Cleveland Browns 2022 opponent preview: Houston Texans

The Cleveland Browns will head to Texas to play the Houston Texans in Week 13, and all eyes could be on Deshaun Watson in this meeting

After a tough stretch of games, the Cleveland Browns finally have someone on the schedule that could be an easy win — or at least as easy of a win as there can be in the NFL.

Cleveland plays Miami, Buffalo, and Tampa Bay after their bye week ‚— and before the bye, they have teams such as the Chargers, Ravens, and Bengals on the schedule.

Still, they can’t overlook the Texans but as long as they play their game, they should be able to secure a win before another round of divisional games start up.

Texans 2021 season

The Houston Texans were a mess in 2021. They benched Deshaun Watson all season due to his off-field concerns and started Tyrod Taylor under center. It wasn’t long before they turned to rookie Davis Mills, who was fine but not great.

They finished the year with a record of 4-13 and had hardly any players — outside of Brandin Cooks — stand out all year.

Key offseason moves

Houston’s biggest move was sending Watson to the Browns for three first-round picks. They ended up with players such as Derek Stingley, Kenyon Green, and John Metchie III (who they got thanks to another trade with Cleveland) in the draft.

Outside of the rookies, the Texans did very little in free agency, which means this is a team building for the future — not necessarily for 2022.

When do the teams meet?

The Texans and Browns meet in Houston in Week 13 at 1:00 EST. This could end up being the first time Deshaun Watson plays his former team.

Last time the Cleveland Browns played Houston

Cleveland and Houston played in Week 2 of the 2021 season, and it proved to be a huge game — but not in the standing. This was the game Baker Mayfield was injured when he made a tackle following an interception. He then spent the remainder of the season battling to stay healthy, and in the end, has been replaced.

The Browns were also in trouble early as Tyrod Taylor was 10-11 passing for 125 yards and a touchdown. He was injured and the defense fared much better against Davis Mills, which helped them secure the win.

Player to watch

Brandin Cooks remains the leader of this offense and right now, he’s the only one who has proven he can win with consistency.

Metchie could also become a solid wideout but as of now, Cooks is the one to watch.