McCaffrey is the NFL’s second-leading rusher three weeks into the season, with 318 yards on the ground and 5.4 yards an attempt.
He was electric in the Panthers’ first win of the season, a 38-20 victory over the Arizona Cardinals. McCaffrey had 153 yards on the ground on 24 carries and a touchdown.
True to form, McCaffrey was also an asset in the passing game, catching three of his four targets to add another 35 yards from scrimmage.
Texans head coach Bill O’Brien on Wednesday said McCaffrey is “a great player” who the Panthers are using all over the field, both running and passing.
“They do a lot of different things with him. He’s a very strong player, very smart player, hard to tackle, good hands, good vision,” O’Brien said. “Just a really competitive guy that’s a big challenge for us.”
The Texans struggled with a similar player in the season-opening loss to the New Orleans Saints.
Alvin Kamara averaged 7.5 yards a carry on what is usually stout Texans defense against the run. Kamara also had seven catches for 72 yards in the passing game.
Houston is looking for a much different result against McCaffrey, who JJ Watt acknowledge is very difficult to stop.
"He can line up anywhere and do all sorts of things and they try to get him the ball any chance they can," Watt said. "So he's obviously a major key to their offense and very, very good player."
Panthers head coach Ron Rivera said it’s going to be important to put the running back in situations where he can make plays, which mostly just means calling his number.
“We’ve got to get the ball in his hands and that’s probably the biggest thing when you watch the way he does things and his ability to make things happen,” Rivera told reporters Wednesday. “He’s a guy that you want to have in a situation where he’s got the ball.”
The Texans (2-1) and Panthers (1-2) kick off at noon Sunday at NRG Stadium.