Quick Look at Texans

This is the preseason game, I always look forward to every year. I can’t stand the Houston Texans, and never liked the Houston Oilers either. Growing up on the outskirts of Houston was challenging because of my die hard loyalties to the Cowboys. I have my father to thank for that, and now I’ve passed this on to my son. We went to training camp in San Antonio, and we’ll be there this Saturday cheering on the only real team in Texas, our Dallas Cowboys.

Alright, I got that out of my system, let’s get down to my thoughts on the state of the Texans. Being that I live in the Houston area, I know everything about these loser Texans. Since the Texans came on the scene they have been losers. The cause of their failures can be linked to one man and one man alone, Charlie Casserly. Casserly single handedly destroyed this team from the get go.

Think about all the draft picks the Texans have ever drafted, and there’s TWO players that are very good in my opinion, CB Dunta Robinson and  WR Andre Johnson. Casserly drafted a lot of draft busts in all rounds. David Carr, injury prone Dominick Davis, Benny Joppru, Travis Johnson,  and Jason Babin to name a few. Casserly’s final gift was when he passed on Reggie Bush and Vince Young. Casserly, instead drafted the much overhyped and emerging bust, Mario Williams. Casserly’s tenure was devastating to say the least.

Its not all bad in Houston 

In the midst of all this bad drafting was the hiring of Gary Kubiak, and for the first time in years, this team has some hope for the 2007 season. Kubiak has a good staff in Houston, and has slowly brought in some players that are making their mark.

On Offense, the Texans brought in QB Matt Schaub from the Atlanta Falcons. I liked Schaub before then, and even wanted him in Dallas when we had Testaverde and Bledsoe at the helm, but Romo has taken over, and is the main man now. They also added RB Ahman Green, from the Packers. Green is a solid RB, but his durability is a major concern, but the Texans have a good stable of backups for short term gaps fills; however, if needed for the longterm, this team is back in the gutter again.

Schaub has looked sharp in the preseason, and I expect he’ll do some good things for the Texans. Adding Schaub, could be the smartest move the Texans have ever made in the offseason.

WR Kevin Walters was also added this offseason, he’s nothing amazing at all, but should be a good addition to what they had previous seasons.

The receiver to watch is their rookie WR Jacoby Jones, this guy is pretty good, has good hands, and is a big threat in their return game. Jones’ role will probably expand as the season goes on, he looks promising. In addition to Jones in special teams, the Texans still have Pro Bowler Jerome Mathis. Mathis and Jones could end up being the best special teams tandem in the league if Mathis returns to form, and if Jones stays on fire as he has been the last couple of weeks.

Their TE, Owen Daniels did well last year, and is expected to play a bigger role in the passing game this year.

So, I expect the offense to be much improved over last year. Right now, the Texans are flying high because they dominated the Cardinals, but that’s not saying much. The Cardinals are under a new head coach, and this is their first year with the 3-4 defense they installed this offseason. The Cards 3-4, is light-years behind what the Cowboys, Phillips 3-4 will show them. The Texans are in for a surprise. In addition to that, Phillips is familiar with Kubiak’s West Coast offense. Phillips has defended against the WC offense for years and saw it twice a year while in San Diego. Our own defensive coaches have seen it as well, because the Eagles run the WC offense.

As for the Texans Defense, this is their achilles heel. They need to rebuild this defense via the draft. There’s not much to their defense except a bunch of 1st round busts up and down the line. Their best players on defense are CB Dunta Robinson and LB DeMeco Ryans. They did draft Omobi Okoye to replace the Travis Johnson bust pick, but he’s a rookie and probably won’t be an immediate impact. Mario Williams is a bust in my opinion. He’s all size and nothing else. Our own Chris Canty is similar in size, and has out performed Williams.

Best players to watch on offense: Matt Schaub, Andre Johnson, Ahman Green, Owen Daniels, Jacoby Jones

Best players to watch on defense: Dunta Robinson, DeMeco Ryans

Best players to watch on special teams: Jerome Mathis, Jacoby Jones

Bottomline, we will beat the Texans, and I’ll be onsite to see it happen!