SB Nation - Mike Brisiel

The Thief Of The 2009 Season: The Running Game

Jake — Tue, 15 Dec 2009 00:24:42 -0000

More photos » by David J. Phillip - AP

The 2009 season for the Houston Texans has been wildly inconsistent and disappointing. For the third straight year, they find themselves looking at a 6-7 record and possibly a third consecutive .500 season. Although the numbers in the W and L columns are the same, the way they got there is different.

Back in the offseason, many Texans fans speculated that even a slightly improved defense, combined with the impressive offense, would catapult this team directly into the playoffs. Since the record is the same, the casual observer would assume that the defense failed to make this minor improvement, but they'd be wrong. Frank Bush's defensive squad is currently ranked 13th in total defense thus far after finishing 22nd last year.

So what gives? Matt Schaub is having a career year and doing his best to shake to "injury prone" description commonly associated with him. Andre Johnson is again leading the league in receiving yards and has equaled his touchdown total from last year. There's only one possibility left--the run game.

Last year Steve Slaton was seriously considered for the title of Offensive Rookie of the Year. 1,659 all-purpose yards made General Manager Rick Smith look like a genius for drafting Slaton in the third round despite widespread belief that he was too small to be an every-down back. This week Slaton was placed on the injured reserve with 437 rushing yards and 3.3 yards per attempt, a full yard and a half down from his average of 2008.

Slaton's sophomore slump was mostly mental prior to his season-ending neck injury. Slaton didn't show the conviction to hit holes when they appeared and also lost 7 fumbles in just 11 games. To put it all on Slaton would be unfair though. As of last week, Slaton had 40 more receiving yards than last year, averaging 15 more yards through the air per game than he did last season. The increased involvement of Slaton in the passing game was an attempt to get Slaton out in space, a strategy made necessary because of a lack of holes to run through.

Alex Gibbs is widely considered one of the best positional coaches in all of the NFL. Wherever he has coached offensive lines throughout his career, the rushing attacks have been good to dominant, including the Texans last year. The entire Texans offensive line starting all 16 games last year was a phenomenon that was new to even him, however, and that continuity allowed those players to gel and produce fantastic results down the stretch.

The line has not been so lucky with injuries this year. Left guard Chester Pitts was placed on the injured reserve after Week 2, and right guard Mike Brisiel followed after Week 5. The team wasn't exactly dominating the line of scrimmage in those initial games of the season, but two of the four 100 yard rushing games came during that period. By way of comparison, the Texans rushed for 100 yards in all but five games in 2008.

Chester Pitts will be an unrestricted free agent following this year. As long as it is determined that he is healthy, he needs to be re-signed at all costs. His and Brisiel's absence has highlighted how substandard Chris Myers is at the center position. Myers continually loses at the point of attack while run blocking. If you want to see for yourself, watch him block throughout the Seattle game to see opposing defensive tackles push him aside. Then watch rookie Antoine Caldwell in the one play after Myers is hurt push his man five yards down the field.

That brings me to my next point. Why isn't Caldwell getting a shot at center? Myers not only loses regularly while run blocking, but he continues to have issues with larger defensive tackles while in pass protection. Myers is a great story, going from a practice squad to starting every game last year, but without good to great guards to help him, he is simply too small to be effective.

Another factor that has adversely affected the Texans in general this year, especially in the run game, is a lack of depth. Once Slaton started his mental problems, Gary Kubiak had Chris Brown, Arian Foster and Ryan Moats to rely on, which is woefully inadequate. Furthermore, Kasey Studdard and Chris White might not be terrible guards but when both are thrust into the lineup at the same time next to an inferior center, bad things will happen. All the same, an acquisition of a more quality interior lineman for next year couldn't hurt.

One last aspect that cannot be overlooked is the absence of Owen Daniels. Obviously Matt Schaub misses him as a target, but a tight end that can run routes and catch as well as run block is an enormous benefit for the run game. Daniels has deceiving blocking ability but his prolific talent as a receiver keeps a linebacker or a safety from attacking the line of scrimmage automatically. Both offensive tackles Duane Brown and Eric Winston have played well this year, but if OD clears out a linebacker, that frees one of them to get to the next level in order to block downfield.

