MNF - Costly Win for Texans

Note: No column last week due to overload at work. But a few brief words on the game.  Titans are a shell of a team.  Texans dispatched them with easy although allowing Chris Johnson to run amok but causing no damage.  Defense returned two INTs for TD.  Much maligned CB Kareem Jackson earns Man of the Match for his outstanding play that included a TD. 

T-E-X-A-N-S BEAT J-E-T-S

The Texans to the national stage versus the NY J-E-T-S on Monday Night Football and came away from the teams first ever win over the Jets.  The game produced some nerves moments as the pesky NY team refused to go away.  Just when it appeared the Texans would deliver a knock out blow, the Jets glanced it away and delivered a counter.  In the end, JJ Watt again altered a game enough for the Texans to squeeze out the W.

The Texans opened the game with a precise workman like drive to take a 7-0 lead.  It looked like the Texans would slice and dice the Gang Green defense with ease, put an early lead and call it a night.  The Jets had other ideas.

After going 85 yards on opening drive, the Texans mustered -3 yards on next two drives that ended with a punt and an interception.  On the flip side, the defense was able to hold the Jets to 4 punts on 5 possessions.  Unfortunately that one possession ended in a touchdown and at the end of one quarter, the game was tied at 7.

J.J. The Magnificent

The Texans were nursing a 14-7 lead toward the end of the half but the Jets were driving for a score.  Watt altered the game in his usual way.  Mark Sanchez dropped back to pass and saw two wide open Jet WRs in the endzone.  Sanchez slings the pass but it never makes it past the outstretched paws of Watt.  Watt saved a TD and a Texans lead.  The drive ended on another tipped ball, this time I think it was Connor Barwin, that lead to a Brice McCain interception.  McCain nearly returned it for a TD but was caught from behind.  The Texans settled for a 17-7 halftime lead.

Special Teams Woes

The Texans extended the lead 20-7 and appeared to be cruising.  On the kick off following the FG, the special teams allowed the Jets to return it for a TD.  I said it before and I'll say it again, special team touchdowns are free points.  No effort by the other team except out running the coverage and no time off the clock.  The game was now a bar room brawl.

Besides the touchdown return, Trindon Holliday's decision making continued to be an issue.  He fielded a few punts he should have let go but his most egregious error came at the end of the game.  After the Jets 4th quarter field goal, Holliday took the kick off out of the endzone.  Instead of the 20, the Texans had to start at the 11 with the game on the line.  9 yard may not seam like a lot but in a game this close, inches matter.

Holliday was subsequently release this week.

Special teams were not all bad.  Punting continues to be a strength in turning the field.  And that was needed considering Holliday's poor judgement.  The kick off return team also recovered a surprise onside kick by the Jets.  Shayne Graham was perfect from on his field goal attempts.

Final Thoughts

The game wasn't without cost.  Linebacker Brian Cushing was lost for the season with a torn ACL. He'll undergo surgery in a few weeks after swelling goes down.  While it is a costly injury, those clowns saying season is doomed need to calm the hell down.

 

The meat of the schedule is coming up with the Packers, Ravens, Bills and Bears coming up next.  Fortunately, the first three on that list come at home.  While it won't be easy, if the Texans can get at least 3 out of 4, they will move to 8-1 and nothing short of disaster will keep them out of playoffs.  The next 4 out of 5 are home games.  That means the last they finish with 4 of 6 to close out the season on the road.

While the final 6 sound nasty, I have supreme confidence in this team.  This isn't the team of old.  This year they not only have the physical talent but the mental toughness too.  A safety and a bad start in Denver might have caused an old Texans team to fold up like a cheap tent.  A momentum swing on the road like a kick off returned for a TD might have cratered a previous version of the Texans.  Not this year.  It's a team that knows how to overcome adversity and finish off an opponent.

Co-Man of the Match

This is the first time I recall naming to players to Man of the Match but it is deserving.

JJ Watt.  Need I say more?  A TD saving swat at near the end of the half and a late sack that knocked the Jets out of field goal range.  The man continues to change the course of games.

Arian Foster - 152 yards rushing on 29 carries and a touchdown.  Much has been written concerning the ton of carries Foster is getting.  I think with Ben Tate returning the Texans will start to give Foster more rest and save him for later in the season.

Friends, Houstonians, Texans Lend Me Your Ear - Matt Schaub

Texan Toughness

Remember when Matt Schaub was fragile?  Remember when the Texans were a finesse team? Remember when the Texans were a soft team?  At least they were branded with those labels by the national media.

Yes Schaub missed games in three seasons.  Conveniently the media forgets that Schaub played the whole seasons in 2009 & 2010.  Last year's injury was one of those freak things.  Fat Albert fell on Schaub's foot on a sneak and ended his season.

After last Sunday's game in Denver, Schaub earned the label of tough guy.  For those of us who have been watching, we know better.  Schaub takes beatings and gets back up.  Remember the Jags road game in 2009?  I think Schaub proved his toughness in that game.  It took Schaub losing part of an ear on a nationally televised game to convince the rest of the world he's a tough man.  So let's just move on from and never question Schaub's toughness.

