The Texans open their 25th season with two straight home games, Buffalo and Cincinnati at the newly renamed Reliant Stadium, then play Jacksonville at Wembley Stadium in Week 6 in the franchise’s third international game. Four of the final six games are on the road, and the last three include a Christmas Eve trip to Philadelphia and a Monday night at Lambeau Field in Week 17.
DeMeco Ryans enters his fourth year after a 12-5 season that started 0-3 and ended on a nine-game winning streak. Houston beat Pittsburgh 30-6 in the wild-card round and lost 28-16 at New England in the divisional round. Jacksonville took the AFC South at 13-4, the first time in three years the Texans didn’t win it.
Games That Will Define the Texans’ Season
| Wk 6 at Jaguars | A division game at Wembley Stadium with Jacksonville as the designated home team. It’s the Texans’ third international game ever, and the first meeting with the team that took the AFC South from them. |
| Wk 11 vs Colts | Houston’s only prime-time home game, a Thursday night against Indianapolis. The Texans have won four straight at Lucas Oil Stadium and get the Colts twice in nine weeks. |
| Wk 13 at Steelers | Sunday night in Pittsburgh, where Houston won the wild-card game 30-6 in January. That was Mike Tomlin’s last game as Steelers coach; Mike McCarthy is now in charge. |
| Wk 16-17 | Christmas Eve at Philadelphia on a short week, then Monday night at Lambeau Field on Jan 4. Two NFC road trips in prime time, back-to-back, before the Titans close it out at home. |
How the Schedule Sets Up
The first seven weeks are heavy on 1:00 PM kickoffs and light on travel: two home games, a trip to Indianapolis, Dallas at home, Tennessee on the road, London, and the Giants at home before the Week 8 bye. Houston finished 12-5 last year after an 0-3 start, so a clean September would change the shape of the whole season. After the bye the schedule gets louder. The Chargers and Browns on the road, the Colts on Thursday night, Baltimore at home, and then the Steelers on Sunday night.
December is where the seeding gets decided. Washington on the road, Jacksonville at home in the division rematch, Philadelphia on Christmas Eve, and Green Bay on a Monday night before Tennessee visits in Week 18. For roster context heading into the season, see our NFL roster cuts tracker. Full league schedules and flexible-scheduling rules are published by the NFL.
The Bottom Line
Eight home games, a Week 8 bye, a London trip against the team that took the division, and a closing stretch built around prime-time road games at Philadelphia and Green Bay. The Texans are chasing a fourth straight playoff berth, which would be a first in franchise history. Bookmark this page; results and Week 18 details are updated throughout the season.