We are about a week removed from the release of the NFL’s 2023 regular season schedule, and we’ve broken the actual football part of the schedule — the ins and outs of where the games will be played, what it means to the division race, and betting lines on the games — in great detail. Now comes the fun part, Texans fans! Planning your road trips for the upcoming season!
Unfortunately, I don’t get to travel to Texans road games anymore. Prior to 2014, my wife and I went to at least two road games every year. However, I began hosting duties on the Texans postgame show in 2014, and as a result, I don’t travel to road games. We do the pregame and postgame shows in studio back in Houston.
Instead, my wife and I have agreed to a pact whereby, on the Texans’ bye week each season, we pick an NFL game to attend. The schedule this season isn’t great, and the people on my Twitter timeline were very little help in selecting a game:
Fortunately, Texans fans don’t have this issue. Unless your weekends are spoken for, like mine, you can pick any of eight fun road trips to go watch the Texans try to pull off an upset. (Yes, they are underdogs in every road game this season.) Here is my informal ranking of the Texans’ eight road trips based on my criteria for overall quality of the trip — some combination of opponent, stadium, weather, food, and stuff to do outside of game day:
8. Week 5, at ATLANTA
Atlanta itself is a fun city with some good nightlife, and in early October, the weather should be great. However, on game day, weather won’t matter with the game being played in a dome. This is the least interesting of the eight road opponents, by far.
7. Week 18, at INDIANAPOLIS
The divisional games automatically get marked down a few points, because there is no uniqueness with them. The Texans play at these venues every year. Traveling to Indiana in early January is subpar, but a C.J. Stroud versus Anthony Richardson matchup should hold some intrigue.
6. Week 10, at CINCINNATI
I’ve been to Cincinnati a few times in my life, and it’s not really somewhere I care to prioritize, especially with the Texans likely entering this game as a possible double digit underdog. Also, their idea of a delicacy is Skyline Chili slathered over a bowl of spaghetti.
5. Week 1, at BALTIMORE
This is another game that could get out of control on the Texans, as the Ravens have been installed as a nine point favorite. That said, unlike chili-over-spaghetti, I do enjoy crab cakes! Also, this is the first game of the DeMeco Ryans Era, so there is some historical significance.
4. Week 3, at JACKSONVILLE
Jacksonville is the heavy favorite in the AFC South, so this is another game that could be an uphill battle for the Texans. That said, the beaches in Jacksonville are underrated, and the Texans have not lost in Jacksonville since 2017!
3. Week 15, at TENNESSEE
Nashville is the best road city inside the division, with easily the best nightlife of the AFC South locales. Also, the big thing on this game is the likelihood of the Titans wearing the old Houston Oiler jerseys. Things could get awfully saucy between the traveling Texans and the hometown Titans fans.
2. Week 8, at CAROLINA
Bryce Young versus C.J. Stroud! Unless the Texans are a surprise playoff contender, this will easily be the most relevant game the Texans play in the eyes of the national audience all season.
1. Week 14, at NEW YORK JETS
This is definitely the most fun trip geographically, as you can check out the big Christmas tree at Rockefeller Center during the holiday season, go see a Broadway show, and eat a slice of pizza on every corner of Times Square. Also, a chance to try to upset a team with Aaron Rodgers at quarterback is a fun opportunity.
Listen to Sean Pendergast on SportsRadio 610 from 6 a.m. to 10 a.m. weekdays. Also, follow him on Twitter at twitter.com/SeanTPendergast, on Instagram at instagram.com/sean.pendergast, and like him on Facebook at facebook.com/SeanTPendergast.
This article appears in Jan 1 – Dec 31, 2023.
