After the Texans beat the 49ers, DeMeco Ryans would shout out quarterback C.J. Stroud, citing one of his best games ever.

The Houston Texans delivered an emphatic performance against the San Francisco 49ers, sparking strong comments from head coach DeMeco Ryans.

Houston Texans quarterback C.J. Stroud, right, runs with the ball as San Francisco 49ers defensive lineman Mykel Williams defends during the first half of an NFL football game Sunday, Oct. 26, 2025, in Houston. Credit: AP/Eric Christian Smith

DeMeco Ryans had instant success as an NFL rookie in Houston. 49ers coaches Kyle Shanahan, Robert Saleh and Johnny Holland got a first-hand look.

DeMeco Ryans first became a coach for the 49ers in 2017, working directly under Robert Saleh. It didn't take long for Saleh to realize that Ryans would excel as a coach.

So why didn’t Texans coach DeMeco Ryans tell kicker Ka’imi Fairbairn to kick off out of bounds? Ryans said after the game that he did, but Fairbairn didn’t do it.

Working with Robert, he truly showed me what it takes to coach: the detail, the fine details, the small things that it takes as a coach.

"The plan at the end of the game was kicking the ball out of bounds so we could utilize the two minute and then had a timeout," coach DeMeco Ryans said. "And we did not execute that. Again, just goes to the entire game. Frustrating that we're not executing the things that we're coached to do."

C.J. Stroud opens up about faith, team unity, and staying grounded after Houston's first win in Baltimore. Full press conference from Week 5. No opponent talk—just self-scout, development, and the plan for the next quarter of the season.

This article was originally published on www.si.com/nfl/texans as Texans’ DeMeco Ryans, Nick Caley Sound Off Amid Growing Questions. It's pretty hard to dance around the emerging scenario that's playing out within the inner mechanisms of the 2-4 Houston Texans.