NFL expert ranks supercharged Texans edge rusher unit in top 5

Last season the top pass rusher for the Houston Texans was Jonathan Greenard, who totaled a team high 12.5 sacks and 15 tackles for a loss. This offseason Houston lost Greenard to the Minnesota Vikings in free agency as he joined them on a four-year, $76 million deal . Losing Greenard hurts. However, the Texans more than made up for it by literally signing two excellent edge rushers for the price of one.

Houston has since signed both Danielle Hunter (two years, $49 million) and Denico Autry (two years, $20 million), who will join the rotation that includes 2023 Defensive Rookie of the Year winner Will Anderson. Even without Greenard that makes this one of the best edge rusher groups in the NFL on paper.

ESPN analyst Mike Clay agrees and he has Houston's edge unit ranked No. 4 in the league in his projections going into the 2024 season. Only the edge units for the Pittsburgh Steelers, Cleveland Browns and Dallas Cowboys were ranked higher than the Texans.

Allowing Greenard to leave and then bringing in Hunter and Autry might turn out to be one of the most-inspired moves that general manager Nick Caserio has made so far, and that's saying something considering the year that he's had. Last season for their respective teams they combined for 28 sacks and 39 quarterback hits - far more than any one edge rusher in the league.

If Anderson can make that all-important Sophomore Leap and boost his production (he had seven sacks and 22 QB hits as a rookie) this will definitely be one of the most-formidable units in the game.