There are very few true contenders on the road to Super Bowl 50, but the Houston Texans have themselves positioned as one of them. However, they need to make the playoffs first - here are four reasons why they are guaranteed to do just that:
1) J.J. Watt Awesomeness
JJ Watt isn't just the best defensive end in the game nor the best defensive player in the league. He's the best and most impactful player in the entire league. Even taking his offensive contributions out of the equation, no player causes more havoc and changes more opposing team's gameplans than Watt. Those who play with Watt instantly become better assets both because of the inevitable double teams he draws on the edge and the passion that makes others want to follow his example. The Texans defense is great bordering on unstoppable, and Watt's the main reason why.
2) Youth And Talent In The Receiving Corps
Texans fans have mixed feelings about Andre Johnson's final days with the team, but that doesn't take away from just how explosive the wide receiving corps is now. Cecil Shorts will likely go down as one of the sneaky great pickups of the offseason and the addition of Arizona State standout Jaelen Strong via the draft gives the team a young piece with legit #1 wideout potential. We haven't even talked about DeAndre Hopkins yet who's primed and ready to lead the charge in 2015. Whoever is throwing to these guys, be it Brian Hoyer or Ryan Mallett, is going to have a ton of fun.
3) Questions About For AFC Teams
The struggle to topple the Colts in the AFC South will be real, but the Texans at least appear to have an inside track at a Wild Card berth. Denver's missing weapons (and Peyton's getting older), New England will be without Tom Brady for a quarter of the season, and so on up and down the list of AFC teams. If there's any year the Texans can make major noise and sustain through a playoff run, it's this one.
4) Ryan Mallett Showing Promise
Houston went 9-7 last year and almost made the playoffs despite having terrible quarterback play all season. The lone bright spot was Ryan Mallett, who threw for 400 yards in a game and a half as a starter before a torn pectoral muscle forced him to miss the rest of the season. Mallett showed potential that he could be a long-term starting quarterback in this league, and now that he's had a whole offseason to train as a starter, he should have a breakout year in 2015.
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