Giants-Texans Scouting Report: C.J. Stroud Has Not Been Sacked in 56 Dropbacks Against Five or More Rushers
Seven of the Giants' eight sacks have come when they sent five or more. Houston, 2-4 after a 34-31 win in London, says Tank Dell will play Sunday for the first time since December 2024.
The Giants' pass rush runs on extra rushers, and the quarterback they face Sunday has not been sacked when opponents send them. C.J. Stroud has dropped back 56 times against five or more pass rushers this season. He has completed 41 of 55 passes for 486 yards, three touchdowns and no interceptions. The Giants have eight sacks, and seven came when they sent five or more.
Those splits are our count from FTN charting data published through nflverse, with two-point tries excluded. Plays FTN did not chart for rusher count are excluded.
The Giants (3-2-1) play the Houston Texans (2-4) at 1 p.m. ET Sunday in Houston, on Fox. Houston is playing a week after beating Jacksonville 34-31 at Wembley Stadium in London, and both teams have their bye in Week 8. The Giants have not named a starting quarterback. Coach John Harbaugh said Monday the team was "honing in on a decision" between Jameis Winston and J.J. McCarthy, and the team's Week 7 tracker listed no decision as of Wednesday morning.
Houston through six games
The Texans lost their first four games, by 5, 14, 2 and 4 points, then won 26-3 at Tennessee and 34-31 in London on Ka'imi Fairbairn's 49-yard field goal with 3 seconds left. They have scored 144 points and allowed 143.
Stroud has completed 143 of 219 passes for 1,714 yards, 7.8 yards per attempt, with nine touchdowns and one interception, Travis Hunter's end-zone pick in London. He has been sacked 14 times, a 6.0% rate. His completion percentage over expected is plus-7.7, the highest of 36 qualifying passers in Next Gen Stats data. His average time to throw, 2.88 seconds, ranks near the middle of the league.
DeMeco Ryans is Houston's head coach. Nick Caley is the offensive coordinator and Matt Burke the defensive coordinator.
The teams have not met since Nov. 13, 2022, when the Giants won 24-16 at MetLife Stadium with Davis Mills at quarterback for Houston. The Giants lead the series 5-1. Stroud, drafted second overall in 2023, has never faced them.
Matchup 1: The Giants' extra rushers against Stroud
Against five or more rushers, Stroud has averaged 8.8 yards per attempt and 0.40 expected points added per dropback, second among 32 quarterbacks with at least 30 such dropbacks. The league average against five or more is minus-0.01. Against four or fewer, Stroud has averaged 7.7 yards per attempt and 0.10 EPA per dropback, and all 14 of his sacks came on those plays, a 7.8% rate.
The pattern has held in five of six games. His only game with negative EPA against five or more came in a Week 2 loss to Cincinnati, on six dropbacks.
Opponents have not sent extra rushers at him often. Houston has faced five or more on 23.7% of its dropbacks. The league rate is 31.8%.
The Giants send five or more on 42.0% of dropbacks, fourth-highest in the league. The rate climbed from 16.7% in Week 1 to 64.9% at Washington in Week 5 and 53.1% against New Orleans. With five or more, the Giants have allowed minus-0.12 EPA per dropback and recorded a sack on 7.9% of them. With four or fewer, they have allowed 0.21 EPA per dropback and one sack on 123 dropbacks.
Last week's scouting report found that Tyler Shough had been sacked more than twice as often against extra rushers. The Giants did not sack him Sunday, including on 17 dropbacks against five or more. Houston did not allow a sack in London either.
The Texans have sent five or more on 23.0% of opponents' dropbacks and have 18 sacks, 7.5 of them by Will Anderson Jr. The Giants have allowed 18 sacks on 235 dropbacks, a 7.7% rate. Marcus Mbow played all 77 snaps at right tackle against New Orleans, with Jermaine Eluemunor inactive because of a calf injury.
Matchup 2: Houston's receivers against a thinned secondary
Tight end Dalton Schultz leads Houston with 37 targets, and Xavier Hutchinson has 34. Nico Collins has 30 targets in four games, with 22 catches for 323 yards and three touchdowns on an average depth of target of 12.9 yards. Jaylin Noel has caught 17 of 21 targets for 334 yards, and his 3.7 yards of average separation at the catch point is the most among Houston's top five targets in Next Gen Stats data.
Houston acquired Marvin Harrison Jr. from Arizona in a trade the Cardinals announced Oct. 12: Harrison and a 2027 sixth-round pick for 2027 second- and seventh-round picks. He caught three of four targets for 34 yards in his Houston debut.
Ryans said Monday that Tank Dell will play Sunday. Dell has not played since a knee injury on Dec. 21, 2024, and missed the 2025 season. Houston designated him to return from injured reserve Oct. 7, and he was ruled out for London.
The Giants finished Sunday without three regulars in the secondary. Cornerback Colton Hood (concussion) and safety Tyler Nubin (neck) were inactive, and the Giants ruled out cornerback Greg Newsome II in the third quarter with a concussion. Nic Jones, who had five defensive snaps in the first five games, played 31, our film review found. The Giants' first injury report of the week had not been posted as of Wednesday morning.
The pass defense held up against New Orleans. Shough threw for 144 yards. Chris Olave caught four of seven targets for 43 yards and a touchdown, and Alvin Kamara caught two of four for 35 yards and a touchdown and ran seven times for 34 yards. The Giants have allowed 12 completions of 20 yards or more this season, tied for fifth-fewest in the league.
Matchup 3: The Giants' run game against Houston's run defense
Houston has allowed 83.0 rushing yards per game, third-fewest in the league. By our count from Pro Football Reference's advanced rushing data, it has allowed 1.83 yards before contact per carry, also third-fewest. Its success rate allowed on designed runs, 40.7%, is near the league average of 40.3%. A run counts as a success when it adds expected points. Running back David Montgomery (groin) and safety Jalen Pitre (shoulder) were ruled out for London, Houston's injury report showed.
The Giants' designed runs have succeeded 35.3% of the time, 26th in the league. They average 2.12 yards before contact per carry, 25th, and their running backs average 1.54.
Cam Skattebo has 81 of the backs' 138 designed carries, for 294 yards, 3.6 per carry, and a 35.8% success rate. He averages 1.64 yards before contact. Against New Orleans he played six of 77 snaps and did not carry the ball. Harbaugh said after the game that the usage was not by design, and that one of the backs "needs to step up and be the back" because "none of those guys have done that yet."
Tyrone Tracy Jr. has 13 designed carries for 40 yards this season, six of them Sunday, including a 5-yard touchdown run. Devin Singletary has 13 for 39. The Giants released Najee Harris on Tuesday. He had 31 designed carries for 99 yards and a 22.6% success rate. They also released outside linebacker Jihad Ward and signed outside linebacker Trace Ford to the active roster from the practice squad after three standard elevations.
Houston's next game after the bye is Nov. 8 at the Los Angeles Chargers, and the Giants' is Nov. 8 at Philadelphia.