Houston Texans 2018 Season

[eagle eye]

I wanted the Texans to win. I really did. There were several reasons for that not the least of which were just the fact I am a fan want the team to win and I have a friend who is a Patriots fan and he was so smug going into the game I just wished Houston could have removed that smugness from his attitude. I guess when you’re good, you’re good and the Patriots are just good. It didn’t help that Deshaun Watson wasn’t good. He was showing a ton of rust in his first game since last fall, about 10 months removed from a torn ACL, so you could kind of give him a pass but man, he really didn’t look good. Bill O’Brien had another notch put in his poor game management gun. Only trailing 14-6 going into the last two minutes the defense allowed the Brady Bunch to march the length of the field to extend their lead to 21-6 thanks in large part to a 31-yard completion to Rob Gronkowski with a minute left in the half left the Pats with a first down at Houston’s 30. There was a huge question over whether that was a catch or not and instead of calling time out to give the replay refs decide O’Brien chose to let it go. A few plays later Brady hit Phillip Dorsett with a TD pass to make a mountain out of what was a molehill lead going into halftime. The defense only allowed two field goals in the second half, but it was just too much to overcome as Houston lost 27-20. They are on the road again next week as they take on division rival Tennessee, who lost to Miami this week. I’m disappointed and it’s only accentuated by the fact the Cowboys and the Astros lost yesterday too.

[eagle eye]

Week 2 is here. Actually is was here on Thursday night with the Bengals and Ravens duking it out. The Bengals are looking like they might be pretty tough going 2-0 so far. That is unless you consider who they beat. The Colts with Andrew Luck playing his first game in 2 years and a Ravens team that looked awesome beating the crap out of a truly awful Buffalo Bills team. I'm glad Cincy beat Baltimore as I'm not fan of the Ravens but enough about the AFC North. I'm here to talk about the AFC South, namely the Houston Texans.

Houston lost to the Patriots by just 7 points last week and that's with Deshaun Watson playing badly. They play the Tennessee Titans later today in a divisional matchup, the first of the season for both teams. Tennessee is coming off that marathon rain and lightning drenched game last week against the Dolphins in Miami. It was a game the Titans lost in the end. I'm not sure if Miami is all that tough but I do know that the Titans lost starting QB Marcus Mariota and Blaine Gabbert was pretty much ineffective. Titans head coach Mike Vrabel said that he expects both Mariota and Gabbert to play. You know what? I don't care because I believe Houston is just a better team and despite being on the road for the second week in a row I feel like Houston will beat Tennessee. I think Deshaun Watson will play much better and I think Houston's defense will swamp the Titans offense. I don't believe the Titans will score more than 10 points and Houston could, could mind you, hang 30 on the Titans.

So, what will the final score be? I think Houston wins 31-10 for their first win of the season.

[eagle eye]

I didn't get the chance to make any predictions this week but if I had I would have said the Texans would be victorious today. So far in 2018 the NY Giants have been way less than impressive and Houston's offense was due to break out. Huh, shows what I know. Nothing sucks more than have having to work on Sunday and you get home and find out one of your team's bit the big one. There is something disfunctional in Houston. Bill O'Brien teams continue to underwhelm. Honestly, even with Deshaun Watson this offense sucks. The O-line is better (on paper) and they have a really nice compliment of weapons but still the Texans can't do jack. The defense does it's best but after 4 straight 3-and-outs in the first half the defense had to be worn out. Houston is a little out manned in the secondary meaning there is one area of the team that needs improvement but, over all, the Texans play pretty good D. All I can say is, if this crap keeps up, Bill O'Brien needs to go. Nobody can blame this on Rick Smith. This is all O'Brien whose best record in his 4+ seasons is 9-7. He has gotten a pass being in a lousy division winning two division titles and narrowly missing out on a wild card when his team went 9-7 three straight seasons. He got a pass last year when it seemed half the team went on IR but everyone is healthy and the Texans are 0-3. The Texans D has given up some things, to be sure, but they haven't been bad especially considering Jadeveon Clowney has been out the past two games. The offense is all Bill O'Brien and it ain't working. I know there are still 13 games left but 0-3 is a deep hole to dig out of. Last week announcers were talking about how slim the odds are for teams starting the season 0-2, I would imagine those odds increase exponentially when you start 0-3. Bob McNair is a notorious for being patient with his head coaches but I wonder if that patience is wearing thin with O'Brien. It certainly has around my circle of acquaintances. I think the statute of limitations has run out on Mr O. What do you think. My dreams of a Texas Super Bowl are being urinated upon already and it's only Week 3. Sheesh.

