John McClain, a member of the Pro Football Hall of Fame and the Texas Sports Hall of Fame, is in his 48th year of covering the NFL in Houston, including 45 seasons at the Houston Chronicle.
You will never find Executive Vice President/General Manager Nick Caserio doing the "Jump Around" in a post-game celebration. As unemotional as he tends to be while always hanging in the background, if Caserio ever seriously considered participating in the revelry, it would have been after the Texans' 29-27 victory over the Colts at Lucas Oil Stadium.
Nobody could have blamed Caserio if Sunday felt like Christmas morning for him. Players he acquired this year through trades, free agency and the draft made substantial contributions to the Texans' third consecutive victory at Indianapolis. They returned to Houston in first place in the AFC South after the Jaguars and Titans joined the Colts as division teams losing their first games.
When looking at Caserio's contribution to the victory that gave the Texans a nine-game road winning streak in the AFC South, let's start on offense. Running back Joe Mixon, acquired from Cincinnati for a seventh-round draft choice, carried 30 times for 159 yards (5.3 average) and a touchdown. He helped the Texans control the ball for 40 minutes to the Colts' 20.
Wide receiver Stefon Diggs made his Texans' debut with touchdown catches of 9 and 2 yards from quarterback C.J. Stroud. Caserio sent the Bills a 2025 second-round pick he received in a trade with the Vikings for Diggs, a 2024 sixth and a 2025 fifth.
Diggs and Mixon combined to score all three touchdowns.
"Those guys can step up and make plays, no matter what the situation is," Head Coach DeMeco Ryans said. "When you can count on those guys to make plays, it's huge for our team, not just the offense, but what they give our entire team. Joe running the ball – the energy he provided to our entire team, it was outstanding."
Rookie tight end Cade Stover, a fourth-round pick, blocked so ferociously that Mixon gave him a shoutout during his post-game interview session with the media.
Moving to the other side of the ball, the Texans recorded two sacks by new tackles Mario Edwards Jr., and Foley Fatukasi, both of whom signed as free agents. Fatukasi, Edwards, end Danielle Hunter and linebacker Azeez Al-Shaair are free agents who helped limit the Colts to 104 yards rushing, including 48 by Jonathan Taylor. He entered the game averaging 135.2 yards in six games against the Texans, including four in a row with at least 143.
Rookie safety Calen Bullock, a third-round pick, had the Texans' only takeaway, and it couldn't have come at a better time. He intercepted quarterback Anthony Richardson at the Texans' 8-yard line in the second quarter, preventing a possible touchdown or field goal that would have made a difference in the outcome.
And even though Caserio had nothing to do with originally signing kicker Ka'imi Fairbairn eight years ago, the general manager has made sure to pay him to keep him on the team. Fairbairn responded to that faith in him by kicking field goals of 51, 50 and 51 yards – the first time he's had three of at least 50 in one game.
Now, no player was more instrumental in helping the Texans win than Mixon, whose 30 carries were a carry high. He also caught three passes for 19 yards.
After the 2023 season, Ryans and offensive coordinator Bobby Slowik made it a point of emphasis to run the ball more productively and consistently in their second season with the Texans. They were tied for 22nd in rushing last season (96.9-yard average), including 3.7 a carry (29th). Running backs Devin Singletary and Dameon Pierce combined for only six touchdowns rushing. Mixon averaged 12 touchdowns rushing and receiving in each of his last three seasons with the Bengals.
"When you can run the ball, it opens everything up," Ryans said. "When it comes to the passing game, they've (defense) got to put eight in the box, so you have a lot of single coverage on the outside. Nico (Collins), Tank (Dell) and Diggs can make their plays."
Based on Sunday's performance, it looks like the Texans struck gold with Mixon, who turned 28 in training camp. He earned his 159 yards the hard way because his longest run was only 13 yards.
"Credit to our guys," Mixon said. "Coach Slowik trusting and believing in us. We go out there being physical. We were running downhill, sideways -- doing whatever we needed to do to crease them and make the most of the runs. Shout out to the fullbacks, tight ends, o-line and receivers that were blocking. Without them, it wouldn't be possible."
Sunday was the second-most prolific performance of Mixon's career to his 165 yards against Pittsburgh in 2021. It was the fourth time he surpassed 150.
"Starts with our offensive line," Ryans said. "The way they controlled the line of scrimmage was awesome."
Tackles Laremy Tunsil and Tytus Howard, guards Shaq Mason and Kenyon Green and center Juice Scruggs did an awesome job of run blocking for Mixon.
"Joe stepped up big time," Ryans said. "We needed him to run the ball. They (Colts) knew it was run. We knew it was run, and he still made the play. Just excited to have him on our side."
The key to the 40-carry, 213-yard running game that averaged 5.3 a carry was total domination by the linemen. That domination was most evident in the second half when the Texans had the ball for 12:47 in the third quarter to the Colts' 2:03 and 11:03 in the fourth quarter to the Colts' 3:57.
"That's really about will and want to," Mixon said. "The O-linemen all week (kept) saying, 'Hey, man, we've got to make this thing shake.' And I'm like, 'Let's get 150 (yards) and start it off.'
"We've got to keep getting better, keep building. (Slowik) was saying the same thing. There were two (runs) I wish I could have back. More than anything, I'm just proud of how we fought hard, and we fought to the finish."
This game was closer than it needed to be. Tommy Townsend had a punt blocked that set up Taylor's 5-yard touchdown run. Richardson completed three long passes to Alex Pierce for a 60-yard touchdown, to Ashton Dulin for a 54-yard touchdown and to Pierce for 57 yards that set up the quarterback's 3-yard scoring run that made it 29-27 with 2:14 left in the game.
When the Texans got the ball one last time, they needed to make the Colts use their timeouts so they could run out the clock and secure the victory. And that's exactly what happened, thanks to two first-down plays in particular.
On third-and-11 at the Texans' 29 with two minutes remaining, Stroud threw a pinpoint pass to Collins, who finished with six catches and 117 yards, on the right sideline. Collins was covered closely, but he made an exceptional catch of an excellent throw for a 12-yard gain and a first down.
"Big-time playmaker," Ryans said. "He's done it a couple times here versus the Colts. That's what Nico does. He makes big-time plays in the moment when we need it the most. What a play. What an awesome catch. For him to get down and bounce, it was big time."
The Colts were forced to use their last two timeouts, but they still hoped to get back the ball to give Richardson one more opportunity to produce another big play. He never got it.
On third-and-3 with 1:48 left and the Texans on their 48, Stroud gave it to Mixon, who ran for 9 yards and a first down that allowed them to run out the clock.
"Basically, it was meant to go front side," Mixon said. "The linebacker screened over the top and just replaced his gap where he was supposed to go, and (I) made him pay for it. I'm just glad I was able to close it up in a crucial moment."
With the first game out of the way, the Texans are preparing for their home opener against Chicago. It's a nationally televised Sunday night game against another outstanding young quarterback, Caleb Williams. The Bears are 1-0 after defeating the Titans.
