Danielle Hunter Reacts to First AFC Defensive POTW With Texans

The Houston Texans were able to find a second Player of the Week award from this season in the hands of one of their guys after their comeback victory vs. the Jacksonville Jaguars, as edge rusher Danielle Hunter came away with his first AFC Defensive Player of the Week since arriving in 2024 after his impressive 3.5-sack day.

Hunter has landed a handful of nice achievements since being in the league, including five Pro Bowl selections and even a second-team All-Pro to his name back in 2018 with the Minnesota TImberwolves.

But in what's now his third-ever Defensive Player of the Week, Hunter's certainly proud of the effort that he and the Texans' defense put together against a Jaguars offensive line that allowed five total sacks last weekend.

"It means a lot," Hunter said of winning AFC Defensive Player of the Week, via Will Kunkel. "I'm always going to give a shoutout to my teammates, coaches. If it wasn't for them, I wouldn't be able to get this award. So, doing my job and things just happened to come my way."

"I think it's about that time of the season where you just keep rising game after game. I always say this, if you keep chopping wood, things are just going to end up turning out your way."

Texans' Danielle Hunter Came Prepared vs. Jaguars

Nov 9, 2025; Houston, Texas, USA; Houston Texans defensive end Danielle Hunter (55) celebrates with defensive tackle Sheldon Rankins (90) during the game against the Jacksonville Jaguars at NRG Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Troy Taormina-Imagn Images | Troy Taormina-Imagn Images

As to what allowed the star edge rusher to have such a strong day against the Texans' division rival, tying for his single-game high in sacks for his career, Hunter credits that to the film study and preparation DeMeco Ryans and the Texans staff set up heading into the week.

He and the Texans knew that Trevor Lawrence would be stepping up in the pocket a good amount on his throws, which allowed their stout defensive interior and the power off the edge to deliver.

"They do a good job of penetrating. Keeping Trevor Lawrence back there, that's why we were able to get back there so many times, because we saw it in the film that he was stepping up mostly. They did a good job of making them stay back there, so that helped a lot."

The award adds to the nice resume Hunter's stacked up throughout this season. In nine games, he's leading the Texans in sacks with 7.5 total, pairing with 27 tackles, eight tackles for loss, as well as a forced fumble and a recovery.

If Hunter can continue that level of pass rush prowess moving forward for this Houston defense, there should be no worries about whether they can continue to sustain as one of the best collective units in the NFL.

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