Houston Texans DVOA, Stats, & NFL Rankings

Houston Texans quarterback C.J. Stroud should be considered the lowest-ranked option out of all eight starting quarterback options with his team set to take on the defending champion Kansas City Chiefs in the Divisional Round. The 23-year-old faces a Chiefs defense that ranked third among playoff teams in air yards allowed, fourth overall in blitz rate, fifth in pressure percentage, and held Houston to 19 points in a Week 16 Kansas City victory. The sophomore quarterback led Houston to a Wild Card win against the Los Angeles Chargers, but Houston's offense has averaged roughly 19 points per game since the beginning of December. Managers in playoff leagues or DFS should attempt for a better option than Stroud is a tough road matchup.

Houston Texans wide receiver Nico Collins continues to be a top-flight option with the underdog Texans set to travel to Kansas City in the Divisional Round of the NFL Playoffs on Saturday. Kansas City has been excellent at creating pressure and stopping the run, but was a middling 17th against PPR receivers. In the first meeting between these two teams last month, Houston threw the ball 39 times and targeted their top receiver on 10 of them, completing seven for 60 yards. Without compatriot Tank Dell (knee) for the rest of the season, Collins has very little competition for targets within Houston's passing game. Against a stingy Chiefs defense, the Texans likely will need to rely upon big plays through the air like they did last week, which is good news for Collins and managers who roster him in playoff or DFS formats.

Houston Texans tight end Dalton Schultz (shoulder) is off the injury report but still a fringe TE1 with the underdog Texans set to play the Kansas City Chiefs in the Divisional Round of the AFC Playoffs. The 28-year old is now Houston's second option in the passing game with Stefon Diggs (knee) and Tank Dell (knee) out for the year, and he has a plus matchup against a Chiefs defense that ranked 28th against fantasy tight ends. But for the majority of the season, the production just hasn't been there for the veteran tight end or the Houston offense as a whole, which is averaging just 19 offensive points since the start of December. Schultz did manage five catches for 45 yards and a touchdown in the first meeting against Kansas City, but a road game attached to a so-so offense while playing the defending champs aren't exactly favorable settings.

Coming off 12 points in the Wild Card round, Ka'imi Fairbairn faces what is likely the toughest matchup for any starting kicker this weekend when the underdog Houston Texans travel to Kansas City in the Divisional Round. The Chiefs were one of the worst draws for fantasy kickers during the regular season, ranking No. 2 overall against them, while Houston's offense is averaging just 19 offensive points per game since the start of December. Additionally, temperatures are expected to be well below freezing on Saturday, a poor setting for field-goal kicking. All together, Fairbairn is attached to an average offense as a road underdog in bad conditions, which means managers in DFS formats should try for another option if possible.

Houston Texans running back Joe Mixon (ankle) is officially listed as questionable to play on Saturday against the Kansas City Chiefs in the Divisional Round of the playoffs due to ankle injury. Mixon popped up on this week's injury report on Thursday after putting in a limited practice and picked up a DNP on Friday, further putting his status in question for the weekend. It will still be a surprise if the 28-year-old is inactive on Saturday, but Mixon's questionable status definitely should make fantasy managers setting DFS lineups this weekend reconsider using him against a Chiefs defense that has been stingy against RBs all year. Not having Mixon in KC would be a huge blow to Houston's offense, as he rushed for over 1,000 yards during the regular season and went over 100 yards with a score in last week's wild-card win over the Chargers. If Mixon is out or limited, Dameon Pierce would likely lead the Texans' backfield.