Evan Engram, and RB Travis Etienne tallied more targets. There will be better days ahead for Kirk. But Ridley certainly looks like the top dog in this passing game -- and Kirk might not be significantly ahead of Jones and Engram. Consider him a WR3 going forward.

Bengals RB Joe Mixon recorded 13 attempts for 56 rushing yards in Week 1’s loss to the Browns. He also added 3 catches on 5 targets for 17 receiving yards as a receiver. The Bengals’ offense as a whole experienced a hard time getting anything going in the crummy Cleveland weather. Fortunately, there’s some hope to hold onto moving forward. Mixon dominated the RB workload, receiving 13 of the team’s 15 carries (86.6%). No other Bengals’ back saw more than 2 attempts. Managers looking ahead to Week 2’s matchup vs. the Ravens can feel good about the workhorse-like share from Mixon.