Keep in mind how inconsistent this team has been this year. The Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde halves, the fourth quarter collapses...they can all be partially attributed to the lack of running success. The Texans have been successful converting 3rd or 4th and 2 yards or less 64% of the time running to the right, and a terrible 44% running up the middle. No matter how successful you are with the pass, if you continually live by the sword, you will eventually die by the sword. Take for example Matt Schaub's 13 interceptions. That sounds a little high until you take into account that equals one INT for every 36.4 attempts. That's still a little high, but when opposing defenses know that you have to pass to move the ball whether you have a lead or not, it stacks the deck against you.

Gary Kubiak has come under intense scrutiny because of game situations that have cost the Texans several games near the end. This season, Kubiak finally got a better defense, only to lose his running game. Last year's average of 115 yards per game would be the fourth best rushing output for this year's team. I'm trying to avoid the apologist angle, but if the running game was even close to last year's, I don't think that we would be discussing the jeopardy of Kubiak's future in Houston. Even yesterday's offensive outpouring included only 85 yards on the ground. In my opinion, Bob McNair should worry more about the replacement of a few offensive linemen and running backs, rather than a head coach.

Playing The Expectations Game

bigfatdrunk — Wed, 09 Dec 2009 00:04:24 -0000

Over the years, I've had the pleasure of working for some of the most grossly inept and incompetent managers in known history. A couple of them would make the Pointy Haired Boss absolutely brilliant by comparison. Recent games have reminded me of a conversation I had with one of those rocket scienticians.

At the time, I was managing asset portfolios for wealthy investors. My portfolios were absolutely skyrocketing, but my boss' were doing horribly. Worst of all, he had most of the assets under his control, and he refused to change his strategy, relinquish control, or just do anything different. As a result, we were bleeding clients and money.

I had the audacity to lay out a concrete plan for him to follow in order to keep clients, but he erupted into one of his typical histrionic displays. I gave notice about an hour later.

When he tried to convince me to stay, he claimed he had done a poor job setting my expectations about his portfolios' performance. His argument was asinine. It wasn't *his* fault the portfolios were doing so poorly; it was the market's fault, and I had to stay and convince clients of this "fact." I was stunned by the lack of logic and the earnestness in which he avoided culpability. Needless to say, I left, and the company is out of business today.

By now you are probably asking yourself: What is your point? Great question! I'm so glad you asked.

I believe we, and by "we" I mean we as fans and the team, have failed the expectations game. Allow me to explain what I mean.

After back-to-back years of 8-8 ball, it's fair to have greater expectations and believe we'll be better year-in/year-out as fans. The reality is this isn't so easy to accomplish. Every fan base has this expectation (except for the Lions, of course) that their team is good enough to compete. So we get excited and hopeful. Gary Kubiak should also have these expectations, especially from a younger team.

Where we have failed is recognizing that our talent is still simply not there. Talent acquisition is, sadly, a prolonged process. The team Kubiak and Rick Smith inherited was almost completely devoid of NFL-quality talent. Not only do I believe we need time to build and diversify our talent base, I'm not convinced we are adequately addressing our weaknesses.

Now, this isn't to say we aren't trying, but it is clear we have serious holes throughout our starting 22 and depth problems everywhere except for TE and WLB (which needs a real quality starter).

Here's an example: Our offensive line has become a true weakness thanks in part to injuries, but also due to the lack of talent here. Duane Brown and Eric Winston have been decent but beatable. Our G and C play has been absolutely atrocious this year, even before injuries took down Chester Pitts and Mike Brisiel.

In other words, if we aren't winning the most basic, in-the-trenches battles, how can we possibly expect to win games?

Then, of course, are our expectations of FAIL. The team, at least. I had hoped the Miami game last year moved us beyond this. Or even the first BE-SF game this year. Especially in the second game against the Colts, you could see our body language change in the fourth quarter. We played down to our expectations, and it was depressing. If the Colts were in this position, there's no way they'd be hanging their heads in the same situation.

Obviously, part of the problem is Kubiak. I don't believe the team is under-prepared as much as poorly managed, both from a personnel and in-game perspective. But the lack of quality personnel is still the primary issue. However, Kubiak has got to do a better job in getting this team to play a full 60 minute game. The closest we've come to this was against the Bengals and somewhat versus the Bills. This is not acceptable.