Mental Toughness

The Texans put the finesse tag to rest last year with the rebirth of the defense from the disaster of 2010.

Still, it was great to see the Texans overcome a terrible first play.  The Broncos punted and put the ball on the two yard line.  On the first Texans snap of the game, Elvis Dumervil sacked Schaub for a safety.  First year starter at right tackle Derek Newton whiffed on his block.  On the ensuing possession, the Broncos scored a field goal for a 5-0 lead.

In the past, the Texans might have cratered with such a negative start.  There was something to the fact that they were rattled easily.  Couple a bad first series with a road game, the Texans needed a strong response.  On the second possession, the Texans delivered a punch that pretty much set the stage for the rest of the game.  Schaub hit the baddest man in the NFL Andre Johnson for a 60 yard TD bomb.  It was a beautiful play with Schaub hitting Angry Dre in stride.

The defense flustered Peyton Manning for most the first half.  While Texans were scoring TDs, the Broncos possessions went punt, FG, punt, punt, FG, punt.  Anytime you can keep Manning's offense out of the endzone, your day is going well.

The third drive by the Texans was their typical manly clock eating drive.  It went 98 yards in 14 plays and 7:05 minutes time of possession.

The quick strike offense punched the Broncos defense again when Schaub hit Kevin Walter in stride for a 52 yard TD.

When the half ended, the Texans turned a 5-0 deficit into a commanding 21-11 lead.

Manning Never Out of It

The Texans managed to tack on 10 more points in the 3rd quarter which would prove necessary.

To start the 4th, it looked like the Texans were going to embark on one of their will imposing, epic touchdown drives.  They were moving the ball and bleeding clock until Ben Tate fumbled on the 7th play of the drive.  

Give Manning a fumble and he'll take a mile.  That was the opening Manning needed.  Two plays after the fumbled, Manning hit Brandon Stokely for a 38 yard TD and only used 31 seconds.

After a Texans three and out, Manning pulled the Broncos within 5 points.  The only positive is they used over 8 minutes to do it.

The Texans finished off the job by chewing up most of the last three minutes of the game and leaving Manning just 20 seconds to pull off a miracle.  But he couldn't.

Offensive Line Right Side Concerns

Last week RG Antoine Caldwell started losing snaps to rookie Brandon Jones.  The rotation continued in Denver.  Now RT Derek Newton lost snaps to Ryan Harris.  I read somewhere, I can't find the source, that Harris played the last four series of the game.

In my opinion, Caldwell is on the verge of losing the starting job.  I've never been impressed with his play. Caldwell is easily moved and he can't get down to the second level on run blocking.  Caldwell will be riding pine by week 7.  

With Newton, I still think he keeps the starting job.  He had a rough game against the Broncos and the Texans needed to close out the game.  Like a relief pitcher, Gary Kubiak pulled his starter and went to the bullpen.  I think we'll see more of the same when Newton struggles but he won't get the hook if he plays well.

While on the topic of the offensive line, I have a few concerns.  First is the number of false starts the whole line had.  I don't have a break down but I remember at least five.  Denver is loud place to play.  I'm sure the team worked on silent counts and what not.  The execution just needs to be better.

The other concern I have is the number of hits Schaub took.  Even Kubiak commented on this issue.  Schaub proved his toughness to NFL fans this week.  However the line needs to keep him clean as much as possible.  He doesn't need to prove how tough he is each week.

Bulls Paraded on Donkeys

Bulls on Parade trampled the Donkeys for 3 quarters.  As tense as it became in the 4th quarter, that does not diminish what the defense accomplished.  The goal is to win the game.  By stuffing the Broncos for three quarters, they put the team in the position to win and withstand a furious comeback.  There is just no way around the fact that Manning will throw everything at a team to win.  He's that talented this late in his career and is a fierce competitor.

JJ Watt continues his bull rush through offensive lines to menace quarterbacks.  Before the game, Watt stated he wanted to sack Manning.  He did.  Twice.  He also added six tackles with four for losses.  The lead bull is a beast.

The defensive backs batted balls away from receivers all game long.  A few of those passes should have been intercepted.  They came away with the win so I'm probably splitting hairs.  However, a great defense needs to get those turnovers.  While it didn't matter much this game it will matter and make a difference between a win or a loss.  Bulls on Parade also forced Manning into a career high 26 incomplete passes.

Another positive is the run defense continues to remain solid.  The Jagoffs tried early to run MJD and failed.  The Donks tried the same theory early but the Texans stuffed the run to a tune of 2.8 yards a carry.  I think some preseason questions about the run defense have been answered for now.

Man of the Match

Matt Schaub wins this weekly award as the best player on the field for the Texans game.  Note I say game because I reserve the right to award the title to an opponent if they out play the Texans.

He wasn't his efficient self with the 60% plus completion rate.  He completed 56.7% but made every throw count.  You can't argue with a TD pass on 24% of his completions or a 9.7 yard per pass average.  Schaub finished the game 17 of 30 passes with 4 TDs, 290 yards, 1 INT, 1 sack.  

