Houston Texans: Five things atop the team’s Christmas wish list

The Honey Badger wants to make Houston his home

Now we get to the portion of the Houston Texans Christmas wish list that is a little more long-term, a little further out into the future. But, they are still things that the team and fans should be hoping for. They are things that can help the team build off of the success they saw this year in order to be even better for the 2019-2020 season.

One of the things that should rest atop this portion of the list is that Tyrann Mathieu continues to fall in love with the city and the team and vice versa. The Honey Badger has been a godsend for this team and I am thoroughly convinced the turnaround, for both the defense and team as a whole, would not have happened without him.

Mathieu has brought energy, swagger, and thunder to this defense. He creates a presence in the secondary that I’m not sure this team had since Dunta Robinson roamed the defensive backfield and even that probably does not compare. Mathieu is a game changer and culture changer and player that the Texans need to make sure stays in Houston when his deal expires at the end of the season.

Mathieu has turned in, arguably, the best season of his career outside his extraordinary 2015 campaign. He has collected three turnovers while also amassing 78 tackles already. It wouldn’t be too farfetched to see him set a new high in tackles for his career and get close to 100 for the season. It also wouldn’t be outrageous to see him collect another turnover or two.

Retaining Mathieu should be a top priority for the Houston Texans. He simply elevates this team and is a terrific running mate for Justin Reid, who has been great in his own regard. Hopefully this rest on both the Texans and Mathieu’s Christmas wish list.