The Houston Texans have pulled off a never-before-seen feat as a result of their Week 17 win vs. the Los Angeles Chargers, thus stamping their ticket to the playoffs for a third-straight season.
With the Texans now clinching a playoff berth after their 20-16 victory over the Chargers, the Texans are now the first team in NFL history to make the playoffs in multiple seasons in which they started 0-3.
The @HoustonTexans are the first franchise in NFL history to make the playoffs in multiple seasons in which they started 0-3 👏 #HTownMade pic.twitter.com/lZguvRFJms
— NFL+ (@NFLPlus) December 28, 2025
For a team that once had its hopes for this season looking dead in the water, the Texans have now managed to climb back into the postseason picture after an 0-3 start for two seasons in their franchise’s history.
Their first time around came during the 2018 season when the Texans fell into a similar 0-3 hole that this 2025-edition team earlier this year.
That team in 2018 was commanded by quarterback Deshaun Watson during his first season in Houston, and then-head coach Bill O’Brien, who, after dropping their first three games of the year, would then go on to win their next nine games on the schedule, finishing out with an 11-5 record and a playoff appearance at the end of the year.
Texans Climb Back From 0-3 Once Again
It was an impressive accomplishment then, and now, the Texans have now scaled that same mountain less than 10 years later.
After starting the year off 0-3, and then 3-5 after Week 9’s loss to the Denver Broncos, their hopes of getting into the playoff hunt were looking pretty barren at the midpoint of this season, and especially so when their starting quarterback, C.J. Stroud, was sidelined for three games with a concussion.
But since that loss against the Broncos, the Texans have flipped the script in a major way. Houston has now gone on to win eight straight games to now find themselves 11-5, and officially in the playoff mix for the third consecutive season.
Dec 27, 2025; Inglewood, California, USA; Houston Texans owner Cal McNair hugs quarterback C.J. Stroud (7) following a game against the Los Angeles Chargers at SoFi Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Gary A. Vasquez-Imagn Images | Gary A. Vasquez-Imagn Images
Those efforts were capped off by a statement victory in their outing against the Chargers–– one that the Texans led all the way through after a strong 14-0 start in the first quarter, and forged a lead they would eventually never give up to claim win number 11 on the season.
Now, the Texans are officially one of the top seven seeds to go dancing in the AFC with a chance to find their way to this year’s Super Bowl, which, if they’re able to find their way to San Francisco in February, would be the first-ever team to start a season 0-3 to then make the Super Bowl.
Be sure to bookmark Houston Texans On SI and follow @TexansOnSI on X for daily Houston Texans news, interviews, breakdowns and more!