Jonathan Greenard Reaches 10-Sack Milestone, Earns Praise After Houston Texans' Loss

Houston Texans edge rusher Jonathan Greenard isn’t the first name that comes to mind on his defensive line, but he’s been the unit’s most productive member this season. In Sunday’s 30-6 loss to the New York Jets, he wrote himself into the Houston record books—or at least became the answer to a Texans trivia question.

In Week 14, he found his 10th sack of the season and became the first Houston defender to hit that mark since defensive lineman J.J. Watt did so in 2018. Greenard led the team in sacks (eight) during the 2021 season.

On Monday, Greenard humbly spoke about the accomplishment.

“I don’t play for sacks,” Greenard said. “I just maximize my opportunities. I play ball.”

Greenard’s 42 pressures rank 25th amongst qualified edge rushers and he ranks 35th in Pro Football Focus’ pass-rush win rate. He is tied for 12th in the league among all defenders in sacks.

They’re timely, too. Greenard is an unrestricted free agent after this season. It isn’t yet clear whether Houston will re-sign the pass rusher to pair long-term with rookie Will Anderson Jr., but he’s proven to be a legitimately good player and a leader among his fellow linemen.

“No one is perfect, but I pride myself on being a perfectionist,” Greenard said. “Glad I did get to that milestone, but I’m not done yet. The team isn’t done yet.”

While certainly still alive in the playoff race, falling to 7-6 undoubtedly hurt the Texans’ odds of playing mid-January football. Per Super Sports, Houston’s hopes have a tick over 40-percent chance of coming to fruition before Monday Night Football’s festivities.

The pass rush was decent on Sunday, netting four sacks, but they’ll need to be a consistent force to finish the job of exceeding expectations.

Head coach DeMeco Ryans spoke about Greenard, too, citing a similar principle as his veteran edge rusher.

“Jonathan has had a productive year, done some good things for us this year,” Ryans said. “Everybody eats when everybody rushes together.”

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If this ends up being Greenard’s final stretch in Houston, he’ll have made his exit in about as favorable of a way as one could. However, there’s work left to be done. Against a vulnerable Tennessee Titans offensive line in Week 15, the opportunities will be present for Greenard and others to cash in on.