In NFL history, only seven teams, including the 2025 Houston Texans, have ever made the postseason after starting 0-3. Of the previous six, only one of those teams — the 1992 San Diego Chargers — even won a playoff game. None has ever won the Super Bowl.
It’s hard to look at this season’s Texans and not think that they have a chance to make history. Houston is the hottest team in football, winning each of its last nine games — including three against fellow AFC playoff teams — to earn the conference’s fifth seed and a road date against the worst of the division winners, the 9-8 Pittsburgh Steelers. The Texans have done all of this despite Joe Mixon and Tank Dell, their top running back and second-leading receiver last season, missing the entire season.
Houston has gotten plenty of contributions from unsung heroes up and down the roster, including a pair of rookies in running back Woody Marks and wide receiver Jayden Higgins. Both will play key roles tonight as the Texans travel to Western Pennsylvania for an 8 p.m. ET date with the Steelers.
Houston is a three-point favorite for tonight’s matchup at DraftKings Sportsbook, with the point total set to 38.5. Below, I’ve detailed my favorite prop bet centered around Higgins.
Best Jayden Higgins Prop Bet on DraftKings Sportsbook
Jayden Higgins 20+ Yards Longest Reception (+157)
The Texans haven’t utilized Higgins much as a possession receiver — his career high is five catches — but once he gets the ball in space, the Iowa State product has been pretty effective. He opened the scoring in Houston’s crucial Week 17 win over the Los Angeles Chargers with a 75-yard bomb on the third play from scrimmage, one of his five 20-yard-catches this season. Of the five Texans pass-catchers with at least 50 targets, he has enjoyed the second-deepest average target, and he’s generated 0.4 more yards of separation on average than Nico Collins, making him a more appealing target for C.J. Stroud on longer throws. He’s also been effective as a ball-carrier: of the 67 players who have been targeted at least 20 yards downfield at least 10 times, Higgins is averaging the fifth-most yards after the catch.
He should have a good shot of getting there against a Pittsburgh secondary that has been pretty gettable by opposing wideouts. This season, the Steelers allowed the fifth-most yards to the position, including the 12th-most yards per attempt and the fifth-most yards after the catch overall. All in all, Pittsburgh has allowed 53 passing plays of 20 yards or longer, tied for the 10th-most in the NFL. The Steelers have James Pierre, Pro Football Focus’ top-graded coverage corner, but he’s likely to shadow Collins for much of the game, leaving Higgins against the more average Joey Porter Jr. Plus, Pittsburgh runs man coverage at the league’s fourth-highest rate, and Higgins has had a higher target share against man coverage than zone.
