Houston Texans 2018 Season

[eagle eye]

The NFL lost a pretty good man yesterday. Houston Texans owner Bob McNair passed away at the age of 81. McNair brought the NFL back to H-town after Bud Adams move the beloved Oilers to Tennessee. You’ll read about all the great things McNair did but nothing compares with the fact that he brought the NFL back to Houston and its rabid fan base. Aside from an unfortunate misquote of a saying in response to players kneeling during the national anthem that rubbed some players the wrong way McNair has been a joy. Yes, he’s been aggravating displaying loyalty to people like Gary Kubiak and GM Rick Smith but it’s that loyalty that created stability in the organization. Everyone has wanted Bill O’Brien’s head on a platter despite having just one losing season in his tenure with 2 playoff appearances including the Texans first ever playoff win. Deepest sympathy to the McNair family and here’s hoping Bob has a son or daughter with the same traits as the old man because if that’s the case Houston will be in good hands for a long time. As the Texans head into a division game on Monday night against Tennessee the Texans are playing more than a game, they are playing in tribute to a man who made their NFL dreams come true. You wanna bet would love to win one for Bob? Darn tootin’. It will be a very emotional night in Houston for all the Texans coaches, players, staff and their fans. Rest in piece Mr McNair.

[eagle eye]

The Texans are playing the final game of Week 12 tonight. If you are a Texans fan you knew that already. They will be trying for their 8th win in a row which will allow them to keep pace with the Patriots (8-3) and Pittsburgh (7-3-1) for the 2nd seed in the AFC. I don’t think Houston will catch Kansas City for the top seed, but you never know. KC is 9-2 on the season so winning tonight’s game to go 8-3 for the season puts Houston is prime position in case the Chiefs stumble in December. For the record, 4 of the last 6 games this season are home games with 3 of those coming in the next 3 games including tonight’s game with Tennessee. Houston has played the Titans once this year in their place in Week 2 which was one of the 3 straight losses Houston had to begin the season. This is not the same Texans team that lost 9 weeks ago. The Titans are not very predictable after 11 weeks. Their record is 5-5, ½ game behind a Colts team that has risen from the ashes to win 5 straight to take over 2nd place in the AFC South. Tennessee needs to beat Houston to keep up with the red hot Colts. BTW, those red hot Colts beat the crap out of Tennessee last week to the tune of 38-10 for their 4th straight win. Indy beat Miami 27-24 yesterday to put some pressure on the Titans as well as the Texans. Houston needs to win to maintain their 2-game lead over Indy.
Houston is getting healthier as they look to get some players back this week but, there are a couple of players who were limited all week in practice that Houston needs. JJ Watt (knee), DeAndre Hopkins (ankle) and Duke Ejiofor (shoulder) have been limited in practice. If I was a betting man (I am) I would bet that Watt and Hopkins will play. The Texans coaches held the players back to protect them so they would be available. Ejiofor may not be able to go with that bum shoulder. The good thing is, this is the first week I can remember Deshaun Watson has not been on the injury report. That is a very good thing. The Titans have some players who will miss but nobody of any real note. From the Titans perspective, that is a good thing especially considering the Marcus Mariota was knocked out of last week’s game because of what turned out to be an elbow stinger. Mariota had full participation in Saturday’s practice and he’s expected to start.
The Texans may have more than home field advantage tonight. With the passing of Texans owner Bob McNair on Saturday the Texans will be wanting to win as a tribute to McNair. The Texans will also have a RCM decal on their helmets in remembrance of Mr. McNair.
The Texans need to become more efficient offensively, especially in the red zone but they have been getting better. As they get injured O-linemen back all aspects of the offense will get better but even with backups in the lineup Lamar Miller has rushed for over 100 yards and the Texans defense has been flat stopping people. I do think Houston will win tonight by at least 10 points.
All that said, I predict Houston beats Tennessee 27-16 for their 8th win in a row. GO TEXANS!

