DeMeco Ryans Admits Injuries Hurt Texans in Loss to Patriots

During the Houston Texans divisional round matchup vs. the New England Patriots that would wind up being their final contest of their 2025-26 campaign, they were struck by the injury bug at a pretty inopportune time––especially on the offensive side of the ball.

Before kickoff, the Texans would already be down their top wide receiver, Nico Collins, as he was stuck in concussion protocol, making for a big hit to their passing attack from the jump. Starting tight end, Dalton Schultz, would also leave the action early in the first half with a calf injury that ended his day prematurely and created an even steeper uphill battle offensively than what Houston had already been dealing with.

Collins and Schultz were losses that, for Texans head coach DeMeco Ryans, are two names that simply can't be replaced if they're not on the field. Both have their respective big roles in Houston's offense to ultimately lead them to becoming top two on the roster for receiving yards, and it was a huge detriment to be without them in Foxboro.

"You don't replace a Nico Collins. You don't replace a Dalton Schultz," Ryans said of the Texans' injuries. "When you lose your top guys as any team in this league, and you lose your top guys, it's going to be difficult. I think you guys see the Niners kind of went through something similar too. Like, it catches up with you."

Texans Offense Struggled With Injuries vs. Patriots

The best teams at the end of the year are often those that are both talented and healthy, and for the Texans, those losses on the offensive side of the ball certainly made those goals tougher to achieve, especially when stacked up against one of the best teams in the NFL that holds a premier MVP candidate like Drake Maye as well.

Who knows if things would've been different had Collins and Schultz played in full capacity? Regardless, the Texans are a different team without each of them out there, and Ryan recognizes that completely.

"The best teams are going to advance and the best teams is going to win the Super Bowl, right?" Ryans continued. "You need your top guys out there. You need your top playmakers out there. And yeah, we definitely missed Nico not being out there... C.J. was able to scramble on a third down and find Dalton on their sideline; made a huge play for us."

"So yeah, we definitely missed Dalton and we missed Nico. They've been two of our most productive players all year. So in that moment, you look for other guys to step up and make plays. For sure, we missed those guys."

Dec 21, 2025; Houston, Texas, USA; Houston Texans wide receiver Nico Collins (12) warms up before the game against the Las Vegas Raiders at NRG Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Troy Taormina-Imagn Images | Troy Taormina-Imagn Images

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The Texans still found a couple of quality producers offensively despite their injury troubles. Jayden Higgins hauled in six catches for 59 yards on 10 targets that helped keep this air attack afloat, while Xavier Hutchinson stepped up with four catches for 44 yards himself.

However, an elite defense like the Texans held heading into the postseason still needs a capable offense to pair with in order to have that balanced, Super Bowl-level roster. When combining the errors this scoring unit faced with multiple key players like Collins, Schultz, and even starting right tackle Trent Brown going down with injury, it combined for a nightmare scenario on that side of the ball Houston couldn't overcome.

Next season, the Texans will look to be better, healthier, and more prepared for a deep run in the postseason. And if those aspired strides can come offensively to pair with a sustained elite defense, they'll be right in the thick of the AFC once again come this time next year. But this season, their multiple hurdles proved to be just too much to overcome all at once.

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