Texans Vs. Buccaneers Preview: C.J. Stroud And Nico Collins Rebound Incoming

Here’s a full Week 2 preview of Texans vs. Buccaneers, including betting odds, DFS props, and fantasy football projections to guide your lineup decisions.

Houston Texans wide receiver Nico Collins (12) reacts to a first down against the Los Angeles Chargers in the second quarter in an AFC wild card game at NRG Stadium. | Thomas Shea-Imagn Images

The Texans didn’t fire offensively in Week 1, leading to a five-point loss to the Los Angeles Rams in a low-scoring affair. Their next date on the NFL schedule is at home vs. the rising Tampa Bay Buccaneers. Despite being outplayed by the Falcons on many fronts last week, the Bucs left Atlanta with sole possession of first place in the NFC South.

TV: ABC/ESPN

Time: 7:00 PM EST

Vegas Line (DraftKings): Houston -2.5 points

Over/Under: 42.5

To help game managers set their rosters in Week 2, here’s a look at the game preview and projections for Tampa Bay and Houston.

Houston Texans Week 2 Fantasy Football Projections

Shawn Childs

The magic in C.J. Stroud’s right arm didn’t return in the Texans' first game in 2025. He passed for only 188 yards on 27 pass attempts with no touchdowns and one interception. The Rams’ defense sacked him three times and held his top receiver, Nico Collins, to only three catches for 25 yards on five targets. Nick Chubb (13/60) ran the ball well, which is a good sign for Houston this year.

Houston Texans Offensive Usage Without Christian Kirk And Joe Mixon

The Texans rotated in five wide receivers with Christian Kirk sidelined. Here’s a look at their snap percentages:

• Nico Collins (84%)
• Xavier Hutchinson (68%)
• Justin Watson (56%)
• Jayden Higgins (43%)
• Jaylin Noel (27%)

In addition, Houston gave five running back snaps:

• Nick Chubb (51%)
• Dare Ogunbowale (27%)
• Jakob Johnson (11%)
• Woody Marks (11%)
• Dameon Pierce (11%)

C.J. Stroud Fantasy Football Bounce Back Looming

Houston Texans quarterback C.J. Stroud (7) during the game against the Los Angeles Rams at SoFi Stadium. | Kirby Lee-Imagn Images

DraftKings set Stroud’s passing over/under at 228.5 yards (-113o). Last week, Tampa allowed 298 yards and one touchdown to Michael Penix Jr. Quarterbacks beat the Buccaneers’ defense for 4,464 passing yards and 26 touchdowns in 2024 while allowing a league high 418 completions and 630 pass attempts. Based on this, my projections for Stroud (25-for-38 with 286 passing yards and 1.5 touchdowns) paint a winning picture in the fantasy market. The early action on his over/under for passing TDs (1.5) has come on the under side (-166). If he delivers two scores, Stroud should finish as a top 12 quarterback in Week 2.

Can Nick Chubb Deliver Week-Winning Production?

Nick Chubb has an early line of 52.5 rushing yards (-113u) and 13.5 rush attempts (-117o). The betting market expects him to have more runs but gain fewer yards per game. To hit the over in rushing yards, he would need to gain 4.0 yards per carry in 14 attempts. I have his outlook set at 16/61, making him a slight favorite to beat DraftKings props. Chubb is +115 to score an anytime rushing touchdown.

Tampa Bay Buccaneers Week 2 Fantasy Football Projections

Shawn Childs

The Buccaneers had Bucky Irving in the field for 76% of their plays in Week 1, which was a higher snap percentage than any game last season. On the downside, the Falcons’ defense held him to 37 yards rushing on 14 carries (2.6 YPC). He saved his day by catching a pass for a touchdown (4/8/1). In 2024, Irving averaged 66 rushing yards over 17 games while being on the field for only 46.1% of Tampa’s plays. 