Do I believe we need to fire Kubiak? I don't know. The offense especially is built around Kubiak's offensive style. The simple fact he believes Chris Brown is a legitimate goal-line back is an indictment of his ability to build a roster. Kubiak needs a more firm hand, and a better grip, of building his roster to meet his needs. At the same time, he has improved his in-game skills from last year (did somebody finally buy him Madden?).

Here's what I would like to see from a purely coaching standpoint:

Replace Bill Kollar (defensive line coach), Frank Bush, or both. I'm not sure who thought either of these guys would be a solution, but they clearly are not. When a Bills fan is taunting you about Kollar, you damn well know something is wrong.
Joe Marciano, special teams coach, should clearly go away. Not only do we make copious amounts of penalties, but he's managed to turn Andre Davis into a tip-toer on returns.
And we give Kubiak one. More. Year. That's it. No mas.

Again, I simply do not think we have the talent, on a personnel basis, to compete today. When you throw in the tremendous number of injuries to key elements of the team (Chester Pitts, Mike Brisiel, Owen Daniels, Antwaun Molden, Steve Slaton, Glover Quin, Eugene Wilson), we are going to be in trouble. Injuries are exacerbated by our obvious lack of depth, a problem that cannot be fixed in just one, two, or even three years. This is about expectations, and thoughts that we were a 12-4 team were optimistic and obviously misplaced. With a few breaks, was this possible? Chris Brown says "yes." We are, however probably better than 5-7 as well.

At this point, I don't see firing Kubiak as the answer. We need to let our current crop of rookies age just one more year, and another year of drafting will be helpful. This team was a massive sack of shit when Smithiak took over, and we have seen improvement. We all hoped the consolidation phase was over, but it was not. I think they deserve one more year to prove themselves incapable.

Post-Game Breakdown: Texans Lose In Soul-Crushing Fashion To Titans On Monday Night

Tim — Wed, 25 Nov 2009 18:10:02 -0000

/takes deep breath
/rubs eyes
/does shot of Bushmills

Okay...let's do this. Let's start with a quick inventory of where your Houston Texans are at the moment. You know it well; it's called .500. At this point, some might think it's probably time we stopped renting space in the Land of Mediocrity and put down some roots. Buy a house, raise a family, join the PTA, and so forth. The honest truth, however, is that the season isn't over yet. Going into Monday night's game against Bud Adams' minions, an objective analysis of the Texans' schedule showed the Texans had to win two of their next three games--Titans, Colts, at Jaguars--to stay in the playoff hunt. That would put Houston at 7-5 going into games at home against Seattle and on the road against St. Louis.

Now, in the wake of Monday night's loss? There is no margin for error. To stay in the playoff hunt, your Houston Texans have to hand the Colts (led by an angry Peyton Manning, coming off what was probably his worst game of the season in Baltimore) their first loss of the season. It's a must-win game in every tired sense of the phrase if the Texans are to remain in the wild card chase. Lose on Sunday and realistically the Texans are an also-ran. Win on Sunday and Monday night's loss becomes a bump in the road, rather than the six-foot deep pothole it is right now. Seeing as how it's only Wednesday, the loss at home to Tennessee remains a pothole until further notice. Let's take stock of the painful specifics of the loss:

1. When your play results in a FanPost that features a title suggesting you should fornicate yourself, things are bleak, Kris Brown. In the last PGB, I noted that Brown had already missed as many FGs halfway through 2009 as he did in all of 2008. Thanks to the two (2) he yakked on Monday night, the situation has progressed from troubling to critical. But cutting the guy now? I can't get behind it. Kris Brown has been one of the, if not the, most consistent player(s) on the entire roster during his tenure in Houston. I mean, there's a reason he's been with the team since its inception, and there's a reason his extension with the organization back in June was met with applause. The guy is paid to be money when it counts the most, and he's let the team down the last two weeks. My guess is that for the first time in years the Texans bring in a challenger for the kicking job in the offseason. Absent him misfiring on another kick to tie or win a game, Brown's not getting cut mid-season. He's been too good for too long, and that counts for a whole lot, even in the face of back-to-back piles of excrement.

