6 MONTHS for 99¢: Extended Cyber Monday Sale!Don't miss our best offer on digital access. Sale Ends Dec. 7 |
Vaseline and Warm Skin: How Texans plan to keep warm in KC
Perhaps the most underrated factor in Sunday's game between the Houston Texans (7-5) and the Kansas City Chiefs (6-6) won't involve the X's and O's.
It may be the weather.
Temperatures for the Texans' Sunday Night Football game in Kansas City are expected to be 24 degrees at kickoff, which will be the coldest game Houston has played in this season.
In fact, the Texans haven't played in weather below 56 degrees all year, with that low coming in October at Seattle.
But lay a bottle of Bud Light on the ground in Kansas City and watch it freeze by the end of the first quarter.
As more teams in cities with winter weather have prioritized stadiums with retractable roofs, playing outdoors in the cold has become a challenge, especially for teams based in warm-weather cities like Houston.
Texans coach DeMeco Ryans said he doesn't expect it to be a factor for his team Sunday night.
But the statistics suggest otherwise. Since Ryans became head coach, his teams have gone 0-3 in games where the temperature was 32 degrees or colder. The franchise is 4-7 all-time in below-freezing temperatures.
"The strategy for playing in the cold is not to focus on it too much," Ryans said Wednesday. "It's a mindset. No matter what the weather is, what the temperature, you've got to go out and play ball for three hours."
The Texans expect to see more cold weather entering the final stretch of the season, into December and January. Among the top teams in playoff contention, and whom the Texans could face if they make the postseason, include the New England Patriots, Denver Broncos and the Ravens, who play in places where the weather will likely be below freezing.
Read the rest of my story on the creative ways Texans players try to stay warm during games here.
 | Jonathan M. Alexander, Texans beat reporter |
Fantasy studs and duds
Photo by: Jason Fochtman, Houston Chronicle
Start
WR Jayden Higgins
Why: The Chiefs have their top cornerback...
⚠️ Houston Chronicle susbscribers get access to Fantasy Studs and Duds, where I give you tips on who to start, who to sit and who to watch on your fantasy football team. Subscribe now to get next week's tips.
Texans Trivia!
Monday's question: Which player has the most fumbles in franchise history?
Monday's answer: David Carr. He had 68 fumbles, which was 30 more than the next person. Shoutout to Don Harrison for being the first one to get this answer correctly.
The next Trivia question will be in Monday's newsletter.
Photo by: J.C. Reid, Contributor
What I'm eating on the road
Kansas City barbecue is not better than Texas barbecue. But it does do one thing well. Burnt ends.
I've been to Kansas City a few times. My go-to restaurants if you're in the area are Q-38 and Joe's KC BBQ. But if I had to choose one, go to Joe's.
Podcast
🎧 Texans Insider
|
Top Stories
Photo by: Jason Fochtman, Houston Chronicle
Settle's season over
Defensive tackle Tim Settle Jr.'s was a big part of the Texans No. 1 ranked defense and had started every game.
- Collinsworth on Chiefs-Texans: Ahead of the Texans' first Sunday Night Football appearance of the season, NBC's Cris Collinsworth sizes up the matchup with the Chiefs. Read More
- Walter Payton Man of Year: Azeez Al-Shaair is a villain in some opposing NFL stadiums for his hits on quarterbacks, but he's beloved in the Houston Texans locker room and in the community. Read More
- Mailbag: C.J. Stroud elevating the offense, offensive-line improvement and clock management were among the topics of interest for Texans fans this week. Read More
One last thing ...
It takes a lot of time, money and effort to produce this kind of work, and your support helps me in doing that.
It allows me to travel to games, and players' hometowns to find out their stories. So my request is that you subscribe to our content at houstonchronicle.com. It'll give you full access to all of our stories and coverage, so you don't have to worry about our paywall.
Thank you for being a loyal reader and supporter. We've got a deal, six months for 99 cents, which will take you through the season. Here is the link to subscribe.
Send me an email if you're a new subscriber who subscribed from this link with a screenshot showing proof. I have a small gift for you.
|
Unsubscribe | Manage Preferences
Houston Chronicle
4747 Southwest Freeway, Houston, TX 77027
© 2025 Hearst Newspapers, LLC
No comments:
Post a Comment