
Lingering playoff disappointment often leads to a desire to draw the drapes over and flat out refuse to watch the finale to the NFL season.
The Houston Texans, who fit right into that mold, might have been more inclined to have avoided the Super Bowl completely, but that didn't mean learning vital burning lessons should be ignored.
Most notably, the stunning benchmark was how the Super Bowl champion Seattle Seahawks went about playing perfect, flawless, turnover-free football right throughout the playoffs.
If Texans general manager Nick Caserio had his TV switched on, the finer details of the Seahawks' dominating old-school victory wouldn't have escaped his attention.
"Taking care of the football is the single most important stat correlated to winning," Caserio said as the season concluded. Look it up. It's the truth. If you don't turn the ball over, you enhance your chances of winning; it's 85, 90 percent."
#Texans GM Nick Caserio after the season, "Taking care of the football is the single most important stat correlated to winning. Look it up. It's the truth. If you don't turn the ball over you enhance your chances of winning, it's 85, 90%."
— Adam Wexler (@AdamJWexler) February 9, 2026
Seattle had ZERO giveaways this playoffs
Furthermore, the colossal struggles experienced by New England Patriots left tackle Will Campbell, especially when giving up a season-high 14 quarterback pressures vs. Seattle, could indeed serve to make the Texans feel better or worse.
The Texans know exactly how it feels to reconstruct their offensive line, but only to see it come unstuck with everything riding on it. If only the Texans' own offensive line had held up better during the playoffs defeat in New England, quarterback C.J. Stroud might have held himself together.
Trouble is, critical issues upfront only serve to magnify your quarterback's lack of composure and poor fundamental decision-making. So the suddenly lost-looking Patriots signal caller Drake Maye will now have to face the fire, much like Stroud is already doing in H-Town.
Nevertheless, Caserio will look toward the draft to solve some of the recurring issues along the O-Line, but it will unquestionably require a full-board organizational commitment to the far less glamorous nitty-gritty aspects of roster construction.
On the flip side, the more steady performances of rookie left Aireontae Ersery, when compared to the implosion of his blocking counterpart on the Patriots, should at least provide some reasons to be cheerful.
Perhaps most importantly, Caserio needs to remind himself that he needs to
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