HOUSTON -- It was Week 11 against the Arizona Cardinals.
Cardinals quarterback Kyler Murray threw a deep pass to wideout Marquise Brown that looked destined for a 53-yard completion. The speedy Brown had a step on his man, but Houston Texans cornerback Derek Stingley Jr. stuck one hand out as the ball arrived and snatched it from Brown for the interception.
Stingley was rushed by a mob of teammates to celebrate his first interception of the season. Among the applause, the 2022 No. 3 pick was silent.
"I didn't say a word," Stingley told ESPN. "I was still trying to figure out what to do. So I ain't say much."
Some cornerbacks would have used that opportunity to boast or trash-talk. But Stingley's personality is the opposite. He isn't braggadocious and believes trash-talking is "pointless" for him.
He also just isn't good at it.
"I don't really know how to trash-talk," Stingley said while smiling. "I wouldn't want to be like that. That's way outside [my personality]. It's the polar opposite."
Stingley's reserved personality might have helped his play, as the second-year cornerback is fifth in Pro Bowl voting and second in the AFC despite missing seven games with a hamstring injury. He stays away from the common theatrics of the position. He's mainly quiet whenever he's in coverage -- even if he makes a highlight-worthy play -- to help him stay on an even keel.
Like when Denver Broncos quarterback Russell Wilson fired a dart to receiver Courtland Sutton in Week 13 and Stingley leapt in front of the pass to secure the acrobatic interception. Whether it's in practice or a game, Stingley is relatively quiet. Coach DeMeco Ryans views his young corner as an "impact player" and appreciates his calmness on the field.
"He has a good presence about him," Ryans said. "He's calm. He has a really good demeanor, play demeanor about himself. That's what allows him to make those plays."
Despite missing half of the 8-6 Texans' games, Stingley is tied for fourth in interceptions -- with four interceptions in three games -- as the turnovers came in a three-week stretch (Weeks 10 to 12). And since Week 10, he enters Week 16 with the second-highest ball hawk rate (38.5%) -- which summarizes how often a defensive player gets his hands on the ball when targeted -- according to Next Gen Stats.
Despite his quietness, some of Stingley's favorite cornerbacks to study have loud personalities on the field.
Stingley has considered emulating that aspect of players like Jaire Alexander (Green Bay Packers), Jalen Ramsey (Miami Dolphins) and Denzel Ward (Cleveland Browns), but he's conceded that his personality doesn't mesh with it.
"When I see them [celebrate], I think, 'Ah yeah, that looks good.' Then I try to do it, and it doesn't look the same," Stingley said while laughing. "So I just try something simple."
THE TEXANS FIND themselves tied atop the AFC South with the Jacksonville Jaguars and Indianapolis Colts as they are set to host the Browns (9-5).
Stingley and the Texans will have a tough task trying to slow down a resurgent Browns passing attack led by quarterback Joe Flacco, who's third in passing yards (939) since signing with Cleveland and getting the start in Week 13, and wide receiver Amari Cooper, who's 13th in receiving yards (985).
The Texans' offense will face the No. 1 total defense (allowing 261 yards per game) led by a Defensive Player of the Year candidate in defensive end Myles Garrett, who has 13 sacks. Their secondary is led by Ward, who has allowed the third-lowest passer rating when targeted (45.3), so it's no wonder why Stingley is fond of his game.
"We celebrate a lot out there and make a lot of plays," Ward said. "But I'm not the one to talk too much trash out there. "Greg [Newsome] is the big talker for us out of the DB room, so he does most of the talking, and we just all go out there and back it up."
But Stingley's respect for Ward is mutual for the 2018 No. 4 overall pick.
"Stingley, he's a great corner," Ward said. "I've been checking him out as well. I seen four interceptions this year. Makes a lot of great plays on the ball. Very instinctive player. Looking forward to seeing him match up against our guys and wishing him a great career. He's definitely a great player."
Letting his play do the talking and garnering notice from his peers is how his father, Derek Stingley Sr., raised him.
