5 Studs, 5 Duds From Texans' Week 1 PFF Grades

Following the motions of Week 1, Pro Football Focus has officially unveiled their grades around the league, stacking up the best and worst performing names around the NFL across the weekend.

For the Houston Texans, there were both good and bad takeaways on each end of the field.

Despite dropping the first game of the year to the Los Angeles Rams, 9-14, multiple guys still were able to step up to have a big day on their behalf. Others, however, ended up struggling. Thus, they have some ground to make up heading into Week 2 vs. the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.

Here's five studs and five duds on the Texans roster following the release of Week 1's PFF grades:

Stud: QB C.J. Stroud

Sep 7, 2025; Inglewood, California, USA; Houston Texans quarterback C.J. Stroud (7) looks for a receiver. — Sep 7, 2025; Inglewood, California, USA; Houston Texans quarterback C.J. Stroud (7) looks for a reciever during the third quarter at SoFi Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Kirby Lee-Imagn Images | Kirby Lee-Imagn Images

Despite being under some consistent duress on Sunday, C.J. Stroud still overcame those offensive line troubles to have a relatively productive day on his own.

Stroud finished with a 73.1 PFF grade on the day, and really excelled as a runner with an 80.5 rushing grade. Stroud took off for five attempts on the ground for 32 yards. He ranks about average in terms of quarterback performances in Week 1 (16th-best PFF rating among eligible QBs), but considering Houston only finished with nine points on the day, it could've been much worse under center.

Dud: WR Nico Collins

Nico Collins started his fifth season in Houston without making much of a dent in this offense on Sunday. With only three catches for 25 yards, Collins finished with a PFF grade of 58.7, sixth-best among Texans pass catchers.

You likely won't see many more of these performances from Collins as we get deeper into the year, but it's not the ideal start you want out of this offense's WR1.

Stud: TE Cade Stover

Stover was one of the better components of the Texans' receiving game in LA on Sunday, as he led the team with four receptions, logged 22 yards, and led Houston's pass catchers for the best PFF grade on the day of 70.9.

The bad news is that the Texans will be without Stover for the foreseeable future, as he suffered from a broken foot in the final drive of Houston's opener, leaving Dalton Schultz as the only current active tight end on the roster heading into Week 2.

Dud: RB Dare Ogunbowale

Sep 7, 2025; Inglewood, California, USA; Houston Texans running back Dare Ogunbowale (33) looks down on the sidelines after fumbling the ball during the fourth quarter at SoFi Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Kiyoshi Mio-Imagn Images | Kiyoshi Mio-Imagn Images

Ogunbowale got a surprising number of snaps behind starting running back Nick Chubb on Sunday, but it wasn't always pretty for the Texans captain. He finished with a 39.6 PFF grade, the second-worst among Houston's offense with only Dameon Pierce ahead of him, who only had seven snaps to his name.

Ogunbowale's performance really comes down to one haunting play on their final offensive drive, losing a fumble in the last two minutes to stop any hopes of a Houston comeback led by C.J. Stroud. He's sure to bounce back from a bad moment, but not an optimal start for the Texans veteran.

Stud: OL Tytus Howard

The best contributor on the Texans' offensive line for Sunday was none of the team's offseason newcomers. Instead, it was Tytus Howard, who finished with a 66.5 PFF grade, paired with the best run blocking grade among all Houston offensive linemen at 72.5

His stability is even more notable when considering that Howard learned he'd be moving from Houston's starting right tackle to right guard only a few hours before kickoff. Howard finished with zero penalties to his name, zero sacks or QB hits, and was only responsible for two hurries. Not too bad for the Texans vet.

Dud: OT Aireontae Ersery

Jul 23, 2025; Houston, TX, USA; Houston Texans offensive tackle Aireontae Ersery (79) during training camp at Houston Methodist Training Center. Mandatory Credit: Troy Taormina-Imagn Images | Troy Taormina-Imagn Images

Aireontae Ersery tended to struggle at times in his NFL debut. The Texans' starting right tackle ended up with the worst PFF grade on Houston's entire offensive line with a 41.6, allowing five pressures, two QB hits, and a sack within his 63 snaps on the field.

It's the first of many games for Ersery in a Texans uniform, so it'd be unfair to take a ton of stock into an ugly debut. But, Houston will certainly need more out of their second round pick from this offseason moving forward.

Stud: EDGE Will Anderson Jr.

Sep 7, 2025; Inglewood, California, USA; Los Angeles Rams quarterback Matthew Stafford (9) is sacked by Houston Texans defensive end Will Anderson Jr. (51) during the second quarter at SoFi Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Kiyoshi Mio-Imagn Images | Kiyoshi Mio-Imagn Images

Anderson picked up right where he left off from last season in being one of the most dominant defenders off the edge in the NFL. He finished with by far the best PFF grade on the roster with a 91.0, showing out with a strong 89.5 pass-rushing grade.

Anderson also secured one of the Texans' three sacks on Matthew Stafford to add to a rather impressive day. If he can keep up similar production throughout his third year in Houston, Defensive Player of the Year conversations won't be too far out of reach.

Dud: CB Derek Stingley Jr.

Sep 7, 2025; Inglewood, California, USA; Houston Texans cornerback Derek Stingley Jr. (24) attempts to tackle Los Angeles Rams wide receiver Jordan Whittington (88) during the third quarter at SoFi Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Kiyoshi Mio-Imagn Images | Kiyoshi Mio-Imagn Images

Stingley, the Texans' other world-class defender, didn't have as glowing as a day like his pass rushing counterparts. After suffering from a back injury early in the first half, Stingley would return to post a 39.2 PFF grade, paired with a stellar performance from Rams' Puka Nacua.

It'd be hard to expect similar moving forward for Stingley after becoming the second highest-paid at his position this summer, but not the best way to start the year off for the All-Pro corner.

Stud: LB Azeez Al-Shaiir

A top defender for the Texans on Sunday, Houston's captain Azeez Al-Shaiir finished with the third-best PFF grade on the defensive side of the ball vs. the Rams with an 80.8. Coverage-wise, he was stout, with far and away the best coverage grade on the defense with an 83.9.

Al-Shaiir put an exclamation mark on his season opener in the fourth quarter after punching out a late fumble on Rams' Colby Parkinson that almost led to a late comeback for Houston, but would ultimately fall flat.

Dud: S C.J. Gardner-Johnson

While he made the necessary strides to get back on the field for Week 1 after a training camp injury derailed his preseason, Gardner-Johnson didn't quite look like his Philadelphia Eagles' self from last season in his first contest in a Texans uniform.

He finished with a shaky 47.8 PFF grade as Houston's starting safety, holding an ugly 34.3 coverage grade in the process. It's not too worrying to see the veteran safety begin the new year slow considering his injury situation, but for the Texans defense to reach its best, the back-end needs to stay solid. That all starts with Gardner-Johnson.