The Matchup the Dolphins Must Exploit at Houston

The Miami Dolphins will face the Texans in a key AFC battle in Week 15

Houston Texans offensive tackle Tytus Howard (71) and offensive tackle Laremy Tunsil (78) warm up before the game against the New Orleans Saints at NRG Stadium. / Troy Taormina-Imagn Images

The Miami Dolphins' ability to shut down the Houston Texans offense in their key Week 15 matchup at NRG Stadium on Sunday likely will come down to their ability to disrupt C.J. Stroud and make him uncomfortable in the pocket.

This means the pass rush will have to make its presence felt throughout the game, with the focus on players like Zach Sieler, Calais Campbell and especially Chop Robinson in light of two recent developments.

The first was expected, and that's the Dolphins decision not to activate Bradley Chubb off PUP just yet, meaning whatever help Chubb could provide in the pass rush will have to wait at least another week. And this season the pressure from the edge has come mostly from Robinson, with occasional help from Emmanuel Ogbah and Quinton Bell.

Additional reading:

-- Will Houston remain a house of horrors for Dolphins?

-- Dolphins-Texans national predictions roundup

-- Dolphins-Texans Week 15 game preview

HOUSTON EXPECTED TO MAKE A BIG MOVE ON OFFENSIVE LINE

The other development was a report Saturday from Houston reporter Aaron Wilson indicating the Texans are making a lineup switch designed to help the interior of their offensive line, which has been problematic all year.

Houston, according to Wilson, will be moving starting right tackle Tytus Howard to left guard to take over for Juice Scruggs, who will miss the game because of an injury. Rookie second-round pick Blake Fisher out of Notre Dame will replace Howard at right tackle.

Having Howard inside should help the Texans try to deal with Sieler and Campbell, both having Pro Bowl-caliber seasons, but using a rookie with one career start at right tackle could be dangerous.

Robinson usually lines up on the left side of the defensive formation, which means he'll be going against Fisher most of the game, while Ogbah and Bell match up with former Dolphins left tackle Laremy Tunsil.

The Dolphins' rookie first-round pick has been relatively quiet the past two games after a four-game stretch during which he had all 3.5 of his sacks in 2024 along with seven quarterback hits. He did have a pressure against Aaron Rodgers that forced a third-down incompletion last week.

Houston has allowed its quarterbacks to be pressured on 27.2 percent of their dropbacks in 2024, according to Pro Football Reference, and that's the highest rate in the NFL.

STROUD STRUGGLING TO MATCH ROOKIE SEASON

The constant pressure is a big part of the season Stroud hasn't quite been able to take another step after his impressive rookie season. Stroud's passer rating has gone from 100.8 as a rookie in 2023 to 87.9, with his average per completion down and his interception percentage up.

Stroud has two 300-yard passing performances this season, the second coming in Week 5 in the Texans' 23-20 victory against the Buffalo Bills. That game, incidentally, was the one that Fisher started.

Stroud was sacked only once that game, matching his season low, and was pressure on 19 percent of his dropbacks (third-lowest).

The Dolphins will need to harass him, get to him and sack him more than that Sunday, and it will be up to Sieler, Campbell and maybe even more so Robinson to take care of that.