The Texans’ secondary isn’t particularly weak coming in to week 3. However, they do not have the talent to match up against the Pittsburgh Steelers and their young wide receivers.
The Texans will be fielding a secondary highlighted by Justin Reid. He is by far their best defensive back and as a free safety, he can cover the middle of the field and the deep ball incredibly well. However, a depth chart filled with corners of the caliber of Vernon Hargreaves III, Bradley Roby, and Lonnie Johnson will not be able to keep up with the Steelers wide receivers.
I genuinely believe that Bradley Roby is one of the more underrated cornerbacks in the league. However, he can’t cover everybody. JuJu, Johnson, Washington, and even Claypool should be able to take over the game against this secondary. They are far more talented across the board and none of the corners should be able to keep any of their matchups under wraps for the majority of the game one on one. If Ben trusts his guys, something he admitted to not doing in his week 2 interception, he should find that there will be someone open on every play.
With Justin Reid on the back end, I am not looking for the Steelers to force the deep ball today. They should be able to rely on short and intermediate throws, allowing their talented skill players to make plays after the catch, to find a lot of success in the passing game today.
I expect Ben to have a great day today. I don’t see the Texans generating a ton of pressure in this matchup despite playing against JJ Watt. They will have to be mindful of him any time he is on the field, but otherwise, it should be a great day for #7.