Houston got the win… but not the way anyone drew it up. The Texans escape with a hard-fought victory against a 2-win Raiders team, and while the scoreboard shows a “W,” the tape tells a much messier story. Las Vegas took away Houston’s run game, neutralized one of the Texans’ biggest weapons, and completely disrupted the play-action attack. Let’s be clear — this is not about blaming Jordan. The offensive line actually did a solid job protecting the quarterback. CJ Stroud wasn’t sacked once. But despite the clean pocket, Stroud played like he felt pressure that wasn’t there — and that matters. He has to be better. Period. The Raiders struggled to generate consistent pressure, yet still finished with 6 tackles for loss. Houston managed just 3.2 yards per carry, continuing a troubling trend: When the Texans rush for under 100 yards, they average just 17 points per game On defense, the issues are starting to stack up. For the second straight week, Houston gave up explosive plays: 6 plays of 10+ yards 3 plays of 30+ yards The absence of Azeez Al-Shaair was felt, and the lack of depth at defensive tackle continues to show. Still, there were positives — including 7 defensive drives of five plays or fewer, proving this unit can still clamp down when it locks in. We’ll also take a step back and reflect on what this 7-game winning streak truly means for the Texans — from DeMeco Ryans’ leadership to the belief inside the locker room and coaching staff. It wasn’t pretty. It wasn’t clean. But Houston found a way.