Jalen Pitre's Star-Turn Has Taken Texans D to Another Level

After each of the Houston Texans' last two wins, I've written about how statistically, this Texans defense is on track to finish the year as one of the best scoring defenses in the last quarter-century. I've supplied the fancy tables that compare Houston to great defenses of the recent past like the 2000 Baltimore Ravens, 2002 Tampa Bay Buccaneers and 2005 Chicago Bears, but what I've yet to do dig into who is responsible for this month of dominance.

To be fair, if I were going to show love to every defensive contributor, it would take a while to account for all of the guys who make this unit as lights out as it's been. But since I have very few doubts that the Texans will be able to keep this up for the entire season, I figured what I'd do on each Thursday for the remainder of the season is shine a spotlight on one specific defender and explore their contributions to what may end up going down as an historically great Texans defense.

Today we'll start with safety Jalen Pitre, who had 4 tackles and 2 interceptions in Houston's Week 5 win over the Baltimore Ravens, and will likely spend at least a portion of the Texans' bye week admiring the $39 million that will be deposited into his bank account over the course of the next three years.

Jalen Pitre's 2025 Season to Date

What the Stats are Saying: 22 tackles, 2 tackles for loss, 3 interceptions, 5 passes defended, 60.0% completion allowed, 77.4 PFF Grade (8th among 80 qualified safeties)

What his Teammates/Coaches are Saying: “Jalen has been outstanding, outstanding start to the season,” DeMeco Ryans said of Pitre after Week 5's win. "The growth piece is what we saw for the past three weeks, him attacking the football and now having three interceptions on the year. That’s the growth that I’ve seen. Everybody understands how active he is around the line of scrimmage and blitzing, but just the pass coverage piece and being able to take the football away."

“He’s playing physical. He had a really big hit. He’s playing physical. He’s having fun on the field. If you watch the tape and you just watch Jalen Pitre play the game, that’s how I want everybody to play," Ryans added. "He’s out there flying around, having fun, being where he’s supposed to be, playing clean football and doing it with a huge smile on his face. He’s making a ton of plays for us, and I couldn’t be happier with where he is right now and what he’s doing for our team.”

What the Tape is Saying: I'm seeing a player who is perfectly comfortable in his role as the 'buzzsaw' of the Houston Texans defense. Nowadays in the NFL we see versatile safeties get moved around the defense like a Queen on the chessboard, and Pitre is no different.

The 4th-year defensive back and native Texan is excelling in coverage from the slot, and he made a terrific read on one of his interceptions this past weekend, jumping a route in the flats ran by Derrick Henry and securing the pick. And speaking of Henry, Pitre laid the hammer down on one of the league's biggest and most powerful backs midway through the 3rd quarter.

After watching a hit like that one, it shouldn't come as a surprise that Chicago Bears tight end Cole Kmet said last year after playing the Texans that the hardest he's ever been hit in his football career was by Jalen Pitre.

Pitre clearly has a knack for the ball, as evidenced by the fact that he picked off five passes as a rookie, and that he's presently tied for the league lead in interceptions this season. The jump on that interception thrown in the direction of Derrick Henry showed Pitre's instincts, and his second interception of Cooper Rush showed that playing with the passion that Pitre does often lands you in the right place at the right time.

Jalen Pitre may not be the best player on the Texans defense -- that distinction belongs to either Will Anderson Jr. or Derek Stingley Jr. -- but if the 26-year-old solidifies himself as #3 on the totem pole, and if he can make it through the entire 17 game season -- which he didn't last year -- his impact at all three levels could be exactly what the Texans needed to earn their place as the NFL's best defense.

Lions QB Jared Goff Gets Thrilling News Before Chiefs Game

The Detroit Lions are on a roll, and they’ve just clocked their fourth victory of the 2025-26 season with a win over the Cincinnati Bengals on the road on Sunday, October 5. It was a strong win, 37-24, and showed that this team is a contender in every way.

Meanwhile, the Lions’ next opponent, the Kansas City Chiefs, are off to a very rocky start for the 2025-26 NFL season, and that was exasperated during the team’s loss to the Jacksonville Jaguars on Monday, 28-31. The Chiefs were favored to win this road game, but instead, they left Florida with a 2-3 record

So, heading into this game, it seems as if the Detroit Lions really have a chance to take down Patrick Mahomes, Travis Kelce and the Chiefs. There’s no reason why they can’t win, especially because it’s a home game, so the team will get the support of the Detroit Lions fans in the stadium at Ford Field. Now, ahead of the game, Lions quarterback Jared Goff is getting some fantastic attention.

Jared Goff Makes the Detroit Lions Proud

Where did the time go? We’re already into Week 6 of the NFL, which is really wild. Jack McKessy of USA Today has released his tally of power rankings for quarterbacks going into Week 6, and it’s a comprehensive lineup.

In the piece out on Wednesday, October 8, he notes that Week 5 was filled with upsets in the NFL, because both of the league’s remaining undefeated franchises, the Philadelphia Eagles and Buffalo Bill, lost.

The Tennessee Titans and rookie quarterback Cam Ward finally picked up their first win of the season in the desert against the Arizona Cardinals,” he adds. New Orleans Saints quarterback Spencer Rattler, who had an 0-10 record as a starter to begin his NFL career, looked like the much better of the two younger quarterbacks in Sunday’s game. He picked up his first career win over the New York Giants, handing rookie Jaxson Dart his first career loss in the process.

So, where does Goff fall in his quarterback rankings? He’s No. 1. Yes, finally, No. 1, where he deserves to be. Last week, we was No. 3.

Goff’s 19-of-23 outing with three touchdowns against the Bengals moved him into the league lead in completion percentage (75.2%) and touchdown passes (12),” he notes in the feature. He’s also No. 1 in passer rating and QBR among quarterbacks to have started all five games – only Ravens quarterback Lamar Jackson, who was ruled out in Week 5, has higher marks.

Detroit Lions in the News

ESPN has released its power rankings for all of the NFL teams heading into Week 6. In the Tuesday, October 7 piece, they have the Lions as No. 1. Wow. It feels great to be on top.

In the piece, Eric Woodyard notes, “After his first 1,000-yard season in 2024, (Jameson) Williams has started slowly in 2025. He hasn’t logged more than 50 receiving yards in four of the Lions‘ five games, as he works to get in sync with veteran quarterback Jared Goff and overcome dropped passes.

He adds, “Williams is viewed as a risky option because he’s averaging only 7.9 fantasy points per game in PPR leagues. He hasn’t turned limited targets into production or delivered consistently this season — but he can still make big plays.”

So, the Detroit Lions are on top of the world right now. They deserve it, and hopefully it will stay that way.

 

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