[eagle eye]

The Texans beat the Titans for their 8th win in a row. They are now the only team in NFL history to begin a season 0-3 and then win 8 straight games! Heckuv-an accomplishment. To win 8 straight games isn't easy but to do it when you dig yourself a hole that many people thought you would never overcome is pretty special. Historically special. That said, it's time to get 9 in a row, don't you think?

This will be the only week I won't root for the Cleveland Browns. The Browns are my own little guilty pleasure and it's been nice to see the team gain some momentum after firing their head coach and their offensive coordinator. Winning two straight is pretty good for a team that came into the 2018 season 1-31. There are 4 games the Browns could have won including the tie with Pittsburgh to begin the season, the 3-point loss to the Saints in Week two and two overtime losses to Oakland and Tampa Bay. Cleveland could be going into today's game 8-3 instead of 4-6-1 if the football gods were just a wee bit kinder. At 8-3 Cleveland would be leading the AFC North and tied with Houston and New England for the 2nd best record in the AFC. Let that sink in for just a moment. This Cleveland Browns team is not terrible. Far from it, they are pretty good and back-to-back wins over Atlanta and Cincinnati show that a little locker room harmony does a world of good for a team. Houston had better not take this team for granted or the Texans will be looking around wondering what the heck happened. Myles Garrett is coming back to Texas and I'm sure he has lots of friends and family that will be a NRG Stadium cheering the ex-Aggie on and Baker Mayfield is probably itching to stick his thumb in the eye of another Texas team. This will be Mayfield's first trip to Texas as a pro but we all remember how he and the Oklahoma Sooners wreaked havoc on the Big 12 conference. Heck, Mayfield might have had his TV tuned the rematch with UT for the Big 12 Conference Championship yesterday which, unless you were in a coma, you know was won by the Sooners.

What you hope is that the Texans aren't getting too big for their britches and take the Browns for granted thinking they are so great they can just show up and win. The fact that most of Houston's last 8 games only a couple have been so-called easy wins. The O-line has its struggles and Deshaun Watson is still making some rookie-like mistakes. If you think about it, the 11 games Watson has played this year coupled with the 6-1/2 games he played in 2017 before tearing his ACL Watson has only played in 17-1//2 games so he is barely out of being a rookie in games played. As good as Watson is, it's scary to think he is only scraping the surface of what he can become. Houston has some nice offensive weapons around Watson that has been able to overcome any deficiency's in the O-line but the Browns defense is pretty darn good, especially the defensive front. The line needs to step up and play well today. Of course the Texans defense is not too shabby. The Texans can get a bit lax against the run but overall this is a darn good defense and if the Browns O-line doesn't watch out Baker Mayfield may spend the day picking grass out of his helmet. Okay, I know the Texans play on turf but, you get what I mean.

What does all this mean for the outcome of today's game? I think it means that this will be a hard fought, close game. In fact I think if a team gets to 21 points that will likely be good enough to win. I'm thinking that Houston's home field advantage will put them over the top and the final score will be Houston 24 Cleveland 20 to get Houston its 9th win in a row.

[eagle eye]

The Texans are heading into today's game looking to extend their winning streak to 10 games. They are at home and playing old division nemesis Indianapolis. Who knows what's going to happen today given recent events. Last Sunday Indy was shutout by the Jacksonville Jaguars who then came back 4 days later and had Tennessee kick the stuffing out of them. The Jags even gave up a record tying 99 yard TD run by Derrick Henry. Henry's run tied the record set by Dallas' Tony Dorsett in 1983. Technically, Dorsett's run was longer by a couple of feet and was even more impressive since the Cowboys only had 10 men on the field at the time. Also, Jacksonville put on a clinic in the game against Tennessee on how NOT to tackle. On Henry's run there were ample opportunities for the Jags to tackle him but them failed miserably. Derrick Henry isn't even the best RB on the Titans roster. The starter is Dion Lewis for crying out loud. Tennessee's win puts them 2-1/2 games behind Houston and, depending on today's outcome, will either be 2 or 3 games behind with 3 games left in the season. The Titans are now 7-6 and Indy is currently 6-6 so an Indy win would tie them for 2nd place in the AFC South but a loss would all but end their playoff hopes. Houston is 9-3 and they need to win to stay in the hunt for a 1 or 2 seed and home field advantage heading towards the playoffs. Houston has been playing well on both sides of the ball and Ka'imi Fairbairn has been a reliable kicker on special teams. This Texans team is legit and they have the better team. What they need to do is go out and prove it. The Texans just need to keep doing what they have been doing for the past 9 games, play smothering defense, run the ball effectively (Lamar Miller is having a breakout season for Houston) and let Deshaun Watson create. The addition of Demaryius Thomas has helped a lot and DeAndre Hopkins is, hands down, the best receiver in the NFL. The other thing is, Houston's fans are LOUD! They are so loud they intimidate and I would stack them up against the Seahawks and Chiefs crowds any day, especially when the roof on NRG Stadium is closed which I expect it to be today. I look for at least 3 sacks of Andrew Luck today and I think the offense will roll over the Colts.

