If you're a statistical nut like me, Football Outsiders is such a great resource for football. Their weekly DVOA updates are also great reading, especially when the Texans are featured prominently, like they are this week.
↵Turns out, Houston's stomping of Tennesee was more than just a much-needed boon for Houston fans, it was the best single-game DVOA total of the season. Aaron Schatz breaks down all the reasons why in this article, but let's jump to the gist of things and why Houston beat out the Saints for this title:
↵↵↵The Saints also get dinged by opponent adjustments. The Colts are one of the worst teams in the league. The Titans, once you combine their early success with their recent slump, come out at exactly average. So there's a big difference between VOA and DVOA for the Saints, and almost no difference for the Texans.
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That's why Houston totaled 122 percent and jumped into the top 10 for the season. That's a move of eight spots for Houston from No. 16 last week up to No. 8 this week. They're also listed at No. 7 in the DAVE rankings, which take into account preseason projections. That means Houston is sitting comfortably as a playoff team both in the standings and in the objective rankings.
↵The only other note I'd make on this is that Houston's special teams ranks No. 5 in the league. I'm not sure they'll be able to maintain that without Danieal Manning, but it's certainly been a good thing early on.
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