For the next few weeks, eDraft will be running a series of articles previewing where each NFL team stands heading into the 2013 season. You can go ahead and use these pieces of work as the season progresses to get what you need to know about teams around the league. 

The first in this set of 32 articles will focus on the reigning AFC South Champion Houston Texans, who are looking to take the next step towards elite status in the conference. 

Quick 2012 Review

After starting out the season with an 11-1 record, Houston flamed out towards the end of the regular year; losing three of its last four games. Its loss against the Indianapolis Colts in Week 17 cost the club a shot at a first-round bye and homefield for the divisional round. After defeating Cincinnati in the wildcard round, Houston went down to New England 41-28 in the divisional playoffs. 

For head coach Gary Kubiak and Co., it was a bitter end to what was once a promising season. 

Quarterback Matt Schaub might have earned a Pro Bowl appearance, but he never made it past the game manager type that we had seen in the past. Running back Arian Foster struggled a bit down the stretch after leading the league in rush attempts for the second time in his career. 

Houston fully expected to take the next step and start contending with the Patriots of the world, but it just never happened throughout what has to be considered a disappointing season. 

Schedule Analysis

Houston has seven games against teams who made the playoffs last season, including two against the division-rival Indianapolis Colts. In addition, Houston must fave the two teams that squared off in the Super Bowl just a few short months ago. In terms of strength of schedule, the Texans rank 27th in the NFL, mostly due to games against Jacksonville (two), Oakland and Arizona. Make no mistake about it, however, this isn't going to be a soft seash schedule wise for the Texans. 

Offensive Outlook

As I indicated before, Houston's offense runs through Arian Foster. The talented running back may have put up some ridiculous numbers over the past three-plus seasons, but he now has a lot of mileage on those tires. He has over 1,100 touches since the start of the 2010 season. In order for Houston to keep him fresh throughout the course of the season, it will need Matt Schaub and the passing game to step up. That's a primary reason that Houston went out there and selected wide receiver DeAndre Hopkins with its first-round pick this past April. 

Hopkins will act as that complimentary receiver that Andre Johnson has never had in his NFL career. This should open up for Johnson on one side. Not only that, Hopkins will find himself seeing one-on-one coverage with one of the best receivers in the game opposite him. 

As it relates to the running game, Foster will be helped by the return to health of one Ben Tate, who missed five games due to injury last year. He rans the ball just 65 times in 2012 compared to 175 times the previous year. 

Despite going through a massive overhaul along the offensive line, Schaub was sacked just 27 times last year. This is a great sign considering that he's pretty much a statue back there. Youngsters such as Brandon Brooks and Derek Newton, who will be holding down the right side of the line, should also be improved from a season ago. 

Defensive Outlook

The addition of future Hall of Fame safety Ed Reed could be huge here, but if any Texans' fan is expecting the Reed from five years ago; they are going to be sorely mistakend. While still acting like a quarterback of the secondary, Reed surely has slowed down during the backside of his career. 

One of the major focuses heading into camp will be the return to health of Brian Cushing, who missed 11 games due to injury last year. He's an important cog at left inside linebacker and recorded 120-plus tackles in two of his first three seasons. Considering that Houston runs a 3-4 defense, his presence there is that much more important. 

On the other hand, J.J. Watt has been a dynamo since being selected in the first round of the 2011 draft. He recorded 20.5 sacks and a ridiculous 16 passes defended last season. In short, Watt was the best player in the entire National Football League last year. Yes, that includes Adrian Peterson. 

The interesting thing here is that Watt recorded nearly half of Houston's sacks last year. He is going to need help from Whitney Mercilus, who should improve on a six-sack rookie campaign. 

Houston ranked ninth in scoring defense last year.