Over the past two years, the Houston Texans made a concerted effort to improve their secondary this offseason with back-to-back defensive head coaches in Lovie Smith and DeMeco Ryans. In 2022, Houston secured a future stud in Derek Stingley Jr. out of LSU, third overall. Two years later, the Texans added Georgia standout Kamari Lassiter with their first pick in the second round.
Both players have been shutdown defensive backs in the last 17 games. Stingley, who inked a new three-year extension this offseason, earned All-Pro status after leading the NFL in fewest passer rating per outing. Lassiter, who was expected to start in the nickel, flourished on the outside, holding receivers to under a 45 percent yards per contest while forcing three interceptions and 11 pass breakups.
The duo of Stingley and Lassiter has garnered high praise from those around the league, where Pro Football Focus dubbed the pair the NFL’s best cornerback duo entering the 2025 season. Credit, the publication only allowed the outside corners and excluded nickels, but Lassiter’s breakout season was nearly comparable to the Philadelphia Eagles duos, which likely pushed Houston over the edge as Ryans prepares for Year 3 in the AFC South.
“Stingley established himself among the best cornerbacks in the league in 2023, but not many expected him to form arguably the best cornerback duo in the NFL with second-round pick Kamari Lassiter in 2024,” PFF’s Zoltan Buray wrote. “The two put together one of the best statistical seasons by a cornerback duo in recent memory. Stingley allowed a 39.6 passer rating into his coverage, which led all cornerbacks and is the equivalent of a quarterback just throwing the ball into the dirt on every play. Lassiter was not far behind, placing second (59.7) in that category. They were also the top two cornerbacks in the league in completion rate allowed, with Lassiter (45.2%) beating out Stingley (45.3%).”
Stingley, who was named an All-American during his freshman season at LSU in 2019, was always viewed as a can’t-miss defensive back. When healthy, the numbers have backed it up over the past 20 games between 2023 and 2024. He’s an elite defensive back in pass coverage and has been at his peak over two seasons, breaking up passes, per Pro Football Focus. Since 2023, PFF has graded with a 90.1 in man coverage.
Lassiter, a former All-SEC defensive back from the Bulldogs, is a versatile do-it-all defender who loves to tackle and make plays against the run. Some would consider him one of the better hitters on the outside among defensive backs.
If the Texans’ secondary stays healthy at the safety position, the sky’s the limit for the defense to rank top five in every category, especially in pass breakups and interceptions, with Lassiter and Stingley commanding respect on the outside.