[eagle eye]

You don't think Bill O'Brien isn't feeling some heat. How can you not when people put up a billboard that simply says Fire O'Brien in Houston. Not much room for misinterpretation there. It's pretty clear that somebody, with money, isn't happy with the Texans head coach. I don't mean to beat a dead horse but the horse isn't really dead now, is he (figuratively speaking - I wish no harm to anyone)? Maybe Bill is better suited to coach in college. He did resurrect the Penn State program after the Jerry Sandusky scandal. Bill is sort of an inspirational guy in that he manages to do his job while he has a mentally challenged son at home that requires A LOT of attention. Maybe the Belichick coaching tree isn't as strong as you would think? Josh McDaniel fell on his face in Denver which included trading up to get Tim Tebow. Matt Patricia is struggling in Detroit and then there's Bill. Scuffing along in Houston. I hate being one of those guys who is calling for somebody to get fired. The man is a human being, he has a family and it would mean he will have to relocate his family. So, I'm not going to be that guy. I hope things turn around for O'Brien and Houston is successful beyond imagination. That's really what we all want isn't it? C'mon Bill, right the ship bro'. You've got the players to do it, let kick start this machine and get going!

[eagle eye]

The slow starts are not uncommon and if you look around the NFL they abound! Green Bay, Minnesota, New England, just to name a few, are all wondering WTF is going on in 2018. I'll bet nobody would have expected these teams to be struggling as much as they are but, at least they have all won a game. Houston will be looking for their first taste of victory today at noon on the road in Indianapolis. Indy is an old nemesis who is experiencing a return to respectability that coincides with the return of Andrew Luck. Still, they are just 1-2 on the season so a win today would at least pull them even with their old foe.

The Texans seem to be suffering from a lack of offense but they aren't the only team so afflicted. In fact, Houston is actually better statistically than 23 other teams! No kidding, Houston is ranked 9th in total offense. Whodathunkit? The problem isn't moving the ball, it's scoring that's the problem. The Rams lead the whole NFL averaging 35 points per game and Houston is averaging just a little over half that scoring 19 PPG. Stats tell us that to win consistently in the NFL you have to score at least 21 per game. By contrast, Cowboys haters can point to the 30th ranked devils from Arlington as down right inept as they average only 13.7 PPG. Only the Arizona Cardinals at 6.7 are more impotent than the "Cowgirls". (You know a life long Cowboys fan like me had a hard time writing that last part.)

On the flip side of the coin Houston is tied for 17th in the NFL in points allowed at 24.7 PPG. A big part of this stat is the numerous 3-and-outs Houston has a bad habit of inflicting on themselves which goes to wearing down a defense. The other part is Houston just needs to get better at playing defense. They have trouble stopping the run and they are only mediocre stopping the pass. It's a simple formula, score 7 more points on offense and allow 7 less points on defense, problem solved. Sounds easy but, trust me, it's not but that the challenge Houston needs to meet or they will be picking high in the draft yet again. It would help if Jadeveon Clowney would get back in the lineup but there are those who feel that Clowney hasn't lived up to being the #1 pick in the draft and Houston should just cut bait with him. When he's on the field he is a good player, the gripe is that he's not on the field often enough. The real problem is in the Texans secondary where the cornerbacks just are too old in some cases and not all that good in others. Houston is solid, if not spectacular, on the first and 2nd levels but the back end needs a definite upgrade. That won't happen this season. The team is what it is now so Romeo Crennel has got to find a way to cope.
On offense Houston needs to figure out a way to get out of their own way. Drive killing penalties, lack of execution and a lack of commitment to the run have been a problem. It would be nice if Deshaun Watson played a little better. It would be helpful if the O-line blocked a little better. Watson has thrown 5 TD passes and 3 picks. Not the INT/TD ratio you would like. Part of the problem is the 10 sacks this revamped O-line has allowed so far. It's just a clear case of Houston needing to play better in all phases. They have a difficult task of trying to win on the road and this will be three of four weeks playing on the road. It's time for Houston to get a road win, heck a win period.

So, what will the final outcome be? I think Houston will rise up and get it done. I feel the final score will be 23-19 for the first win of the season for the beleaguered Texans.

[eagle eye]

I was right about the Texans-Colts game being a close game but I had no idea the Texans defense would disappear in the 4th quarter. The Colts are a division opponent and it generally means the games will be close because of the familiarity with each other but this is the first game in 2 years that Andrew Luck had played. What was evident was that the Colts defense was weak in the secondary. Houston took advantage of that as Deshaun Watson threw for over 300 yards in the game making it 3 games out of 4 he had done that. Houston saw the debut of rookie WR Keke Coutee who came up big for Houston catching 11 passes out of 15 targets for 109 yards. He was everywhere and it was a heckuva debut for him. JJ Watt and Jadeveon Clowney terrorized Andrew Luck for most of the game but when the Texans needed a stop in the 4th quarter to preserve the lead they sort of disappeared. The Texans gave up a game tying drive for a TD and allowed the 2-point conversion to send the game into OT. The defenses woke up for both teams in OT but the teams traded field goals in their first drives of OT. The difference in the game was that Indy head coach Frank Reich decided to go for it on a 4th down at their own 43 with under a minute left in overtime. The Texans held and Watson hit Deandre Hopkins on a catch and run that took the ball down inside the Colts 20. Ka'imi Fairburn hit the game winner as time expired to get their first win of the season in most improbable fashion. So, I was right about the Texans win but who could have guessed the game would go down like it did.