2. Remember when you felt like any kick inside 50 yards was going to split the uprights? Now every kick, whether it's a 20 yarder or a 54 yarder, is going to be fraught with tension. Such is our existence in this frightening new era with Kris Brown as your kicker. Across the country, Pittsburgh fans nod knowingly.

3. One more kicking-related note--despite Brown yipping in Indianapolis and missing an earlier, near-identical kick on Monday night, there's no question in my mind that Kubes did the right thing going to K. Brown when he did on Monday night. The data shows that Kris Brown usually nails that kick. You have to play the odds.

4. If you want to take exception with how Kubes handled his timeouts the last two minutes of the game, you'll get no argument from me. What I fail to understand is why people are suddenly calling for Kubes' head now. This is not a new development. Gary Kubiak has always been glaringly poor at two things--challenging rulings on the field and clock management. Always. He might be slightly better at it now than he used to be, but he's still well below average. If you want Kubes canned for his fourth quarter coaching now, you should've wanted him canned for it weeks, if not years, ago. The sun rises in the east, sets in the west, and Kubes (or the people he has in charge of clock management) is/are woeful at in-game adjustments and/or management late in a game. It's science.

5. Should the Texans lay an egg on Sunday, you're going to be hearing and reading a whole lot of stuff about firing Kubes. As the Texans' record has defined mediocrity the last two and a half seasons, it's a fair issue to raise. I would caution that I think jettisoning Kubes could be hugely detrimental to the passing game. Would it be worth it? I don't know, but I don't think so at this point. Ask me at the end of the season.

6. Preceding paragraph aside, if anyone can tell me why Chris Brown got more than twice as many carries as Steve Slaton and 11 more carries than Ryan Moats on Monday night, I'm all ears. The only thing I can think of is that Kubiak lost a bet. To Chris Brown himself. Because no one who had the Texans' best interests at heart would've ever suggested, even jokingly, that Chris Brown should have been the featured back. Nothing, and I truly mean NOTHING, logically explains that decision. What's more, I'm not sure I want to live in a world where Chris Brown is the Texans' primary RB. My blood will be on Kubes' hands if Chris Brown gets the majority of the carries on Sunday. Remember me fondly.

7. For all the heat Kubes and Frank Bush get on a week-to-week basis, I am stunned at how Alex Gibbs remains totally off the blame radar. The guru of offensive line coaching is presiding over a horrific rushing attack and an offensive line that cannot block for a running back to save its life. Losing Chester Pitts and Mike Brisiel for the season hurts, but the absence of those two guys alone does not explain the completely anemic running game, particularly considering how potent it was last year. Teams don't even have to pretend to respect the Texans' running game. One first down running the ball on Monday night. One!

8. I'm baffled as to why the Texans' front four cannot formulate a consistent pass rush. Vince Young typically had as much time as he wanted. Yet, at various times, you see good play from each individual on the line--Super Mario, Amobi, Antonio Smith, Shaun Cody--on a given play. Why can't they put it together every snap?

9. Speaking of Vince Young...hate him all you want, but the guy did what he needed to do, especially in terms of converting third downs. I would hope that Frank Bush commits a spy to him next year.

10. The Texans did a pretty good job holding Chris Johnson in check. He needed 29 carries to accumulate 151 yards, which was more than a yard below his YPC average going into Monday night. Johnson really only had one big run, and the Texans kept him out of the end zone. Houston bottled him up well enough to win the game.

11. While the officiating on Monday night left much to be desired, it didn't cost the Texans the game. The play that infuriated me the most was at the end of the first half, when the Titans laid on top of Steve Slaton, waiting for the clock to expire. Smart play by the Titans' defenders; even though I would've liked to see a flag, I knew it wasn't coming.

12. Some free advice for Dunta Robinson: Fire your agent. Every time I watch him play, I grow even more bewildered that he purportedly turned down $23,000,000.00 in guaranteed money from the Houston Texans. Dunta might as well have had "Faggins" across the back of jersey on Monday night with the way he got targeted and abused. By a rookie wide receiver. And a QB who's not exactly trumpeted for his passing acumen. And lest we forget, said QB also made Dunta look extremely foolish on a completely whiffed tackle. At the rate he's going, Dunta Robinson is challenging Latrell Sprewell for the title of "Worst Self-Evaluation By An Athlete At Contract Time."

