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2015 NFL Power Rankings Roundup: Texans Ascend After First Win

The Texans are both first and last in the AFC South at the same time. Consequently, nobody knows what the hell to make of this team...yet.

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Kevin Jairaj-USA TODAY Sports

The Texans have jumped up in nearly every major media outlet’s weekly power rankings after getting their first win of the season. Here is where they stand with the red hot Atlanta Falcons next on the schedule.

Website

Rank

Last Week

Comments

SB Nation

22

23 (up 1)

n/a

ESPN

21

25 (up 4)

The Texans committed to the run in Week 3 and it led to a victory. They had 46 rushes overall in Week 3, two more than they had in Weeks 1 and 2 combined.

NFL.com

25

29 (up  4)

Very quietly, Houston got its first W on the books for 2015. Despite scoring a relatively underwhelming 19 points, the Texans picked up a staggering 30 first downs. Alfred Blue ran the football 31 times. The run-pass play count was 46-to-40. In some respects, Houston won with a half cup of Gary Kubiak's formula. The beauty of it all? At 1-2, they are tied for first place in the AFC South. (And last place. But I digress.)

Bleacher Report

27

32 (up 5)

A bad team beat, well, another deeply flawed team when the Houston Texans won 19-9 over the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. Not having a zero in the win column is always a victory for pride, though the Texans mostly jumped up in these rankings because other teams were more deserving of a basement burial.

Fox Sports

24

28 (up 4)

The Texans got their first win, but desperately need the healthy return of Arian Foster to jumpstart the offense and take pressure off of the defense and QB Ryan Mallett.

USA Today

25

29 (up 4)

Not exactly a model of efficiency. No team has hoisted more passes than Houston, but that's only meant four TDs for 13th-ranked air game.

Yahoo Sports

24

24 (none)

Arian Foster will return soon, maybe this week. The Texans got off to a terrible start, but they're tied for first place in the AFC South.

CBS Sports (Prisco)

24

31 (up 7)

At 1-2, they're tied for first place. But they have to get that offense going. It won't be easy in Atlanta.

Washington Post

23

30 (up 7)

Aren’t the Texans overdue for a starting-QB switch?

Average

23.9

28.0 (up 4.1)

N/A

Houston has been an enigma so far this season. They nearly beat the Chiefs with a late game surge by Ryan Mallett, and came even closer to downing the currently undefeated Panthers on the road. The team seemed to sort of put it all together against the Buccaneers in Week Three, but I don't think anyone really knows how good or bad the Texans will be until they finally get healthy again. Hell, the point spread against Atlanta might as well swing by double-digits if Arian Foster, Duane Brown, and Mike Mohamed all unexpectedly suit up. Sunday cannot come soon enough, if only just for the sake of getting some clarity about this ball club.

Texans vs Falcons coverage