This week, tonight as a matter of fact, Houston hosts the Dallas Cowboys. It's a big game for both teams. Dallas, at 2-2, is trying to keep pace with the Eagles and Redskins in the division and Houston is trying to stay alive in the AFC South. It's an uphill battle for sure when you begin the season 1-3. There is a case to be made that both teams are capable of winning. Both teams won hard fought games in Week 4. Both have some flaws in their offenses and defenses. Houston isn't a good running team but they make up for it passing the ball well. Dallas runs the ball well but they are inconsistent passing the ball. Both teams have talented defenses but the Texans secondary isn't very good at all. The Texans front 7 is pretty darn good with Watt and Clowney leading the charge and their linebackers are a talented group. Dallas front, led by Demarcus Lawrence, is good. Their linebackers are good bordering on great. Sean Lee used to be the key to any kind of success the Cowboys defense had but with the emergence of Jaylon Smith and Leighton Vander Esch, as well as free agent Joe Smith, the Cowboys linebackers are pretty doggone good. The Cowboys are better at cornerback than Houston. 2nd year player Chido Awuzie and veteran Byron Jones have played really well under new DB's coach Kris Richard's coaching. Geoff Heath is solid as the strong safety but free safety has been a bit of an issue so far. There is no telling how good this defense would have been if Dallas had completed a deal to get Seahawks safety Earl Thomas. The Cowboys O-line is a lot better than the Texans line despite the fact that they are starting a rookie at left guard and All Pro Travis Frederick is out with a rare nerve disease. Connor Williams is doing pretty well as a rookie but, his best years will come with a full offseason of weight training. Joe Looney has stepped up and filled in nicely for Frederick but he's no All Pro if you know what I mean. The Texans receivers, TE's and WR's, are better than the Cowboys and the Texans probably have an edge at QB. That edge is lessened or expanded depending on which Dak Prescott shows up for a given game. Dallas will need the Week 4 Prescott to show up for the Texans otherwise it will be a very long night for the Cowboys in Houston. Dallas has the NFL's leading rusher in Ezekiel Elliott and the NFL's leading sacker in Demarcus Lawrence but JJ Watt is 2nd to Lawrence in sacks and Clowney had his best game as a Texan last week.

I'm a fan of both the Cowboys and the Texans but I've been a Cowboys fan a lot longer than I have been a Texans fan so I'm rooting for the Cowboys to win. I hope it's a good game. I don't want to see either team embarrassed. My real dream come true would be a Texas Super Bowl but given their slow start, I'm not sure that Houston can hold up their end of the deal this season. I'm a little different than most Texans fans in that I can honestly root for both the Texans and Cowboys. The majority of Texans fans hate Dallas. I think it's a bit of jealousy because of the Cowboys long term success and the fact they are so popular as a franchise. Houston has always been second fiddle to the Cowboys even when the Texans were better. On the flip side, Dallas kind of knows their place in the NFL hierachy and they don't seem to feel the animosity Texans fans feel. That said, this is a big game for both teams. Dallas could survive losing going 2-3 on the season but if Houston loses and falls to 1-4 it's game over playoff-wise for Houston. The 'fire Bill O'Brien' talk will escalate and the mood around Houston Texans football won't be very good.

This is a hard game to pick because of their respective strengths and weaknesses but, like I said before, I will be rooting for the Cowboys tonight. If Dallas plays like they did against Detroit I think the Cowboys will win a close game. Dallas will need to score at least the 26 they mustered against the Lions, if not more. The Cowboys will need to pressure Deshaun Watson and they will need to generate some turnovers, which they have not been good at so far in 2018. The Cowboys O-line will need to stave off the Clowney/Watt onslaught enough to give Dak a chance to throw the ball downfield to tak advantage of the Texans weak secondary. With all that said, what is the final score? I believe Dallas wins 31-27.

