Texans’ Mario Edwards Jr. thriving in ‘attack style defense,’ lining up next to ‘Cyborg,’ and ‘Terminator’

HOUSTON – Mario Edwards Jr. is proving to be an extremely difficult blocking assignment, busting through linemen to penetrate the backfield.

His aggressive brand of football was on full display against the Pittsburgh Steelers as he recorded five tackles, two for losses, a half-sack and one quarterback hit.

“I felt pretty good about it,” Edwards said. “I feel like I played pretty physical, I went out there and played pretty hard.”

Since joining the Texans, the veteran defensive linemen has been repeatedly told by his coaches that this scheme suits him perfectly.

“Yeah, very much, it is an attack style defense,” Edwards said. “It lets me really pin my eyes back and go. Play fast and physical to the echo of the whistle, kind of like what I am used to doing.

“It is one of those things when you get the call, you get your alignment, you get your assignment, and it is man against man. It is literally you beating your man one on one and getting to the ball. You can never really ask for anything better than that.”

As the replacement for suspended defensive lineman Denico Autry, Edwards is being counted on heavily to make up for his loss of productivity. For now, he’s a starter. And there are scenarios where he could remain in the starting lineup even when Autry returns as the Texans could deploy a four-man defensive line comprised of defensive ends Danielle Hunter and Will Anderson Jr. with Autry and Edwards inside. Currently, Foley Fatukasi is the starting defensive tackle next to Edwards.

The Texans like the way Edwards is playing. All they want him to do is keep it up.

“Mario has been disruptive all camp, and I wouldn’t have expected anything different from him,” Texans coach DeMeco Ryans said. “He showed up, playing on their side of the line of scrimmage and being disruptive. That’s what we need from all our guys up front. I’m very pleased what Mario did.”

With a reputation for his ability to line up on the edge of the defense or as an interior rusher, Edwards has been drawing strong reviews at training camp from the coaching staff. Now, he’ll step into a more prominent role with Autry serving his punishment from the league office.

Edwards plays the game with a head-knocking, hard-nosed style.

“Don’t think, just attack, just go, be aggressive, penetrate, disruptive, that is my style of ball,” Edwards said shortly before the suspension for Autry was announced. “Playing fast and physical to the echo of the whistle. Absolutely, it is attack and put your hands on somebody, man against man, bloody somebody’s nose, just that real aggressive style of football that we like.”

When Edwards signed with the Texans, he had ambitions to start. Signed to a one-year, $2 million deal that includes a $200,000 signing bonus with $500,000 total guaranteed with a $1.21 million salary with $300,000 of it guaranteed for skill, injury and salary cap, plus another $350,000 available in playtime incentives, Edwards could wind up in the opening-game lineup Sept. 8 against the Indianapolis Colts.

“I didn’t know how that was going to play out,” Edwards said. “I kind of left that up to the coaches. I just knew that I was going to come in and give it everything I had and do the best I could and let the chips fall where they fall.”

Edwards Jr. has dominated drills, using timing, power and moves to his advantage.

The veteran defensive lineman has found a comfort zone in Ryans’ aggressive 4-3 scheme. And Edwards, a former Las Vegas Raiders second-round draft pick from Florida State, has drawn a lot of praise from the coaching staff.

Nicknamed ‘Rio,’ Edwards is enjoying playing next to Hunter, a four-time Pro Bowl selection known as Cyborg, and Anderson, last year’s NFL Defensive Rookie of the Year nicknamed Terminator.

“He is just like a Cyborg, he is another machine,” Edwards said. “We have the Terminator with Will on one side, and we got another machine with Cyborg, Danielle on the side. He is a heck of a player, just with his speed and his strength and his knowledge of the game as well. Then just being able to play next to him, learn how to play off of him and things like that. It has been great.”

It’s gotten to a point where it would be surprising if he doesn’t have an impactful season with the defending AFC South champions. Edwards has just been that good.

“The thing that popped off on film is he has twitch, he can really get off the football,” Texans defensive line coach Rodrique Wright said. “I’m impressed with how violent he is. We’re teaching these guys to attack and get off the football. That’s what he has, that makeup of toughness and twitch and flexibility playing off the edge and inside. This is another guy that this front is made for. I told him if you had been in our system the whole time, he would have been lights out. He’s happy to be here and we’re happy to have him.”

Edwards grew up in Prosper, Texas, as the son of former NFL player Mario Edwards, who played four seasons with the Dallas Cowboys as the teammate of Emmitt Smith, Troy Aikman, Michael Irvin and Darren Woodson.

“It has been good,” Edwards said. “I love it here and they have been making it feel real home and this would be great for me. I am three hours away from my home, so this has been a good place to kind of just settle down and call home.

“I started in Texas and my dad played for the Cowboys. So, to be three hours from home is fun. It was a blueprint growing up and being able to go into the Dallas Cowboys; stadium. Specifically, seeing Emmitt, seeing Darren, I have been preparing for this and then some.”

Edwards, 30, played for the Seattle Seahawks last season. The Gautier, Mississippi native has also played for the New York Giants, New Orleans Saints, Chicago Bears, Jacksonville Jaguars and Tennessee Titans.

A former national champion with the Seminoles and All-Atlantic Coast Conference selection, Edwards has 156 career tackles, 21 1/2 sacks, four forced fumbles and six pass deflections. In 15 games and one start last season for Seattle last year, he had 21 tackles, two sacks, one forced fumble, five tackles for losses and six quarterback hits.

With the Titans in 2022, he had three sacks and 11 quarterback hits. He had a career-high four sacks in 2020 with the Bears.

“Mario, a veteran, he shows up intense every day,” Ryans said. “Locked in and asking ‘coach, how can I get better?’ You show up with that mindset, it’s easy for us to coach you. Mario has done a great job for what we’ve asked him to do.

“Little scheme change for him and he’s taken to it well. He’s taken the coaching well. Coach Rod has been doing a great job with him. He just adds to the versatility amongst our defensive line and that’s what we’re looking for across our entire team. As many versatile players as we can have allows us schematically to mix things up a lot.”

Edwards said he’s willing and able to play defensive tackle or line up at defensive end.

“I just see myself as where coach needs me to go and make a play and make it happen, I’m willing to do and ready to go do it,” Edwards said. “It don’t matter to me. I play all up and down the line, wherever they need me to make a play.”

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