The Houston Texans had an extremely successful 2023 campaign.
They cruised to a 10-7 record under new head coach DeMeco Ryans and captured several accolades along the way. They won the AFC South and won a playoff game for the first time since the 2019 season. Rookie quarterback C.J. Stroud won PFWA’s Offensive Rookie of the Year, rookie edge rusher Will Anderson won PFWA’s Defensive Rookie of the Year, and even Ryans took home hardware with PFWA’s Coach of the Year.
With a revamped team effort that led to dramatic improvements compared to both the 2021 and 2022 Texans, it’s worth examining who created that impact this past season and what their future projects moving forward.
This series has taken a look at defensive tackle Sheldon Rankins, running back Devin Singletary, rookie receiver Tank Dell, and veteran tackle George Fant, and upstart linebacker Blake Cashman.
Today, we take a closer look at cornerback Steven Nelson.
Background
Steven Nelson signed a two-year contract with the Texans in April of 2022 after what had been a relatively ‘down’ season with the Philadelphia Eagles.
He turned in a solid campaign under then-head coach Lovie Smith with 15 games started, 52 total tackles and 7 passes defended. Nelson entered the 2023 off-season as a locked-in starter next to second-year player Derek Stingley.
“I respect Steven. Know he doesn’t respect my wardrobe selection…”
– Nick Caserio on Steven Nelson situation in camp#WeAreTexans
😂 😂 😂
— Landry Locker (@LandryLocker) July 26, 2023
In fact, he played well enough that his contract was restructured in training camp to provide additional compensation for the season. This came despite a public, and hilarious, social media tirade from Nelson on general manager Nick Caserio regarding his contract and his usual choice to wear a vest.
Overall, Nelson was expected to lock down the opposite side of a growing Stingley and turn in another strong campaign in a more versatile scheme under head coach DeMeco Ryans.
2023 Performance
Nelson had a phenomenal 2023 season, one of the best of his career on paper. He started 16 games, missing just one to injury, and tied his previous career-high with four interceptions. It would have been five if postseason statistics were recorded.
His big plays came in huge moments for the Texans. His interception of New Orleans Saints quarterback Derek Carr sealed a pivotal win for Houston in Week 6. In the AFC wild-card round, Nelson’s Pick 6 of Cleveland Browns quarterback Joe Flacco turned the tide of the game and contributed to Houston’s unexpected 45-14 win.
The @HoustonTexans first pick-6 of the season came at a pretty good time.
📺: #CLEvsHOU on NBC
📱: Stream on #NFLPlus https://t.co/jM781VisSx pic.twitter.com/h5pC52nrZu— NFL (@NFL) January 13, 2024
Nelson was Houston’s most consistent player in the defensive backfield and it would be amiss not to mention how that related to Stingley. When the former No. 3 overall pick was forced to miss time early in the season, Nelson stepped up in a big way. He was a consistent contributor and defended passes in five of the team’s first six games.
Once Stingley returned in Week 10, Nelson continued his high-level play until late in the season beginning to somewhat slow down. However, that bought more than enough time for Houston to transition to a system where Stingley was able to fully play towards his talent and begin traveling with the top receiver of each team for the AFC Playoffs.
Overall, Nelson’s steady impact whether opposite of Stingley or cornerback Shaquill Griffin was a huge part of steadying a defensive secondary that never could find consistent play from their safeties.
2024 Projection
Nelson is an unrestricted free agent entering the 2024 offseason. It’s uncertain if Caserio and Ryans will prioritize re-signing the 31-year-old cornerback as one of many 2023 contributors who is a free agent this off-season.
If Houston brings back Nelson, it will once again be to start opposite Stingley in 2023. It would be fascinating for fans to see if Ryans will continue to implement his system where Stingley is allowed to travel with top targets to optimize his number one cornerback or if he and Nelson would return to playing sides.
Meanwhile, if Nelson signs with another team, it opens up questions. The Texans would certainly have to target another starting-caliber outside cornerback this off-season. It could come in free agency or in the draft, as there are several valuable players at the position projected to be available when Houston selects at 23rd overall.
Clemson’s Nate Wiggins, Toledo’s Quinyon Mitchell, Iowa’s Cooper DeJean and Alabama’s Kool-Aid McKinstry are all reasonable targets in the first round if Houston needs a new cornerback.
Yeah the tweet was a slight to me I don’t respect it like I said go find a source and maybe you wouldn’t have said what you said. Get off the train and watch tape and I show up every week not this game playing to strengths? alot of coverages turn into man anyway learn football
— Steve Nelson (@Nelson_Island) September 26, 2023
Fans will have to wait and see what Nelson’s future with the team is. In the meantime, try not to refer to him as a zone cornerback.