[eagle eye]

I was wrong about the outcome of last week's game. First it was a lot tougher than even I thought. Defense ruled the night and in the end it was Dallas' D that broke. Dallas decided to punt the ball in overtime instead of going for a 4th and a long one. They had the Texans pinned at their own 10 with about 5 and half minutes left in OT. Jason Garrett saw his team fail on 3rd and short several times during the game and he had no faith his team could pick up that 1+ yard to keep their drive alive. With a 2nd and 9 at their own 24 Deshaun Watson hooked up with DeAndre Hopkins on a 44 yard catch and run that gave the Texans a chip shot field goal to beat Dallas 19-16. All this is ancient news except for the fact that Watson, like Dak Prescott took a beating by the opposing defense last Sunday night. There was some concern that Watson might not even be able to play in the overtime period because of a hit he took at the end of regulation. He came back and did what he needed to do against the Cowboys but he was listed as questionable all week during practice but he is expected to play against Buffalo despite a bruise chest and lung.

Houston has seen their defense play lights out the past two weeks as they won in overtime two weeks ago in Indianapolis and came back last week to beat Dallas, also in overtime. Honestly, the Texans should have beaten the crap out of Dallas but the Cowboys held the Texans to 3 field goals, a TD and nothing in 5 trips to the red zone. Red zone hell, 5 trips inside the 5 yard line. Houston needs to ramp it up when they get those RZ opportunities. 19 points won't win enough games to get to the playoffs. Watson threw for 375 yards and a TD and a pick but he needs to raise his TD tosses before Houston's offense really scares anyone. That brings us to the Bills. For 2 weeks Buffalo was the joke of the neighborhood but in two out of the last 3 weeks they have managed to beat Minnesota and Tennessee. It seems like Buffalo CAN muster up an NFL caliber team once in a while. Hopefully, today isn't one of those times. The Texans and their fans had to be emotionally drained after beating the Cowboys. The Texans, and their fans, wanted that game BAD. Did that win cost the Texans too much emotionally? Can they muster up any esprit du corps for the lowly Bills? If they can and they beat the underdog Bills you can bet the Texans will be watching intently at the Cowboys-Jaguars game. After wanting to beat the Cowboys so badly they will likely be rooting hard for a Cowboys win today. If Houston wins and Jacksonville and Tennessee lose there will be a 3-way tie for AFC division lead.

So, what's the story morning glory? What will the outcome of today's game be? I think the emotional drain on Houston from last week's game will cause the Texans to come out a little flat but as the game wears on the talent of Texans will prevail. I believe Houston beats Buffalo 24-19. After a rough 0-3 start Houston will even their record today. All that will be left will be to root for a Cowboys and a Ravens win today.

[eagle eye]

I’ll bet Deshaun Watson wishes the Texans had their bye week this week instead of having to play Jacksonville. The past two weeks have seen Watson take a beating and it looked for all the world that the Texans were going to be playing in their 3rd overtime game in a row when Ka’imi Fairbairn made a field goal with under 2 minutes to play tying the score at 13. Then Wham, Bam, Thank You Ma’am Houston gets a pick six by Jonathan Joseph and moments later a game clinching interception by Kareem Jackson allowing Houston to escape with a 20-13 win over a very tough Buffalo Bills team. The end may have been different if not for the injury to Bills QB Josh Allen who lead the Bills to a 13-10 lead before he was injured. Nathan Peterman came in and threw both picks that ended the Bills bid to upset the Texans at home.
Deshaun Watson was beaten up pretty good against Dallas last week, but he was hit on every single play, or so it seemed. The Bills did not really respect the Texans run game and they sold out by blitzing almost every down. The Bills defense pressured the hell out of Watson and forced the Houston passing game to beat them. It was Houston’s offense that, at least, were forcing the game into overtime until Houston’s much maligned Joseph and Jackson carried the team to victory. The Bills sacked Deshaun Watson 5 times, hit him countless other times and pressured the crap out of him for most of the game. I figure Watson is looking to immerse himself in the Healing Waters of Ka’a. (Big Bang Theory reference in case you didn’t know) because of the mauling he’s suffered the last two weeks. He came into the game with bruised ribs and lung he got playing Dallas last week there is no telling what all hurts on him after yesterday’s mugging. If Watson keeps having to absorb this sort of beating every week his career could end up being way shorter than we would like.
On to Jacksonville next week. A very pissed off Jacksonville team. After being beaten soundly by Kansas City last week they were humiliated by Dallas 40-7 yesterday at the Death Star. On the flip side, KC and Dallas seem to have found the Jags weaknesses on defense and have laid the blueprint for whopping them. The challenge is for Houston to execute the plan as well as the Chiefs and Cowboys did Assuming Deshaun Watson can walk.

