The last time the Houston Texans had a regular season record that was equal to, or better than, than the Kansas City Chiefs was way back in 2014 when both teams finished 9-7 on the year (Ryan Fitzpatrick and Alex Smith respectively were the quarterbacks). Both teams missed the playoffs that year. 

Given the same parameters, it's been since 2016 with the Baltimore Ravens (Brock Osweiler and Joe Flacco respectively were the quarterbacks), when the Texans finished 9-7 compared to Baltimore's 8-8. The Ravens missed the playoffs that year, while the Texans fell to Tom Brady and the New England Patriots 34-16 in the AFC Divisional round. 

In summation, it's been a very long time since the Houston Texans have had any type of leg up this late into the season against two modern-day titans of the AFC in the Chiefs and Ravens. All that changed yesterday on Thanksgiving however, when both teams took huge steps backwards in the AFC playoff race with key losses to the Dallas Cowboys and Cincinnati Bengals. 

Thanks for the Assistance

In the second game of the NFL's three-game Thanksgiving day slate, the Chiefs lost vs. the Dallas Cowboys (6-5-1) by a final score of 31-28. That loss dropped them to 6-6 on the season, placing them half of a game back of the Texans and into the ninth seed in the AFC (Houston is eighth). 

Likewise, in the final game of the set, quarterback Joe Burrow and the Cincinnati Bengals (4-8) dispatched quarterback Lamar Jackson and the Baltimore Ravens by a final deficit of 32-14. With the loss, the Ravens were also dropped to 6-6, have slid out of first place in the AFC North and are now behind both the Texans and Chiefs in the standings by taking up the 10th seed. 

So, at the week 13 point of the 2025 NFL season, the Houston Texans currently have a better record outright than both the Kansas City Chiefs and the Baltimore Ravens. If you were to ask certain Texans fans if they would've taken this scenario at this late of a point in the season without knowing the greater context, they most likely would've taken it in a heartbeat. 

Can Houston Pick Up the Pieces?

Therein lies the issue, the context. Contextually, the Texans couldn't have asked for a better situation than what they have in front of them right now. A perennial Super Bowl occupant in the Kansas City Chiefs? Out of the way. A juggernaut Ravens team that's in the Super Bowl conversation every single year? On the outside looking in of their own division.

And yet, Houston hasn't been able to capitalize due to their own well documented offensive misfires and now injury concerns to multiple key players (QB - C.J. Stroud, DB - Jalen Pitre: Concussions)

However, after a three-game win streak, and news that Houston's key weapons in Stroud and Pitre are expected to return to the field Sunday, they have another chance to rewrite their narrative and stage a coupe at the top of the AFC food chain. 

The Texans have already defeated the Ravens in week five, are preparing to meet the Indianapolis Colts (8-3) on Sunday and will face the Chiefs next Sunday at Arrowhead Stadium.

All this is important because of tiebreaker implications against the Ravens and the ability to virtually end the Chiefs' season by possibly handing them their seventh loss on the year with four games then left to make it up (again, the Chiefs haven't lost seven games in a season since 2014).

Shifting the Narrative

Larger than that, the reality is that the Texans can completely shift their course of their year by toppling the formidable Colts and then the aforementioned Chiefs. Those two wins would give Houston five straight, an 8-5 record and an inside track to securing playoff spot for the third time in as many seasons under the leadership of head coach Demeco Ryans. 

WIth the Chiefs theoretically then being 6-7 after the contest, that would be practically be a three game lead over them in the AFC playoff hunt due to the tiebreaker advantage on top of the head to head win that Houston would have. 

But, all of these ideas start with beating the Colts on Sunday. Even with reports that Daniel Jones will be hampered on Sunday due to a fractured fibula, the Texans would be wise to block out all the distractions and temptations for complacency. 

They haven't completed nearly as much as they probably envisioned heading into this season. With everything lining up for them the way it has going into week 13 though, the Texans know that they have to handle their business now before their business handles them. 

It's all right in front of them, they just have to go finish the job.