HOU Derek Stingley Jr.
NFL player. Position: CB. Team: HOU.
Quick Facts
- Position: Cornerback (CB)
- Team: HOU (Houston Texans)
- Experience: 3 seasons in NFL (since 2023 as first overall pick)
2026 Outlook
Stingley Jr. is a foundational piece of Houston's elite defense entering 2026. He pairs with star edge rusher Will Anderson Jr. to anchor a unit that finished 2025 ranked top-3 in the league. The defense is built around Stingley's exceptional coverage skills and ballhawking ability in the secondary. Head coach DeMeco Ryans expressed high confidence that "offenses are going to struggle" against this unit, with Stingley as a core component. (per Texans elite defense — offenses will struggle)
The Ringer's cornerback archetype analysis ranks Stingley as the league's second-best cornerback behind only Patrick Surtain II, classifying him as "The Zone Hawk"—a ball-hawking corner with elite turnover production. Over his four-year career, Stingley has forced turnovers at an elite rate: 66 total balls (interceptions or deflections) in just 54 games. He had multiple games last season with no receiving yards allowed and the lowest yards per target allowed in zone coverage. Quarterbacks have just a 55.1 career passer rating against him. The challenge heading into 2026 is whether Stingley can maintain his elite ball production while being paired with CB2 Kamari Lassiter (per The Five Archetypes of the Modern NFL Cornerback - The Ringer)).
Role / Depth Chart
Starting cornerback for Texans defense.
Injury Status
(none reported)
Recent News
- 2026-09-02 — NFL Trade Rumors: Did Steelers’ ‘clear message’ push Joey Porter Jr. toward a holdout... (NFL Trade Rumors: Did Steelers’ ‘clear message’ push Joey Porter Jr. toward a holdout...)
- 2026-05-05 — Houston Texans 2026 Post-Draft Roster Tiers (Houston Texans 2026 Post-Draft Roster Tiers)
- 2026-03-08 — Texans 2026 offseason predictions for free agency, trades & NFL draft (Texans 2026 offseason predictions for free agency, trades & NFL draft)
- 2026-04-23 — Houston Texans 2026 Pre-Draft Depth Chart (Houston Texans 2026 Pre-Draft Depth Chart)
- 2026-05-15 — Indianapolis Colts 2026 schedule: Pressure’s on from the start - The Athletic (Indianapolis Colts 2026 schedule: Pressure’s on from the start - The Athletic)
- 2026-06-11 — How Texans' 2026 defense plans to be as good, if not better than 2025 unit (How Texans' 2026 defense plans to be as good, if not better than 2025 unit)
- 2026-06-10 — Outlook against Texans’ elite defense? ‘Offenses are going to struggle’ (Outlook against Texans’ elite defense? ‘Offenses are going to struggle’)
- 2026-06-10 — Texans elite defense — offenses will struggle (Texans elite defense — offenses will struggle)