[eagle eye]

In about 40 minutes the game between Houston and Jacksonville will begin. If you go with what is logical then you go with he Jaguars because, on paper, they are the better team. But, when you look closer, the gap between them may not be as pronounced as you might think. Houston has the better quarterback, I don't think I will get much of a debate there. Houston has the better receiving corps given DeAndre Hopkins, Will Fuller V and Keke Coutee. I would even throw in Ryan Griffin. The Jags may have a slight advantage since Leonard Fournette is going to be available today. But, it takes Fournette and TJ Yeldon together to make up a full RB package as Fournette is a runner and Yeldon is a third down back when Fournette plays. If Fournette is not a factor then I give the edge to Houston's Lamar Miller. The Houston O-line is not great but they have been playing better. The question is, will they be able to hold up against a stout Jacksonville pass rush? Houston's front 7 on defense is a push with the Jags with the Jaguars back end getting the nod there. The fact that Deshaun Watson is way more mobile than Blake Bortles is a big advantage. I'm sure that Houston saw on film what Dak Prescott did against the Jags front last week. Bortles is a stationary target and it should allow JJ Watt, Jadeveon Clowney and company get a lot of pressure on Bortles. I look for Houston to get a couple of turnovers just on pressuring Bortles alone. Another thing, the DB's for the Jags are better but they have been playing a lot of zone and with the receivers Houston has Jacksonville may need to stay in that zone coverage. As for coaching, Doug Marone vs Bill O'Brien, to me, is a push. This game will be about execution and turnovers. The weather will be beautiful in Florida today so that will not be a factor.

Jacksonville has been humiliated the past two weeks on the road in Kansas City and Dallas and they will be looking to bounce back today in a division rivalry game at home. Could it be that the past two weeks have given the NFL the key to beating the Jaguars? Maybe but it likely isn't going to be as easy as KC and the Cowboys made it look. Houston has dug their way out of an 0-3 hole to get back to 3-3 and one of those wins was against a Cowboys team that opened up a can of whup ass on Jacksonville last week. When push comes to shove I have to fall back on being a 100% homer.

So, what does that mean for Houston's chances today? I'm picking the Texans to finally get above .500 today with a win in Jacksonville. A win today will guarantee Houston will be alone in first place. That is definitely something to root for! Final score: Houston 24 Jacksonville 17.

[eagle eye]

The Texans and Dolphins play tonight as Week 8 begins in the NFL. Both teams have 4-3 records but that record means something different to these teams. Houston’s 4-3 means they are leading the AFC South division by one game over a floundering Jacksonville Jaguars team and the up and down Tennessee Titans. The Titans fell to 3-4 on the season when head coach Mike Vrabel decided to go for a two point conversion in London at the end of the game instead of kicking the extra point to tie the San Diego Chargers and send the game into overtime. The Titans failed on the attempt and they lost to the Chargers 20-19. The Texans beat the Jaguars last Sunday handing Jacksonville its 4th consecutive loss and 3rd straight lopsided loss in a row. The Texans held Jacksonville’s Blake Bortles to just 61 yards passing into the 4th quarter while he also lost two fumbles in the game. He was so bad Jags head man Doug Marone benched Bortles in favor of Cody Kessler who led Jacksonville to their only score of the game. Houston’s offense wasn’t overwhelming, but they were good enough to take a 17-0 lead into halftime and end up with a 20-7 win to take over sole division lead. Houston is in the midst of a 4 game winning streak that has dug them out of a deep 0-3 hole to begin the season. A win over Miami tonight would go a long way toward creating some cushion for that division lead. Jacksonville plays Philadelphia this week and as much as I would love for the Jags to beat the Eagles I don’t see it happening when they are not even sure who their QB will be. Tennessee is on bye and their next game is in Dallas on Monday night to close out Week 9.
On The Blitz last night on ESPN radio Fred and AJ agreed they don’t like Bill O’Brien. Fred Faour went so far to say he hated Bill O’Brien. Neither like the decisions O’Brien has made over his career in Houston and the latest is the seeming disregard for Deshaun Watson’s long-term health. Three and half weeks ago Watson took a beating by the Cowboys that resulted in Watson having cracked ribs and a half collapsed lung. The collapsed lung thing was bad enough that Watson had to go to the Jacksonville game on a bus because severe cabin pressure changes on a plane would have been dangerous to a person with a partially collapsed lung. Faour was worried that he would take a QB that was supposed to be the cornerstone of the franchise for the next 10 years and run him out of football prematurely because he didn’t want to be without his franchise QB for a Sunday or two. Faour’s contention was that O’Brien didn’t give a crap about Watson’s future as long as he was available to play on Sunday. Add to that, the fact Watson has been sacked 26 times and he’s been hit 70 times, both league highs. The next highest “hit” total is 55. Watson is taking a beating and with his injuries he’s got to face a fairly decent defense in the Dolphins who know good and well they need to hit Watson early and often. Assuming Watson escapes this game unscathed he will have 10 days to recuperate before facing the Denver Broncos on the road.
Tonight will be a reunion of sorts for a couple of players. RB Lamar Miller will be playing his old team tonight and Brock Osweiler will be making his first appearance in Houston since he was let go by the Texans after a dismal 2016 season. Miller spent his first 4 years in the NFL in Miami when he elected to test free agency. Houston needed a replacement for Arian Foster and Miller became their guy. Despite poor play by Osweiler, the Texans managed to qualify for the playoffs. The Texans won the AFC South and beat the Raiders in the Wild Card round but they lost to the Patriots in the divisional round. Osweiler was traded to Cleveland after the 2016 season and eventually wound up in back in Denver for the 2017 season. He signed with Miami in the offseason and became the starting QB after Ryan Tannehill injured his shoulder three weeks ago in a game against the Patriots. He has started the past two games beating Chicago in a very impressive performance and losing to Detroit last weekend. He didn’t play badly but Detroit was just better. So, now Osweiler returns to Houston where he was given a huge free agent deal in 2016 and he proceeded to fall flat on his face. He was so bad Houston jumped at the chance to trade him to Cleveland who was just trying to get above their salary cap minimum with the deal. It was a deal compared to the type of deal made frequently in the NBA but was unheard of in the NFL prior to the Osweiler deal. Osweiler so far after 3 appearances and 2 starts has a 1-1 record with a 68% completion percentage, 6 TD’s with 2 INT’s and a QBR of 107. A big improvement since was the starting QB of the Texans. So far in 2018 Lamar Miller is the 17th ranked RB in the NFL rushing for just 371 yards on the season with a 3.9 YPC average. That’s not Miller’s fault so much as an indictment of the Texans O-line which was supposed to be much better this season but, so far, not so much.
Last week I was right about the Texans winning. I love being right! This week Houston is at home with a loud and proud group of fans to urge the home team on. Watson will hopefully be feeling better. O’Brien needs to get his O-line to play better. God knows how he can do that with only 4 days between games but, he needs to protect his QB and try to get more out of the run game. JJ Watt has some issues with his knees but, he should play and this defense needs to continue to dominate for the Texans to beat Miami. So, what does all this mean? What’s the final score going to be? I think Houston will win even though Osweiler will play well against his old team. I believe the final score will be Houston 24 Miami 21.

