Texans corner Derek Stingley Jr. locked in on interceptions, not Sauce Gardner comparisons: ‘I believe in me’

EAST RUTHERFORD, N.J. – The vision and instincts are rare. The athleticism is uncommon. And the way Derek Stingley Jr. sees the game of football is beautiful in how he doesn’t overcomplicate the process of his job: locking down elite wide receivers and taking away his half of the field.

All of those qualities were on display during a textbook impact play last Sunday against a Super Bowl winning quarterback. When Denver Broncos quarterback Russell Wilson attempted to go deep to imposing wide receiver Courtland Sutton, Stingley was roughly six yards away with the pass soaring through the air at NRG Stadium.

His teammate, safety Jalen Pitre, had reacted to a slant fake and Sutton was momentarily wide open. Stingley had his back, though, closing ground fast and ultimately jumping the passing lane for a leaping interception that left many in wonderment.

It was the kind of play that Stingley made routinely during his consensus All-American freshman year at LSU. It was exactly what Texans general manager Nick Caserio and former coach Lovie Smith envisioned a year ago when Stingley was selected third overall, one pick before the New York Jets picked future All-Pro and NFL Defensive Rookie of the year cornerback Sauce Gardner. And Stingley is playing the kind of football, mirroring receivers’ movement, reacting explosively and intercepting throws, that he played during his storied freshman season.

Now that Stingley has recovered from a hamstring injury that sidelined him on injured reserve for six games this season after landing on injured reserve with a different hamstring injury as a rookie for the final eight games of last year, he’s thriving. Stingley Jr. intercepted Wilson twice on Sunday and was named the AFC Defensive Player of the Week for the first time. He leads all NFL players with four interceptions during the past three games, intercepting at least one pass per game in this torrid span.

Inside the Texans’ locker room this week, Stingley wore a hoodie and smiled almost as if he was in on a private joke when asked about his series of breakthrough comparisons. That’s because his confidence has been unfazed by the interruptions of his playing time due to a few minor injury setbacks. He’s dealt with it all through a prodigious work ethic nurtured by his parents, including his father, Derek Stingley Sr., faith and a strong belief that he would ultimately rise to the top. Through it all, Stingley has maintained a low-key, humble personality. He’s a man of actions, not words.

“I mean, I feel like my teammates always knew,” Stingley said. “I knew. I just believe in me. I know I put the work in and my teammates put the work in. I mean, it’s nice, but still got a lot to clean up on. It’s always a lot to improve on.”

Signed to a four-year, fully guaranteed $34.657 million contract that included a $22.385 million signing bonus, Stingley represents the prototype cover corner at 6-foot, 190 pounds with 4.37 speed in the 40-yard dash. He’s actually much faster than that clocking, but was coming off a Lisfranc sprain foot surgery.

Stingley is tied for the NFL lead with 0.67 interceptions per game played this season. He has allowed just 12 catches on 24 targets for 161 yards, 6.7 yards per target for an opposing quarterback rating of 46.0, 114 air yards and 47 yards after the catch. He has eight passes defended and now has five career interceptions.

When the Texans hired a defensive coach in DeMeco Ryans last winter, he was excited to start working with Stingley, who has elite cover skills and is always hungry to work and gain more knowledge about the game.

“With Stingley, my first interaction with him was all positive,” Ryans said. “I know he was battling back from injury but seeing a young man who’s here every day in the offseason working, working for this moment, and it shows. It’s showing up now. He put the work in during the offseason. When not too many other people were around, Stingley was here grinding, and that work is showing up. So, really encouraged and pleased with Stingley and the work he’s put in. To see it all come to fruition, it’s really cool to see him work, work, work. Now he’s getting the attention, he’s making some plays, but he’s always had that in him.”

Before the Texans drafted Stingley, a former Chicago Bears colleague of Smith, who was dismissed after one season, predicted the AFC South franchise would wind up picking him. “He has all the traits,” the retired NFL employee said. “He’s got it all.”

Few players have the speed and command of the field that Stingley possesses or his acumen about the game.

He’s anticipating quarterbacks’ throws and pouncing on their mistakes. He’s also a willing and physical tackler.

“His athletic ability, it’s rare,” Ryans said. “A guy his size, the strength that he has, the speed that he plays with is rare at corner like that. His route recognition is picking up and he’s able to play smart football, being where he needs to be, then it comes down to him having that confidence to go up and catch the ball. He’s done a really great job of that over the past three weeks.

“To have four interceptions is just, it hasn’t happened in the league. You don’t see that much and he’s just continuing to get better, and that’s what’s exciting about seeing Stingley and the progress that he’s made since he’s gotten back and he’s dialed in, he’s attentive to all the details and he’s seeing success because of the work and the preparation that he’s put in.”

Against the Broncos, Stingley made outstanding adjustments to react to the football and swooped in for interceptions. He picked off one pass that was deflected by teammate Will Anderson Jr.

“He played a hell of a game, man,” veteran corner Steven Nelson said. “That guy is going out there making plays on the ball. That’s really, really encouraging. He got Russell twice.”

