Nobody will deny that Derek Stingley Jr. is one of the cornerbacks in the NFL. Heck, he and teammate Kamari Lassiter could give the Jacksonville Jaguars trouble for years to come. Having said that, the former LSU Tiger just made a bold proclamation that will surely raise eyebrows across the NFL.
Stingley is confident that the Texans defense can lead the league in interceptions by a wide margin, noting that the Houston secondary showed in 2024 that it can make plays.
"Going based off of last year, plus the guys we got now, we should lead in interceptions probably by at least 10 to 15," Stingley told DJ Bien-Aime. "I mean, we know we can get the ball. We just got to keep going to get the ball."
Stingley isn't entirely wrong. He had five picks while Lassiter logged three. On top of that, the Texans acquired C.J. Gardner-Johnson, who set a career high in interceptions with six. Couple that with the fact that Houston ranked second in the league with 19, and it's easy to understand where he's coming from.
Having said that, the Texans will have trouble leading the league by "at least 10 or 15 interceptions". For context, the Minnesota Vikings registered an NFL-best 24 interceptions last season, so Stingley projects the Texans to finish with 34-39 next in 2025. The last time a team logged as many was in the distant year of 1984, when the Seattle Seahawks had 34. Two years later, the San Francisco 49ers tallied 36.
There were several teams that registered more than 40 interceptions, but every instance took place before the modern era. Couple that with the fact that interceptions can wildly vary from one year to another, and Houston doesn't have a realistic shot at reaching Stingley's expectations.
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The Jaguars cannot take the Texans defnese lightly
Leaving aside that the Houston Texans won't probably have over 30 interceptions in 2025, the Jacksonville Jaguars shouldn't take them lightly. For starters, they're the reigning AFC South champions and remain the team to beat in the division.
On top of that, the Texans defense is stacked with talent. Up front, they have bookend pass rushers Will Anders and Danielle Hunter. Dread linebacker Azeez Al-Shaair is still around. Derek Stingley Jr., Kamari Lassiter, CJ Gardner Johnson, and Jalen Pitre are in the back end. Their one potential weak link could be at defensive tackle, but other than that, Houston has enough playmakers on that side of the ball to make noise.
The offense is a whole different deal. While quarterback C.J. Stroud is expected to bounce back from an underwhelming sophomore campaign, the offensive trenches leave much to be desired. Couple that with the fact that running back Joe Mixon and wide receiver Nico Collins are recovering from serious injuries, and the Houston offensive line may have trouble getting going next year.
Ultimately, the Jacskonville Jaguars made enough upgrades to the roster to challenge the Texans for the division crown in 2025, but it won't be a walk in the park because of their stout defense.