[eagle eye]

It looked like I was somewhat of a psychic when the score was 14-10 at halftime but the Texans blew the game wide open in the second half. It seemed every time Houston scored the Dolphins responded but when the score was 28-20 Houston started scoring TD's while Miami was just kicking field goals. Also, the Texans offensive line played really well and kept the pocket clean for Deshaun Watson. He responded by throwing 5 TD's on the night. Not only that but Lamar Miller ran for over 100 yards in the game including a 58 yard romp in the 3rd quarter that set up the first TD of the 2nd half. The final score was 42-23 and in many respects it wasn't even that close.

It feels good for the Texans to have a somewhat comfortable 5-3 record after winning their fifth straight game and it probably feels good to open a game and a half lead in the AFC South. The only downside to the night was that Will Fuller V injured his knee late in the 4th quarter and it was announced this morning that he tore his ACL and will miss the rest of the season. It's a big blow for the Texans as Fuller has been a great compliment to DeAndre Hopkins. Fuller has 32 catches for 503 yards on the season with 4 TD's. Last night before he got hurt he had 5 catches for a game high 124 yards including a 73 yard TD pass reception. In 11 games he's played with Deshaun Watson Fuller has 11 TD's in 11 games. Big loss indeed. So, now Houston has 10 days to rest up before they need to travel to Denver to play a struggling Broncos team. One thing, the O-line has played much better. On the broadcast last night Try Aikman talked about the struggles of the line early in the season but it appears after making some needed changes a couple of games ago the line has solidified into a pretty nice unit as evidenced by the offensive success in the past two weeks.

With Dallas off this week I can concentrate on my fantasy football team a lot closer as well as rooting for the injury riddled Browns. I'm still thinking they will win 4 or 5 games this year but it won't like be this week as they travel to Pittsburgh. The Steelers seem to have righted their ship since their Week 1 matchup against Cleveland. The Browns outplayed the Steelers for the most part and should have won if not for lousy play by Browns QB at the time Tyrod Taylor and even lousier kicking by now former kicker Zane Gonzalez. The Browns are a shadow of what they were in Week 1 because of injuries and they are in Pittsburgh. I think Cleveland will lose this game but the Browns will not roll over and die, that's for sure.

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[eagle eye]

Will Fuller V was lost for the rest of the season because he tore his ACL last Thursday against Miami. Keke Coutee has missed time with a injury and Brie Ellington has been out too. So, Houston made a trade with the Denver Broncos. The got WR Demaryius Thomas and gave up a 2019 4th rd draft pick. The two teams are also swapping their 7th rd picks. If Thomas has anything left he should be a nice addition to the Texans roster. The first game Houston plays is this week against the — wait for it — the Broncos.

