Marc Vandermeer

Things I'll look for when the schedule comes out.

1. The Opener

It's important because it's the next game. And you definitely want to know if it's at home or on the road. The DeMeco Ryans era has kicked off with three straight road openers.

It's often a divisional opponent, but not the Titans. The Texans have opened against the Jags and Colts several times. But never the Titans. Maybe that changes this year.

2. When do we see the Colts!

They are the all-time Texans villains. And even though we've seen phenomenal results against them in the Ryans era (5-1. Wow!), I will never forgive them for going 16-2 against Houston in the Peyton Manning era. This, to me, is always the AFC South matchup to be most concerned with. Except maybe this year because of

3. The first Jags match up

The Texans split with Jacksonville in 2025, including the 19 point barn-burner comeback. But both teams ran the table in the regular season after that and the Jags hung on to win the division. It's payback time.

4. The Cowboy game

Being the 25th season, the league has a chance to do what's right and put Dallas in Houston on opening day, as they did in 2002. We all know how that turned out and we need to see it again. Let's make it happen, Roger!

5. Primetime Games

Coming off a 12-win season, Houston should see plenty of primetime or 'stand-alone' games (as in a late season Saturday). Dates with Dallas, Buffalo, Baltimore, Philly and Green Bay are prime candidates to get the national spotlight.

6. What's the road situation like

If my wish to have Dallas come here on opening day comes true, that leaves only seven more home games for the season. The NFC gets nine home tilts this year and the Texans have to go to Philly, Washington, Green Bay and AFC stops at Pittsburgh and Cleveland, plus the division.

You want to avoid three road dates in a row. You might also get an international game. I'm less concerned about cold weather possibilities after seeing that this squad took care of business on cold nights in Kansas City and Pittsburgh last year.

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Coaches will tell you that you never know how a schedule will play out. And they're right. Injuries and other issues play a big part in how the games will look when their dates arrive on the schedule. But it's too tempting to not zoom in on the meaning and magnitude of each date on the calendar.

Even though we already know the opponents, it's magical to get the order in which the Texans will play them.

When does this thing come out again?