So, what does that all mean? It means I think Houston will beat the Colts in what might be a fairly close game. It is the Colts after all and Luck is not exactly chopped liver as a QB. I can't explain how Jacksonville beat the Colts 6-0 last week and then stink so bad on Thursday against the Titans. I'm sure Indianapolis is looking to rebound from that embarrassing shutout so Houston will have to play well to win but I think Houston has the better team overall and they will get number 10 in a row this afternoon. I think the final score will Houston 31 Indianapolis 26. Go Texans!

[eagle eye]

Houston lost to Indy shooting themselves in the foot blowing an opportunity to claim the 2nd seed in the AFC after a very improbable New England loss to Miami on what was literally the last play of the game. Instead of being 10-3 and the clear 2nd seed Houston falls to 9-4 tied with the Patriots and because the Pats beat Houston in Week 2 they have the tie breaker which means they are the 2nd seed. Houston will have another shot at that 2nd seed this weekend as they travel to NY, or rather New Jersey, to play the J-E-T-S Jets who really suck. Even though they are on the road the Texans will be the favorite in the game, as they should be. In fact they are 6 point faves and I'm surprised it's not higher. Sam Darnold really has no help and it may be that either he's just not as good as projected or he's the victim of poor coaching, or both. Houston should beat the Jets. The weather shouldn't be an issue with temps around 47 degrees and a slight chance of rain. The game, BTW, is Saturday at noon. With the college football regular season done and only minor bowl games being shown the NFL has begun a regular schedule of Saturday games. Texans-Jets begins at 3 PM Saturday with Browns at Broncos at 7:20 PM. That means they can log the win and sit back and watch the Patriots at the Steelers on Sunday. The Pats haven't been all that great on the road in 2018 and the Steelers have lost 3 straight including an inexplicable loss to the Raiders last Sunday. As a Texans fan I will be rooting for a Pittsburgh win. Make a note of this because I do not root for teams from Pennsylvania very often. If they are from Philadelphia I never root for their teams. Never. As Houston should collect their 10th win of the season we can only hope the Steelers do their part to help the Texans.

[eagle eye]

The Texans did their job last Sunday beating the NY Jets but it was way too close for comfort as the 29-22 score might suggest. I worry about the Texans because their offense is so hit and miss. Fortunately, the last eleven weeks have been more hit than miss but, believe it or not with 10 wins they still have not clinched a playoff berth much less the division. Those pesky Colts and Titans keep hanging around. The Cowboys could have helped the Texans but they flopped like a cow patty on the prairie. I guess Dallas could say the same about the Rams who did a similar flop against the Eagles on Sunday night. If Texans fans were hoping the Giants would beat Tennessee I want to show some prime real estate in Death Valley. Still, the Texans got to ten wins and if they beat Philly this week they clinch the division and they put the Eagles out of the playoffs. Win-win there, people. Beating the Eagles in frigid Pennsylvania won't be easy but Houston has the ability to do it. I would love it on so many levels if the Texans smack the Eagles around. I love it when Philly fans boo their own team. The game in Philly between them and the Cowboys I got to hear the crowd boo the home team. I was in ecstasy! What a wonderful Christmas present if the Texans can pull off the same feat! It won't be easy and it think that with Carson Wentz out the Eagles look more dangerous. I know that sounds crazy but when you lose your starter to a broken back and you can put in the last Super Bowl MVP in the lineup you aren't exactly hurting. Beating the Rams on the road has to be a big confidence booster for the Eagles so it will be up to the Texans to jump on Philly early and often. If you have a half baked Jets offense give you fits then what can the Eagles do? The good thing is, teams seem to change week to week. What Philly showed against Dallas was different than they showed against the Rams and will be different against Houston this weekend. But, it's Tuesday and we can enjoy this latest win. Ahhh.