Final Thoughts

Another well played game for the Houston 11.  The offense put up at least 30 points for 2 out of 3 games.  Last year pre-Schaub injury they were averaging 27 points per game.  Looks like they've picked up where Schaub left off last year.  The average dropped 10 points once Yates took over for Schaub.  I view this game as a national coming out party for Schaub.  He showed the rest of the nation what we in Houston already knew.

While known for the two pronged rushing attack of Arian Foster and Ben Tate, the Texans showed they can  beat a team through the air too.  Don't forget that in 2010 Schaub posted the 7th highest yardage total in NFL history.  Also it is good to see Keyshawn Martin, Garrett Graham and Lestar Jean contribute and make teams pay for rolling coverage to Johnson.  Owen Daniels and Walter also remain a big part of the passing game.

This team is well rounded on defense and offense.  Special team coverage and the right side of the offensive line still are a worry for fans.  Trindon Holliday continues to be a nonfactor.  DeVier Posey will most likely be active this week since Jean is out with injury.  If he contributes or even shows flashes of potential, I see the Texans cutting Holliday and using Martin or Posey as return men.

Bring on the Titans!

Texans Dominate Jags 27-7

Domination

There is no other way to describe the Texans win over the Jacksonville Jaguars.  The Texans dominated both sided of the ball.  The offense held the ball for an unbelievable 43+ minutes.  The defense only played 38 snaps.  

The offense pretty much imposed their will on the Jags defense.  Arian Foster and Ben Tate ran amok on the Jags defense.  Matt Schaub again was quietly efficient with no turnovers.  The Jags shutdown Andre Johnson but the Texans made them pay in other areas.

JJ Watt was JJ Swat again.  This time with two pass deflections, five tackles with two for losses and one and a half sacks.  This was enough to earn him AFC Defensive Player of the Week. 

The Sight Side (as opposed to the Blind Side)

Last week there was some concern for the right side of the line.  Two new starters were installed in RG Antoine Caldwell and 2nd year RT Derek Newton.  They did nothing to distinguish themselves last week.

Some fans worried that the better defense of the Jags would give the Texans a harder time than the Dolphins.  Nonsense.  They whole line stood up well against the Jags supposed quality defense.  The line allowed Foster, Tate and Justin Forsett thunder for 216 rushing yards.  

Rookie center Ben Jones made debut on the first touchdown series.  He played RG in place of Caldwell.  Gary Kubiak has gone to rotation at right guard for now.

I think Caldwell will lose the starting job and revert to back up sometime before midseason.  A few years back, Caldwell was penciled in as the starter in training camp.  As the season progressed, he rotated out with Mike Brisiel.  As things played out, Caldwell lost the job full time.  

I see the same scenario playing out this season.  Kubiak used the same strategy also during Duane Brown's rookie year.  He rotated every third series until Brown wrested the starting job away from Chester Pitts (if I recall correctly). 

Special Teams are Special

When I call special teams special, I don't mean it in a good way.

Trindon Holliday, Shane Graham and Donnie Jones played well enough on returns and kicking.  Holliday had a 36 yard return to give the Texans good field position.  Graham put both FG attempts through the uprights.  Jones flipped the field once or twice.

The blocking unit wiped out a couple of decent Holliday returns with penalties.  Last week I harped on Holliday to get his stuff together.  This week he held up his end of the bargain.  It was the blocking teams that let the team down.  They need to clean up those penalties that kill the return game.

The coverage unit also gives me pause.  Last week they gave up the TD to the Dolphins.  In the 3rd quarter, Jones punted away to the Jags 45 but it was returned to the Texans 37.  Two plays later, Blaine Gabbert found Maurice Jones-Drew for their lone touchdown of the game.

Special teams don't play as many plays as the other two units but they still have a tremendous impact on the outcome.  In a closer game, they make a big difference.

Final Thoughts

With a 27-7 win, it's hard to find fault.  The Texans, for one week, cleaned up the mess on the right side of the line.  The line overall improved.  Obviously, with Caldwell and Jones rotating, it remains a work in progress. 

Watt continues to play like the bad ass that he is.  Not only did he win AFC Defensive Player of the Week but his name has entered the Defensive MVP talk in some quarters.  With only two games played such talk is a stretch.  However, if he continues to play at such a high level for most the season then it possible.  Such numbers for a 3-4 end are unheard of.  I think teams will move more to double cover Watt but that does open doors for the linebackers.

For the record, in this game, Schaub, Foster and Johnson surpassed last years total plays on the field together.

Man of the Match

Ben Tate is man of the match this week.  Foster and Tate are probably the best one-two punch at running back.  The duo put up 244 total yard receiving and rushing.  They also accounted for the three TDs scored.

Tate though made the most of his opportunities.  He only touched the ball 16 times but accounted for 2 TDs, 23 receiving yards and 74 rushing yards.  Not know for his deft receiving, Tate turned a sure loss or stop on 3rd down into a positive gain for first down.  Tate definitely played a special game on Sunday....for that he is my man of the match.

Bring on the Broncos and Manning!