Bucky Irving's Favorable Prop Lines Paint A Winning Picture

DraftKings set Irving’s rushing over/under at 67.5 yards (-113u), which seems low based on his higher expected opportunity in 2025. Last season, running backs averaged 4.4 yards per carry vs. the Texans (355/1,576/11). Kyren Williams (18/66/1) was active in his high-volume role in Week 1, but he gained only 3.7 yards per carry. Irving is -110 to score an anytime touchdown, with an over/under of 16.5 rushing attempts (-113). I set his projections this week at 18 carries for 77 yards with a 75% chance of scoring on the ground.

Baker Mayfield Vs. Houston's Secondary

Tampa Bay Buccaneers quarterback Baker Mayfield (6) passes the ball against the Atlanta Falcons during the first quarter at Mercedes-Benz Stadium. | Brett Davis-Imagn Images

Baker Mayfield struggled to find open wide receivers in Week 1, resulting in only 167 passing yards on 32 attempts. He made up for this shortfall by delivering three passing touchdowns, highlighted by the success of rookie wideout Emeka Egbuka (4/67/2 on six targets). His lack of a third viable WR3 was a factor, and Mayfield failed to connect with any of his tight ends. 

His passing over/under by DraftKings was set at 235.5 (-113o) in his matchup against Houston. I projected him to pass for 252 yards with two touchdowns. Mayfield is -139 to throw fewer than 1.5 touchdowns in this contest.

Last year, the Texans gave up more than 250 yards passing in only four games (DAL – 358/1, TEN – 278/2, JAC – 276/2, and KC – 260/1), which all came over a five-game stretch over their final seven matchups. Despite success defending the pass (6.8 yards per pass attempt), Houston allowed 31 passing touchdowns in 2024. Matthew Stafford passed for 245 yards and one score in Week 1, while gaining 8.4 yards per pass attempt. 

Shawn Childs

Nico Collins Poised For A Rebound In Week 2

Nico Collins has an over/under of 76.5 receiving yards (-114u) against Tampa. In 2024, six wide receivers gained over 100 yards vs. the Bucs’ defense – Amon-Ra St. Brown (11/119), Drake London (12/154/1), Darnell Mooney (9/105/2), Rashod Bateman (4/121/1), CeeDee Lamb (7/105), and Adam Thielen (5/110/1), with five other wideouts gaining at least 75 yards. In Week 1, the Falcons’ wide receivers had 14 catches for 139 yards and no touchdowns on 27 targets, while playing without their second-best wideout. I have Collins (8/104/1) lined up for a big day, which is only natural considering C.J. Stroud’s passing outlook.

Mike Evans And Emeka Egbuka Week 2 Projections

Tampa Bay Buccaneers wide receiver Emeka Egbuka (9) looks on before a preseason game against the Tennessee Titans at Raymond James Stadium. | Nathan Ray Seebeck-Imagn Images

The prop market will gravitate toward Emeka Egbuka’s over/under in receiving yards (53.5) based on his draft steam and success in Week 1 (4/67/2). Tampa Bay gave him WR1 snaps (93%) against Atlanta, and he projects to be their high-volume target with Chris Godwin out. My projections came to 4/56 with 50% chances of scoring for Egbuka in this matchup. 

Mike Evans (5/51) comes off a second-fiddle day against the Falcons, a team (102/1,520/13 over 20 games) he had plenty of success against in his career. Houston gave CB Derek Stingley (40/382/4 on 85 targets in 2024) a three-year extension for $90 million in March, making him the highest-paid defensive back in the NFL. He will certainly cover Evans on a high number of plays this week. In Week 1, Stingley allowed five catches for 57 yards on targets per Pro Football Reference stats. DraftKings set his over/under at 68.5 yards (-113o).

In my first set of projections, I had Evans projected to catch six passes for 93 yards with a touchdown. In my next update, I’ll dig deeper into where Stingley lines up on the field, and most likely shift more action in favor of Emeke Egbuka.

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Game odds refresh periodically and are subject to change. 

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