[eagle eye]

Was there ever a worse call ever by a referee than the roughing the passer on JD on the last drive of the game? God awful call on a 3rd and long. Not only was the pass completed anyway but the extra 15 yards on the penalty gave the Eagles the ball at the 40. I have no doubt that call influenced the outcome of the game. How anyone could leave Zach Ertz so wide open on the 31 completion is beyond me. Good grief I hate the Eagles.

[eagle eye]

It’s Thursday and the regular season will end Sunday. With the heartbreaking loss to Philadelphia last Sunday this game means everything to the Texans. Houston needs to beat Jacksonville at NRG Sunday to clinch the AFC South. Unbelievable as it seems, if Houston loses then the winner of the Colts-Titans game Sunday night would win the division and push the Texans down to the 2nd Wild Card spot. The Texans need to take care of business and beat the Jaguars. If the Texans do their job then they need the Patriots to fall to the Jets. If that happens then Houston would regain the #2 seed and get a first round bye in the playoffs.
In the not-likely-but-could-happen department: If Houston beats Jacksonville, New England loses to the Jets and Kansas City loses to Oakland and the Chargers lose to Denver that would mean the Patriots would be the #3 seed and Houston and Kansas City would be tied for the best record in the AFC. Houston could win the #1 seed on strength of their wins. That’s like the 4th or 5th level of tie-breaker. So, for those of you would like to dream big here’s your chance! I didn’t forget about the Chargers BTW. The Bolts would be tied with Houston and KC at 11-5 but KC holds a tie-breaker over the Chargers and they would be the #1 Wild Card.
Houston put 3 players on IR this week including Demaryius Thomas who suffered an Achilles injury last Sunday in Philly. The other players placed on IR are CB Kayvon Webster and LB Brian Peters. The Texans made some other roster moves as well. They released LB Keenan Gilchrist from the practice squad and signed LB Chris Landrum to replace Gilchrist. The Texans also signed WR Steven Mitchell Jr to the active roster from their practice squad. Houston also added another LB by signing Tyrell Adams to the active roster. To fill the final hole on the practice squad Houston signed CB Michael Hunter.
Losing Thomas from a WR corps that was already without Will Fuller III and Keke Coutee was a big blow to the offense. At least in the Philly game someone did step up and that was Vyncint Smith. Now, Smith only had one catch in the game but, it was a gorgeous 35-yard TD pass that gave the Texans a one-point lead with less than 2 minutes left in the game. Smith showed great potential with a sliding catch that reminded me of one of the spectacular DeAndre Hopkins grabs. Hopefully, Smith will build on that going into the end of the regular season and the playoffs. The guy who has really stepped up is DeAndre Carter. In early November, with Fuller out and Coutee in and out of the lineup with a hamstring injury, the Texans claimed Carter off waivers whom the Eagles had just cut. To make room for Carter the Texans waived RB Tyler Irvin. Carter was supposed to handle punts and kickoffs and be an emergency WR if needed. The fact that Carter was a true WR made Ervin expendable and in the past few weeks it has been Carter who has stepped up his game at WR making 18 catches for 183 yards for a 10.17 YPC average with a long of 50 yards. Against Philly Carter caught 6 passes for 61 yards.
4 Texans were named to the Pro Bowl this week. JJ Watt, Jadeveon Clowney and Bernardrick McKinney made from the defensive side and DeAndre Hopkins made it on the offensive side. The NFL chose 4 other Texans as alternates, Kareem Jackson, Tyrann Matthieu, Lamar Miller and Deshaun Watson.

