Yahoo Sports Staff Updated Sun, October 25, 2026 at 6:10 PM UTC About Our Ads Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement In this story The New York Giants and Houston Texans will face off in Week 7, with kickoff set for 1 p.m. ET on Sunday afternoon at Reliant Stadium.
The Texans found themselves in a 0-4 hole to start the season but have looked resilient with C.J. Stroud behind center. After reportedly declining a deal "worth well over $50 million per year" this offseason, Stroud continues to raise his price tag with 1,714 passing yards, 9 touchdowns and just 1 interception through six games.
Stroud is also getting another weapon back, as wide receiver Tank Dell is set to return this week from the devastating knee injury he suffered in 2024. And trade acquisition Marvin Harrison Jr. will have another week to settle into the offense.
The Giants made a big-time change ahead of Sunday, opting to start J.J. McCarthy over Jameis Winston at quarterback in Week 7. McCarthy replaced Winston with 11:25 left in the fourth quarter with New York trailing 34-10. He threw an interception on his first drive but quickly bounced back, leading a 17-point fourth-quarter rally that fell just short in a 34-27 loss to the Saints.
Follow along with Yahoo Sports for live updates, highlights and more as the Giants visit the Texans in Week 7, airing on Fox .
Houston now trails New York by just one point.
After a seven-play drive that went 39 yards, the Texans ran out of steam. Kicker Ka'imi Fairbairn came on and nailed a 57-yard field goal.
New York leads 7-6 with 9:03 left in the first half.
Danielle Hunter sacked JJ McCarthy on first down for a loss of five. It was Hunter's fourth sack of the season so far.
Skattebo was stuffed for no yards, and then McCarthy found Devin Singletary for a gain of nine. With the lost yards from the sack, New York opted to punt.
The Texans faced third-and-16 on their own 40-yard line. New York sacked CJ Stroud despite offensive holding.
Rather than accepting the penalty, Giants head coach John Harbaugh opted to decline the penalty to bring up fourth and 16, forcing Houston to punt as the second quarter begins.
After the surprising Skattebo penalty, rookie wideout Malachi Fields made up for the lost yards and then some.
JJ McCarthy got the ball to Fields, who stayed in bounds and took it 47 yards.
The drive stalled downfield at the Houston 38-yard line. New York's rookie kicker missed a 56-yard field goal wide right.
We have seen ball carriers fined this season for lowering their heads on contact, but a flag rarely comes out.
Giants RB Cam Skattebo had a seven-yard gain, but it was wiped off the board as he was assessed a 15-yard penalty for unnecessary roughness for lowering his head going into contact.
Houston was unable to get anything going on its second drive of the game. CJ Stroud had a 3-yard completion to Dalton Schultz, but then two incompletions.
Giants quarterback J.J. McCarthy led New York down the field, even converting a fourth-down attempt.
McCarthy got the Giants down to the goal line. He handed the ball off to Tyrone Tracy who found the end zone for the second time in as many weeks.
Houston gained 20 yards on its first two plays: a 9-yard reception to Dalton Schultz and an 11-yard run by Woody Marks.
The Texans couldn't sustain that momentum, and the drive stalled at the Giants' 40-yard line.
Ka'imi Fairbairn nailed a 58-yard field goal to give Houston a 3-0 early lead.
Tank Dell is back and officially active for Week 7.
Head coach DeMeco Ryans confirmed on Monday that the Houston Texans wide receiver will take the field on Sunday for their matchup with the New York Giants. It will mark Dell's first game back since he went down with a gruesome knee injury in 2024.
"I don't have any expectations, I'm just happy to see him out there," Ryans said, via ESPN Radio's Will Kunkel .
Dell caught a deep pass from quarterback C.J. Stroud in a matchup with the Kansas City Chiefs in December 2024. But as Dell was bringing the ball in, teammate Jared Wayne dove for the ball too and accidentally crashed into Dell's left knee. Dell made the catch, and completed the 30-yard touchdown, but the injury was gruesome.
He had to be driven off the field on a stretcher in what was a very emotional scene at Arrowhead Stadium. He remained in a Kansas City-area hospital overnight and returned to Houston the next day.
The Houston Texans will once again be short-handed in the secondary this week, as safeties Jalen Pitre and Reed Blankenship are both out for Week 7. It's good news for quarterback J.J. McCarthy, who is getting his first start with the Giants over Jameis Winston.
Here's a full look at the inactives for Giants vs. Texans in Week 7:
In the aftermath of a 34-27 defeat to the New Orleans Saints over the weekend, New York Giants running back Najee Harris demonstrated his frustration toward the team's running-back-by-committee approach.
Even though Harris got the starting nod over a "punished" Cam Skattebo , he received just four carries in the loss.
At times, the one-time Pro Bowler was lost for words when speaking with reporters afterward .
"It's hard to get into a rhythm with one or two plays," Harris said postgame, per The Athletic . "… If you're getting a play here and then get taken out for a series, there's nothing you could do. I've never been through none of this before."
Now, just two days later, the 28-year-old Harris is no longer in that situation — because he's been released .
That leaves a three-man rotation of Skattebo, Devin Singletary and Tyrone Tracy Jr. Expect Skattebo to get some actual touches this week, as OC Matt Nagy acknowledged it "was not our intention" to give Skattebo no carries last week.
The New York Giants like what they've seen from quarterback J.J. McCarthy over the past month. Despite trading for the former first-round draft pick less than a month ago, the Giants will start McCarthy against the Houston Texans in Week 7, head coach John Harbaugh confirmed on Tuesday afternoon.
The move comes days after McCarthy replaced Jameis Winston in the team's 34-27 loss to the New Orleans Saints in Week 6.
McCarthy entered the contest with the Giants trailing 34-10 in the fourth quarter. He promptly threw an interception on his first drive.
After that, however, McCarthy was solid, nearly leading the Giants all the way back. On the team's next drive, McCarthy drove the team down the field, allowing Tyrone Tracy Jr. to score on a rushing touchdown. On the drive after that, McCarthy found tight end Isaiah Likely for a touchdown pass.
McCarthy then led the team to a field goal, cutting the Giants' deficit to seven points with just over two minutes to go. While the team got the ball back with one more chance to tie the game, McCarthy couldn't finish a potential game-tying drive.
He went 11-of-21 passing for 243 yards in the loss, with one touchdown and one interception.
Source: Sports
0 Comments