1. Steelers Are Surging, Texans Must Rebound
The Texans and Steelers are two teams leaving Heinz Field on Sunday heading in different directions.
The Steelers are now 3-0, a sharp turnaround from last season when they started 0-3. The last time the Steelers won their first three games, in 2010, they went to the Super Bowl. The Steelers made the playoffs all three years they started 3-0 since 1990.
Houston, meanwhile, is left searching for answers after a 0-3 start. It’s not an unfamiliar position. Only four teams in the last 30 years have made the postseason after starting 0-3, but the last to do it was the Texans two seasons ago. In 2018, they won 11 of their last 13 games to win the AFC South.
The consolation for the Texans might be their schedule. They’ve played arguably the three top teams in the AFC so far in Kansas City, Baltimore, and Pittsburgh. They’ve yet to play an AFC South rival and host the Vikings in Houston next week. Head coach Bill O’Brien says his team recognizes the urgency to turn things around but insists there is no panic in his locker room.
“I don’t think so. We have a lot of veterans. We got to get our sights set on Minnesota,” O’Brien said. “We haven’t played anyone in the division yet. There’s a lot of football left. It’s not where you want to be, but we have a really veteran team in many aspects so I don’t think anyone is panicking.”
Houston has won the AFC South four of the last five years. But Tennessee is 3-0, leaving the Texans in a deep hole already.