[eagle eye]

It's minutes before the last game of the regular season. For the Texans it is significant because they still have not clinched the AFC South. They need to win today to do that. The fact they are playing Jacksonville in Houston this afternoon is a big advantage for the Texans. They are liable to be a little salty after having the rug pulled out from underneath them last week in Philadelphia. I hope they are down-right pissed and they take all that anger out on the Jaguars. I think the Jags will be starting Blake Bortles this week and he's generally good for a couple of turnovers. The Jags would love to play spoiler if they can but I just think Houston has too much for the Jaguars to handle. Assuming the Texans take care of business then I'm sure they will be scoreboard watching hoping against hope that the Jets can beat the Patriots in Foxborough which would vault the Texans into the 2nd seed and a first round bye. C'mon, I can dream can't I? What is pure fantasy is that the Chiefs, Chargers and Patriots all lose and the Texans win and actually get the #1 seed. Now, even I am not THAT crazy!
I think Houston will handle the Jags and win the division today. I believe the final score will be Houston 29 Jacksonville 10. The only mystery will be whether Jacksonville coach Doug Marone is fired on the plane home or will the Jags front office wait until Wednesday do pull the plug.

[eagle eye]

Man, we can't shake these pesky Indianapolis Colts. For years the Texans got a regular beat down by Peyton Manning and the Colts. When Manning had his neck issues, including missing an entire year because of his neck, we fans thought okay now, the Texans are getting better talent wise but missing that whole season led the Colts to the worst record in all of the NFL. What does the team with the worst record the previous year get come March or April? Yep, that would be getting the very first pick in the draft and Andrew Luck was the guy the Colts took. Son of a bitch! A luck would have it, Luck was as good as he was projected and the Colts were pretty much back except they didn't have a defense any more. Gone were those players that used to compliment Manning and the offense. DE Dwight Freeney and S Bob Sanders led the way for Indy but in the first few years Luck pretty much carried the team. Now, with the hire of new head coach Frank Reich, the same Frank Reich that broke the Oilers heart way back in the day when they overcame a 32-3 halftime lead to beat the Houston Oilers 41-38 in overtime. The same Frank Reich who was the OC for the Eagles who finally won a Super Bowl. Reich was on the Buffalo Bills teams that lost 3 Super Bowls in a row in the early nineties but he knows what a good team looks like. Winning the big one with Philly was a long overdue ring for Reich. Oh, but, I hate Reich because he was with the Eagles when they won and I HATE the Eagles. Ergo, I hate Reich. Now, Reich has led his Colts back from slow start, just like the Texans did, to muscle their way into the playoffs. Now, irony of ironies, the Texans have to go through the Colts to get to the next level. Damn the Luck, literally.

I make no prediction about score because I have no idea. I do think the winner will need to score 30 or more to advance. I am saying Houston wins because that's what homers do. This game scares me to death. I will have to watch by myself because I will be wearing my emotions on my sleeve. This include cheering the offense on with elan, urging the defense to do what Al Davis said about an opposing QB so many years ago. "The quarterback must go down and he must go down hard!" Damn right Al. Go go go Texans!!!!

[eagle eye]

The season is over for Houston and it was a good one. Nine straight wins after an 0-3 start we saw what the Texans are capable of. It's obvious that Houston still has some work building their O-line but they are a team that has to be reckoned with. The Texans could use a little more push on the interior of the D-line and I'm not really sure if Houston needs to draft DB's or if all the DB's who suffered injuries disguises the fact that Houston is pretty good to go there. My first impression is that D-line and cornerback should be high on the Texans draft wish list. First year GM Brian Gaine did a good job with the draft and in free agency last offseason. I am looking forward to the moves and draft additions the Texans make this year. I have a lot more confidence in Gaine than I ever had with Rick Smith. Way to go Texans for winning the AFC South, now you have to figure out how to beat the friggin' Colts, again.