Chargers' Jim Harbaugh reveals early scouting notes on playoffs vs. Texans

Chris Roling | Jan 6, 2025

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Los Angeles Chargers head coach Jim Harbaugh has nothing but praise for the Houston Texans going into the AFC wild-card showdown between the teams on Saturday.

Asked about the NFL playoff bracket-opening matchup after his team’s Week 18 win over the Las Vegas Raiders, Harbaugh revealed that he’s already been scouting ahead on the Texans.

"I've started to look. Defensively, really good," Harbaugh said. "Really good against the run, not a lot of people running the ball on them. They're playing really well on the back end."

Understandably, the subject of Texans quarterback C.J. Stroud came up, too: "C.J. Stroud is really elite. (Wide receiver) Nico Collins is elite. They've got great playmakers, great competitors."

That’s big praise coming from Harbaugh, both because of the quarterbacks he’s worked with over the course of his career and the big names like Patrick Mahomes in the AFC West right now.

If nothing else, consistently sparring with elite quarterbacks in the AFC will put the Chargers in a comfortable spot against Stroud, who slightly regressed as a sophomore while throwing for 20 scores and 12 interceptions.