13. As much as I like the guy, David Anderson should not be leading this team in receptions.

14. Man, I am struggling for positives this week. But there were some:

a. Matt Schaub--despite being under pressure for much of the evening, he played extremely well. And that last drive to get the Texans into field goal range was reminiscent of what he did last year against Miami, albeit with a different result this time around. Although he did make a horrible throw or two, Schaub didn't throw any picks. How many QBs would you take over him right now? It's a very short list.
b. James Casey--showed enough on Monday night that I'm geeked to see what he does the rest of the season, especially if the Texans continue playing him as much as they did two days ago.

There. Let us never speak of this again. Colts will be here before we know it, and the Texans' playoff hopes are on life support. Time to turn the page. At least that's what my therapist tells me.

Titans vs Texans coverage

Texans Sign Tutan Reyes & Darnell Bing

Mike Kerns — Thu, 15 Oct 2009 14:08:51 -0000

In a move to provide depth to a quickly diminishing position, Houston signed Tutan Reyes to their active roster yesterday. Darnell Bing was also signed to the practice squad after Buster Davis was released yet again.

Reyes, a 31 year old, 6-foot-3, 310-pound 10th-year pro, has played in the league for seven different teams since being drafted by New Orleans in 2000 out of Ole Miss. He isn't expected to start, but could easily step in if asked to. Rookie Antoine Caldwell and veteran Chris White are expected to battle for the vacancy left by the injuy to Mike Brisiel.

"Some of the terminology is pretty similar to what I've seen in the past in the league," Reyes said. "I'll learn the offense, get in there and provide depth. If they need me to step in there and play, that's what I'm here for."

Darnell Bing was a first-team All-American safety at USC in 2005. He moved to outside linebacker after being drafted by the Raiders in the fourth round in 2006. Bing played in four games with the Detroit Lions earlier this season, recording four special teams tackles and a fumble recovery, and was released on Oct. 6.

Post-Game Breakdown: Cardinals Hold When It Counts

Tim — Tue, 13 Oct 2009 20:21:59 -0000

I thought letting an extra day pass would make Sunday's loss a bit easier to digest. It hasn't.

What we witnessed on Sunday was a microcosm of the alternately thrilling and nauseating roller coaster that has been your 2009 Houston Texans. The first half featured a defense that couldn't stop anyone (if not for Eugene Wilson's hit and DeMeco Ryans' recovery on the goal line, the score would've been 28-0 at half) and an offense that couldn't move the ball against anyone. The second half featured a stifling defense and an offense that was as nasty as any team's in the league (excepting Schaub's INT, which was pretty bad, and the infamous goal line stand by the Cardinals). Watching this team is like furiously pounding beers in between hits of meth--highs and lows, crushing agony and glorious ecstasy. Part of me would actually prefer getting blown out to experiencing the emotional floor going out from underneath me at various points each Sunday. At least then I wouldn't be the completely manic lunatic that is increasingly leaning toward watching all Texans games by himself to avoid subjecting others to his wild mood swings. If this keeps up, I'm checking myself into a sanitarium.

Thoughts from the game:

1. In looking at the offense thus far this season, we've got (1) a poor two halves against the Jets; (2) two pretty strong halves against the Titans; (3) two salty halves against the Jaguars; (4) a somewhat strong first half, followed by a just-protect-the-lead second half against the Raiders; and (5) a horrific first half, followed by a furious-why-can't-they-do-this-every-week half against the Cardinals. In other words, the offense has played about 1.5 games of below-average football through five games. With a defense that could be labeled as "reprehensible" for every bit of three full games (entire Jets game, half of the Titans game, entire Jaguars game, and half of the Cardinals game) thus far, the offense doesn't have the luxury of misfiring for an entire half.

2. What I've really seen is that the offense goes completely as Matt Schaub goes. This might seem somewhat obvious, what with him being the QB and all, but I think it bears noting because...

