Texans Made Key Offensive Shift That Paid Off vs. Bills

The Houston Texans' defense was the key to success in their TNF showing against the Buffalo Bills that ultimately led to their 23-19 victory on a primetime stage, and ultimately a third-straight win for a 6-5 record.

But on the offensive side of the ball, the Texans, without C.J. Stroud at the helm for another week, made just enough happen with Davis Mills running the show, with a large part of that success coming from one factor that's been in flux for this team all season: the offensive line.

For the second time this season and the first time with their backup center, the Texans allowed zero total sacks on their quarterback throughout the day, keeping Mills clean and without consistent pressure against Buffalo, and saw their offense, at least in the first half, put points on the board because of it.

And in the process of that offensive line success came a notable change upfront to their starting offensive line: Tytus Howard moved over to the left guard spot, Trent Brown filled in at right tackle, and Ed Ingram returned to the spot he left when he was healthy at right guard.

Texans Started Tytus Howard at LG vs. Bills

Aireontae Ersery and Jake Andrews remained constants, but outside of that duo, with a fully healthy outlook in the offensive line room, the Texans decided to shake up a few spots heading into the night vs. Buffalo, and clearly, that decision turned out positively for Houston.

Ingram and Brown were strong parts of the Texans' offensive line in particular. Ingram, who's been one of the better guards in football this season when on the field, had an impressive 84.3 Pro Football Focus grade, led by an outstanding 85.8 run blocking grade, while Brown boasted an 82.4 overall grade, combining for just two total pressures on Mills to emerge as the top-two lineman on the day.

Texans new look OL yesterday OFF Grade & Pressures Allowed via @PFF:

LT - Aireontae Ersery (59.3, 3)
LG - Tytus Howard (54.9, 1)
C - Jake Andrews (51.4, 0)
RG - Ed Ingram (84.3, 1)
RT - Trent Brown (82.4, 1)

If anybody still calls the Texans OL “one of the worst” they do… pic.twitter.com/2Q6E5Bz04b
— Jacob (@TexansJacob) November 21, 2025

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But the biggest change of note was that of switching Howard to the left guard spot, pivoting from his typical spot as a Pro Bowl-level right tackle to playing on the opposite side and on the inside, but ended up plugging one of the Texans' most critical holes upfront from the season in doing so.

Oct 20, 2025; Seattle, Washington, USA; Houston Texans offensive tackle Tytus Howard (71) warms up before the game against the Seattle Seahawks at Lumen Field. Mandatory Credit: Kevin Ng-Imagn Images | Kevin Ng-Imagn Images

In his first start at left guard this season, Howard remained stout as a pass blocker with a 74.2 grade on the day, but struggled a bit more in the run game. In all, though, he allowed just one pressure and one hurry on the day, giving further confidence that he can keep building onto that productive day moving deeper into the year.

Now with the success of this specific five-man combination in the books, it seems likely that we'll see that same setting on the offensive line once again once Stroud gets back in the mix from concussion protocol; ultimately testing to see whether that zero-sack outing was a one-week phenomenon or a sign of things to come in Houston.

The offensive line has often been the biggest talking point of the Texans throughout this season for all the wrong reasons, but if able to keep up similar performances as they did against Buffalo both on the ground and through the air, paired with their dominant defensive display, this Houston team will be a tough one to stop down the stretch.

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