[eagle eye]

The Texans lost Will Fuller for the season because he tore his ACL last week. Actually, a week ago Thursday and in the mean time they have acquired veteran Demaryius Thomas from the Broncos for a 4th round pick. Thomas is 30 years old, certainly young enough to have plenty of gas in his tank left to be a valuable asset as a receiver, but there had been rumors that the Broncos were looking to part ways with him. Apparently, those rumors were true. The irony of the whole situation is the first team on the Texans schedule following the trade is those same Broncos. You could make this stuff up but critics would call the whole thing contrived, not based on reality. As has been said many times, fact is often stranger than fiction. The great thing about Thomas is his reputation for being a better person than he is a player which over the course of his career is saying something. He is said to be good in the locker room and he will be a person who understands his role in the Texans offense. That role should be pretty substantial given the lack of depth Houston has at WR because of injuries. Currently, Houston has 5 WR's on the 53 man roster and Keke Coutee is questionable because of a pulled hamstring that has kept him out of the lineup the past 2 weeks.

The Texans have had a week of practice, 3 practices and a walk-through, to get up to speed. It should not be rocket science to learn the route trees but getting in sync with the offense and options off his routes, as well as, getting in sync with Deshaun Watson will take time but he should be able to contribute this week. He will get better as each week passes but he should be able to make an impact today. That is certainly the hope. What the Texans really have to worry about is their cornerback situation. Last week, Houston saw pretty much all of their CB's go down with an injury. They finished the game with safeties manning all the positions on the back end. The good thing is, they did a great job of stepping up and they were able to easily beat the Miami Dolphins. This week shouldn't be much different in terms of worrying about the passing game. The Broncos have struggled there with Case Keenum as the starting QB this season. Keenam had a great season in 2017 with the Minnesota Vikings, good enough to earn him a free agent deal in the offseason, but he has been up and down all season. One thing he's done is throw at least one pick in every game so far. One thing Houston has been pretty good at is forcing turnovers and they need to be that again today.

The hidden factor in today's game will be the mile-high altitude in Denver. Deshaun Watson could be affected just two weeks removed from a collapsed lung and bruised ribs. The Texans will need to keep the pocket clean to protect their QB. Fortunately, over the past two game the line has come together to play very well. For two weeks in a row Houston's Lamar Miller has run for over a 100 yards and Houston will really need to be effective running the ball again this week. It won't be easy as the Broncos have two dynamic players on their defensive front in Vonn Miller and Bradley Chubb. Chubb is playing so well he seems to be in every conversation about who will win Defensive Rookie of the Year and Defensive Player of the Year. The Texans will need big games out of their two defensive stalwarts, JJ Watt and Jadeveon Clowney, but Watt is limited as he fights to get back to the form that made him Defensive Player of the Year 3 years in a row. That was 3 seasons ago and injuries have plagued Watt the past two seasons as he tries to get back to All Pro form. Clowney was limited in practice this week with a groin injury and he's listed as questionable on the injury report.

All that being said what will be the outcome of the meeting between the 5-3 Texans and the 3-5 Broncos? Houston has won 5 games in a row after beginning the season 0-3. The thing about streaks is, the longer they last the more likely they are to be broken. I think Houston is better than Denver and they should win but road wins are hard to come by. It may be homer thing to say but, I think Houston IS better top to bottom and they have a ton of confidence right now. I believe Houston will win a close game and fairly low scoring game. So, what's the final score? Houston 22 Denver 17.

[eagle eye]

I'm on a bit of a roll as far as predicting winners. The Texans are 6-0 in their last six games and except for picking the Cowboys way back when I am 5-0! I can't help but toot my own horn now and then but it doesn't hurt to be a homer sometimes. Now, people that was then and this is now and it seems like the Texans have been off for a month instead of just one week. (Aw-oh, steam of consciousness has me thinking about the Barenaked Ladies' 'One Week'.) Okay, I'm back now. In that week the Texans have released RB Tyler Ervin presumably to add depth to their WR corps because they picked up WR DeAndre Carter who was waived by the Eagles. Ervin was a 4th round draft pick in 2016 and he had been used as a 3rd down back and kick returner when he wasn't on the DL. Carter was an UFA signed by the Baltimore Ravens in 2015. In '15 Carter was on the practice squads of the Ravens, Raiders and Patriots. In 2016 Carter spent the season again on the Patriots practice squad. In 2017 he was on the practice squad of the 49ers. In June of this year Carter was signed by the Eagles and he had been up and down on the Eagles practice squad until he was waived by the Eagles on November 7 the Texans claimed Carter after releasing Ervin. It's kind of a weird move since Ervin has so much more actual playing time than Carter. They are similar in speed and both have experience as kick returners. The advantage Carter has is he is an actual WR instead of a RB. Ervin didn't stay unemployed long as the Ravens signed him to their practice squad last week. Carter automatically slides down the Texans depth chart as DeMaryius Thomas has had two weeks to learn the Texans playbook and WR Keke Coutee is supposed to be back from his hamstring injury. It will be interesting to see how much of an impact Thomas will have now that he's had time to become familiar with Deshaun Watson and the Texans playbook.

