Pittsburgh Steelers

Pittsburgh Steelers

Bowen: With Nico Collins (concussion) out, Christian Kirk, who had 144 yards receiving in the wild-card win over the Pittsburgh Steelers, Xavier Hutchinson and rookie Jayden Higgins will move up as targets for quarterback C.J. Stroud. With a Houston rushing attack featuring Woody Marks and a heavy zone-scheme approach, the Texans can mirror the pass game to set up play-action throws for Stroud, as they will have to generate explosive plays down the field.

"I'm not going to say, 'Well, we're going to take a couple of years to figure this out and then we'll try to compete,'" Rooney said. "I think you try every year. Some years you have the horses to really get there. Some years you don't, but you try every year, in my view."

For it to end like that sucks, and I want to do better. Unfortunately, the nature of the job is you have makes, and those are awesome, and unfortunately, you have misses, and for that to happen tonight sucks.

The Patriots' second-round pick in 2020 had become a prominent part of their defense over the five years he was part of the team, which earned him an extension last offseason. But a rough 2024 season, plagued by a misdiagnosed injury, hurt his chances of remaining on the roster under Vrabel, and he wasn't able to prove his value to the team with the opportunities he was given.