"He's sure of himself," Stingley Sr. told ESPN. "He's comfortable in his skin. He knows what he's capable of doing, and he doesn't care for the attention of 'look at me.' ... He doesn't do extra stuff on the field because that's just not the way he's been brought up. I've always said 'You got to conserve your energy. Don't get involved with none of that craziness. If it's not football, don't entertain it.'"
But just because he doesn't really talk to his opponents, it doesn't mean he's not listening.
"If you and me are going against each other and you're just constantly talking trash to me, all that's gonna do is make me want to shut you up," Stingley said. "I believe in what I can do whether somebody says something or not. I don't fall into that."
Stingley's views on trash-talking are centered on his introverted personality, which is fitting since, at cornerback, he's periodically isolated in his defensive assignment.
But that's how Stingley prefers it.
If he's not at the Texans' facilities or hanging with teammates or loved ones, he keeps to himself.
Stingley doesn't seek praise or worry about his critics. He recalls during his draft process when he would occasionally open X, known as Twitter at the time, and see folks criticizing his durability or questioning his love for the game. He would laugh, close the app and get back to work, since he viewed it as a complete "waste of energy."
Since Stingley reached the NFL, he has had someone run his account, which is why he has fewer than 100 tweets despite having had an account for years.
You'll rarely see Stingley engaged in social media banter.
"Twitter is an evil world. It is very negative," Stingley said. "It can get like that. I'm not in as much control of Twitter as much as Instagram. Instagram, I can restrict this, block this, whatever. Twitter is like free for all."
Even on Instagram, Stingley's captions tend to mirror his on-field persona. His reasoning stems from his playing days in college.
"One of my best friends is Cor'Dale Flott. We played at LSU together, and I would always ask him for captions," Stingley told ESPN. "And then over time, I tried to veer off and tried to do it on my own. But anytime I post, he'll comment under 'What is this? That doesn't make sense.' So now I don't be knowing what to say. I just leave [the caption blank]."
Even when Stingley's playing Madden with his teammates, he'll rarely talk trash in those matches, even though battles can get intense. A teammate could try to provoke him and he'll usually counter with one or two words like "Crazy" or "Yeah, OK."
ESPN RANKED STINGLEY as the No. 18 recruit in the 2019 high school class. Coming out of The Dunham School in Baton Rouge, Louisiana, he then became an All-American at LSU as a freshman. His six interceptions helped an undefeated Tigers team secure a national championship.
That 2019 season is a big reason Texans general manager Nick Caserio drafted Stingley in 2022. Ryans was the defensive coordinator of the San Francisco 49ers at the time, but Stingley's freshman year stuck out to the first-year head coach.
"Just watching his film from LSU, I remember watching him as a freshman and the plays that he made," Ryans said. "It sticks out because you didn't see many corners just playing man-to-man coverage with the elite balls. There's a reason why the kid was drafted in the top five picks in the draft because of his athletic ability and the things he put on tape."
Stingley's teammates and coaches love his quiet approach to the game and his ability.
"He's special man, he's a generational talent," rookie quarterback C.J. Stroud said on The Pat McAfee Show. "He's the most talented dude on our team by far. Just like, pure athleticism, ball skills, getting in and out of breaks. Offense, defense, whatever you want to say, he's the most talented dude on the team."
Cornerbacks coach Dino Vasso called Stingley's personality "the perfect temperament for a corner" because he stays even-keeled and doesn't allow his emotions to go on a roller coaster -- whether he makes a good play or a bad one.
There was one time during Stingley's career when he had a loud reaction to a play he made. It happened in Week 5 of the 2022 season when he picked off Jacksonville Jaguars quarterback Trevor Lawrence in the end zone for his first career interception. He celebrated in the end zone by running and swinging his arms toward the Texans' sidelines then gave the ball to his dad.
A few days later, when the teammates reviewed the film in a cornerback group meeting, Stingley's interception popped up, and the room hyped him up.
But Stingley's reaction was just shrugs.
"In the moment, for the first ones, I'm always, like, 'I actually did it. That's crazy,'" Stingley said. "But then, I look back at it, and I'm just like, 'Eh, yeah, you put the work in. It was bound to happen at some point.'"
Cleveland Browns reporter Jake Trotter contributed to this report.