The key to the success of the Texans, in my humble opinion, is the emergence of the O-line. They have been pretty darn good after starting out the season pretty darn bad. The line, after a little tweaking by Bill O'Brien and his staff has kept Watson fairly clean in the pocket and have paved the way to consecutive 100+ yard games by Lamar Miller. This offense should be pretty dangerous as long as they stay healthy. The Texans front seven has been pretty darn good too. JJ Watt is among the league leaders in sacks and he's looking like the same guy who won Defensive Player of the Year awards three straight seasons. Jadeveon Clowney has also been looking like the #1 draft pick that he was. The real surprise is the defensive backfield of the Texans. Houston was decimated by injuries a few weeks ago forcing the Texans to go will safeties on the back end. Kareem Hunt was moved from safety back to his original position prior to this year at cornerback and he's been amazing. He had the hit of the game on a Broncos RB two weeks ago that was so hard the RB's mom felt it! Houston could start getting some injured players back following the bye but even if they don't they are more than capable of handling the Washington Redskins offense.

The Redskins come into today's game with a very stingy defense. They are top 5 in scoring defense meaning they don't allow many points. Then again, they haven't played anyone as potentially explosive as the Texans in a while. I think that the Texans can score on the Redskins and as long as Houston can contain Adrian Peterson and keep Alex Smith in the pocket, preferably on his back, Houston can shut down the Redskins offense. The Redskins have a 6-3 record just like the Texans but it seems more like a favorable schedule has more to do with their success. Houston needs to win to keep pressure on the Tennessee Titans who don't seem to want to go away. I think they will.

So, what does all this mean? It means that I think that the Texans are going into the Redskins stadium in Landover Maryland and beat the Redskins and I think it will be a comfortable win albeit low scoring. I'm thinking the final score is Houston 20 Washington 9.

[eagle eye]

For those of you who want to classify the Texans as not necessarily a good team, just a very lucky one, that’s okay to think that. I am reminded of a quote by pro golfer Gary Player who once said, “The more I practice, the luckier I get!” Player was a member of the Big Three in golf in the sixties and seventies. That Big Three consisted of Player, Arnold Palmer and Jack Nicklaus. All three were multiple major winners and the elite of their sport. Up until Palmer’s death in 2016 the Big Three were the first off the tee in every Masters tournament for years. Way back when, a guy came upon Player practicing bunker shots and he saw Player hole a shot. The man told Player he would give him $50 if he holed another one. Player promptly holed the shot which caused the man to challenge Player to do it again. This time for $100. Sure enough, Player nailed it! The man then offered Player $150 to hole a third one which Player did. As the man paid Player his $300 he said, “I wish I could be so lucky.”, to which Player uttered the famous quote. My point is, Houston has won a lot of close games in their 7-game win streak. Along the way they have played some good offense and some excellent defense, and their grit and tenacity have carried them through 2 overtime wins, 3 solid wins and two missed kicks at the end of games. They have won in about every way you can in the last 8 weeks. Houston spent the OTA’s, mini camps, training camp and preseason and weekly practices to get where they are now. The Texans aren’t lucky. This win streak is the product of hard work and effort in practice and it carries over into games where these traits are paying dividends in the win column. Even with the mistakes Houston made against Washington, 2 INT’s and 2 missed field goals, they overcame every obstacle and won the game. It wasn’t luck that Washington had to try a 63-yard field goal to win the game. I was because the Texans defense wouldn’t let Washington get close enough for a makeable kick. Remember the old Smith-Barney investment commercials? “We make money the old-fashioned way, we earn it!” You could easily paraphrase that old tag line to apply to the Texans. They get wins the old-fashioned way, they earn them. Sounds right to me. You want to complain about the 2 picks Deshaun Watson threw or the 2 field goals Ka’imi Fairbairn missed that’s fine but, you can’t forget about the good throws Watson made including a TD pass or the 3 kicks Fairbairn made, one from 54 yards. Yin and Yang, darkness and light. As Mr Miyagi told Daniel-san, “Balance Daniel-san, balance.” You have to acknowledge the good if you criticize the bad. Or, you can just be happy the good guys won again. After all, there are no style points in the NFL, a W is a W no matter how you get one. You know what? Houston now has 7 W’s against 3 L’s. That’s more than anyone else in the AFC South and more than most teams in the AFC. Houston is a ½ game behind Pittsburgh and they are tied with New England and LA Chargers and they trail AFC leading Kansas City by 2 games. That’s it. Houston is tied for the 3rd best record in the AFC and the Chargers won’t be anything more than a Wild Card team. Pretty rarified air for such a “lucky” team.