bijan-robinson-usatsi.jpg
USATSI

It's a fun time for us as our CBS Sports staff is doing all the player outlooks for the upcoming season. Those are the blurbs you read on each player's page and, more importantly, the information you see in the draft room.

We invest a significant amount of time in these outlooks and conduct thorough research. The goal, as always, is to help you prepare for your draft -- and win your league.

With that in mind, we wanted to break out some of the best research items we found on each player so you can start preparing now. When your draft is happening, especially if it's live, you might remember something you read here and don't have to panic when you're on the clock.

I have the AFC South outlooks, and here are some of the interesting things that stood out to me about the Texans, Colts, Jaguars and Titans. For example, Joe Mixon was among the NFL leaders in touches per game, all the Colts receivers were better with Joe Flacco than Antony Richardson, Brian Thomas Jr. was an absolute monster to close 2024, and Tony Pollard's stats popped when Tyjae Spears was out.

In this article, we'll focus on the key takeaways from doing the Texans outlooks. 

If you want to find out my key takeaways from breaking down the NFC South outlooks, head here. 

What will happen in 2025 with these teams? Let's find out. Here are five interesting notes on each roster.

Texans

1. Did you know: C.J. Stroud scored at least 22.7 Fantasy points in three of his first six games in 2024, but he only topped 20 Fantasy points once in his final 13 outings, including the playoffs.

Our view: Stroud wasn't bad when Nico Collins, Stefon Diggs and Tank Dell were healthy, but things fell apart for Stroud when his top receivers started getting hurt. Remember, in 2023, Stroud averaged 21.5 Fantasy points per game, but that number dropped to 15.3 points in 2024. There's bounce-back potential here for Stroud, especially if one of Christian Kirk, Jayden Higgins and Jaylin Noel step up and support Collins to make this a standout receiving corps. Stroud should only be drafted as a late-round pick in all leagues, but he could return value as a No. 1 Fantasy quarterback this year.

2. Did you know: Last year, Joe Mixon averaged 17.2 PPR points per game, which was the second-best mark of his career. He also averaged 20.1 touches per game in 2024, which was No. 7 in the NFL. 

Our view: Mixon should be considered a borderline No. 1 Fantasy running back in all leagues, and he's worth drafting as early as Round 3. He turns 29 in July, and Houston added a rookie running back in the fourth round of the NFL Draft in Woody Marks for depth. But Mixon should still dominate touches for the Texans, and that's hard to overlook. As long as he stays healthy (he missed three games early in 2024 with an ankle injury) then Mixon should be a weekly starter and potential league winner.

3. Did you know: Since Stroud became Houston's quarterback in 2023, Collins has 148 catches for 2,303 yards and 15 touchdowns on 208 targets in 27 games. He's averaged at least 17.4 PPR points in each season and has finished in the top 10 on a per-game basis each year. 

Our view: In 2024, Collins had four games with at least 20.2 PPR points, including the playoffs, and he has top-five upside given how he's performed with Stroud over the past two seasons. Collins has established himself as one of the top-tier Fantasy receivers, and he's worth drafting toward the end of Round 1 or beginning of Round 2 in all leagues. 

4. Did you know: In 2024, Kirk struggled with the Jaguars at 8.9 PPR points per game before suffering a season-ending collarbone injury in Week 8. Prior to 2024, Kirk had averaged at least 12.2 PPR points per game in three seasons in a row and four of the past five years with Jacksonville and Arizona, including a career-best 14.2 PPR points per game in 2022 with the Jaguars.

Our view: Kirk is worth drafting with a mid- to late-round pick in all leagues. He should be the starter opposing Collins, but Kirk might have to fight for targets and playing time with Higgins and Noel. Kirk has top-30 upside with the Texans, but he should only be drafted as a reserve Fantasy receiver in most formats. Let him prove himself in Houston, and then Kirk could be a potential starter in three-receiver leagues this year.

5. Did you know: Higgins caught a combined 15 touchdowns in 26 career games at Iowa State, and he had eight games where he finished with more than 100 receiving yards. He also averaged 15.5 yards per catch.

Our view: The Texans are expected to be without Tank Dell (knee) for the majority of the season, and Higgins should have a prominent role playing alongside Collins and Kirk. It wouldn't be a surprise if Higgins is a better Fantasy receiver than Kirk given Higgins' big-play ability. We would still draft Kirk ahead of Higgins, but he is an excellent late-round flier in all leagues.