Wilson completed zero passes when he targeted receivers in Stingley’s area last week and he has yielded just eight catches over the past three games since being activated from injured reserve and shedding rust in his first game back against the Cincinnati Bengals.

Stingley closed approximately a 6 1/2 yard gap between him and Sutton in the fourth quarter on Sunday when the football was released, according to NextGen Stats. Since returning from his injury he has a minus-16.2 target EPA to rank third and has defensed the most passes in the NFL with eight.

“He’s special, man,” Texans rookie quarterback C.J. Stroud said. “He’s kicked a new gear on since that week he went down after Indy going to Jacksonville. He had a great week of practice, and I remember walking up to DeMeco like, ‘Man, Sting looked great. I’m excited to see him.’ Sadly, he went down at practice. To see him catch that groove again and see him work like he does,

“I’m just proud of that dude. I went to him the locker room, ‘Man, I’m proud of you, bro. No matter what is going on, no matter who has something to say, it doesn’t matter. You are who you are. You’re here in this position because God chose you.’ I’m proud of that dude. He’s going to continue to be great. When you have a corner that can lock down one side, it makes everybody else’s job a lot easier. Proud of that dude, and I know he’s going to keep it going.”

The Texans are 7-5 and currently ranked seventh in the AFC playoff standings heading into Sunday’s road game against the Jets.

Although Stingley won’t directly play against Gardner on Sunday, there are always going to be comparisons between two top-flight players at the same position from the same draft class. Gardner intercepted two passes and broke up 14 passes last season in earning leaguewide recognition. Stingley had one interception of Jacksonville Jaguars quarterback Trevor Lawrence as a rookie and picked him off again two weeks ago.

“The thing I like is he’s playing with confidence, and he’s showing up making plays. Stingley,” Ryans said. “He has been doing this. Everybody wants to talk about Stingley now. He’s been this player. He gets interceptions, now everyone wants to ask questions and talk about Stingley. Stingley has been a consistent player for us. That’s who he has been, and he’s just continued to show that growth. Now, I think everybody is seeing it just because of the big plays, but it’s not surprising with who he is.”

Gardner has a bold, outspoken personality, basically, perfect for the New York market. He’s a lot different from Stingley, a friendly Baton Rouge, La., native who tends to open up more as he gets to know people and they build trust with him.

“For Stingley and Gardner, from my scouting report coming out of the draft, you had both guys top corners,” said Ryans, a former NFL Assistant Coach of the year as the architect of the San Francisco 49ers’ top-ranked defense. “I think any team would be happy to have either guy. When I looked at them, it’s like, ‘Which one would you want? Whichever is the next one that’s available.’ So both guys, I think, have really bright futures ahead of themselves. Two young players who are impact players.

“Gardner has done some great things with the Jets, and Stingley here with us, he’s made some impact plays as well. So I think with both guys, you can’t go wrong, and I’m happy to be working with Stingley and just to see his growth. Week after week after week, to see the growth that Stingley has had, I’m really happy to see where he’s headed.”

Gardner has zero interceptions this season and 11 missed tackles. He’s largely avoided by quarterbacks. He has a 83.4 grade from Pro Football Focus, the analytics site, to rank third overall among all cornerbacks. He has allowed 25 receptions for 225 yards on 409 coverage snaps, giving up 20.4 yards per reception with opposing quarterbacks earning a cumulative 90.4 passer rating.

Stingley has trained with Gardner before and is complimentary of his counterpart.

“He’s got good footwork, he knows where he’s at on the field, route recognition, everything,” Stingley said. “And that goes for every corner that was drafted in our class, too. It’s a lot more people that were drafted. Everybody has their own positives, and you just use those to your advantage in the game.”

Stingley has a 76.7 overall Pro Football Focus grade, ranking 10th in pass coverage with a 79.7 mark.

As Stingley noted, he’ll be squaring off with wide receiver Garrett Wilson, the Jets’ standout, on Sunday he once competed against in high school, not matching up with Gardner.

“I mean, I’ll never be covering him in a game,” Stingley said of Gardner. “When he’s on the sideline, I’m on the sideline.”

Stingley is the third player this season to have an interception in three consecutive games. He’s the only player in the league to intercept four interceptions in a three-game span.

Here’s a different comparison for Stingley: Miami Dolphins All-Pro corner Xavien Howard, the Wheatley graduate who grew up in the Fifth Ward.

Texans defensive coordinator Matt Burke coached Howard previously in Miami and sees some parallels. Especially Stingley’s recovery speed for an interception against the Arizona Cardinals to pick off Kyler Murray on a pass intended for Hollywood Brown.

“It reminded me of a flashback,” Burke said. “Very similar. Similar personalities. Sort of physical corners and that sort of thing, so yeah, there’s definitely some correlation there.”

Whether it’s been his big plays or his renewed health for a playoff contender, Stingley is in a good place.

“I’m glad to be here,” Stingley said. “I’m sure everybody that’s here is glad to be here. We go out there as a team, and we walk back in here as a team. I’m glad to be a part of that.”

Aaron Wilson is a Texans and NFL reporter for KPRC 2 and click2houston.com.