3. The running game is almost completely useless. Steve Slaton has shown a few brief flashes of what he was last year. That's it. And the offensive line...well, they've been close to exceptional in the passing game. The running game? I honestly don't know if Slaton is the problem, or if it's more a function of his line. What I do know is that the OL seems to get thrown backward far more often than I remember last year. I don't see it getting any better, either. Early returns indicate that the drop off from Chester Pitts to Kasey Studdard is substantial, and there's no reason to feel good about a switch from Mike Brisiel to Chris White or Antoine Caldwell. Now you've got Chris Myers flanked by Studdard and White or Caldwell. Running between the tackles could prove to be totally futile, and as neat as it's been to see some success running wide, it's extraordinarily rare for a running attack to succeed in the NFL with its running backs trying to make a living by running for the sideline. The defenses are simply too fast.

4. All of this is to say, I guess, that Kubes' attempts to force a running game are going to get even more frustrating. What we've seen so far isn't working, but we haven't seen any inclination that there'll be any changes.

5. We can complain about Chris Brown not being a goal line back all we want, but I don't know who could have broken the plane with the way the middle of the offensive line got lit up on that last series. It was doomed from the start, which is why...

6. I don't understand for the life of me why Kubes or Kyle Shanahan would try to run the ball, straight up the gut, on fourth down, with the game on the line. They should know their offensive line can't get a push, and they should know that trying to run the ball up the middle won't work. It hasn't worked all year. Ideally, your offensive line and running back should be able to pick up half of a yard. Unfortunately, this is reality, and we have not seen any evidence that the interior of the Houston OL and/or Chris Brown can consistently pick up half a yard. You know that. I know that. How can the coaching staff not know that? The Texans' greatest asset is their receiving corps. Why not spread the field out to make the defense account for those weapons? More importantly...

7. WHY IS THE BEST WIDE RECEIVER ON THE PLANET STANDING ON THE SIDELINES DURING THE BIGGEST PLAY OF THE GAME? HE'S ANDRE FREAKING JOHNSON! HE'S ALREADY NOTCHED TWO TOUCHDOWNS, ONE OF WHICH FEATURED HIM HANDLING CONTACT BETTER THAN ANY RUNNING BACK ON THE ROSTER! LOUD NOISES!

8. One more note about Schaub...we need to accept that he's good for at least one turnover a game. Yes, this hurts. The good news is that Schaub seems to be good for 2-3 TDs a game. Give me that TD/TO ratio any day of the week.

9. Soooooo...how 'bout that Houston defense? For the record, I disagree with BFD about whether the defense looked better in the second half, versus the notion that we simply benefited from Arizona playing not to lose when they had the ball. While there's little doubt Arizona got conservative, they did try to open it back up as the half progressed and the Texans cut into the lead. And instead of reverting to first-half form, the Texans' defense responded and held the line. Jacques Reeves was a clear upgrade in the secondary, and I remain encouraged by what Bernard Pollard and Glover Quin bring to the table (that is, they actually tackle). If Frank Bush learns nothing else from the game, I hope that it's the idea that he can and should get creative with bringing pressure from the linebackers. Bush has increasingly turned Cushing loose after the QB, but Sunday was the first time I remember seeing Captain 'Meco hounding the QB more than once or twice. It was a welcome sign.

10. I'd write something positive about the return game here, but I don't want to jinx it.

11. Bottom line is that the Texans once again failed to show up when the game started. They were a different team after halftime, and that does speak to the fact that they responded to adversity. The issue is, of course, that they had a huge handle in creating that adversity with the way they played in the first half. No matter how big of a Kubes fan you are, you have to admit that it does not bode well that he and/or his staff have failed to have the Texans ready to play at the start of 40% of their games this young season.

On to Cincinnati to play a suprising Bengals squad, albeit one that could well be primed for a letdown after all the tight division wins they've pulled out. If the Texans are truly going to break the mold of inconsistency and mediocrity, they must win on Sunday. First step toward achieving that goal is actually showing up ready to play.

Arizona Cardinals vs. Houston Texans: Injury Report

Hawkwind — Thu, 08 Oct 2009 14:41:09 -0000

More photos » by Matt York - AP

It's time to start defending this place. (AP Photo/Matt York)

Browse more photos »

Normally the rest and relaxation of a bye helps a team not only re-focus but more importantly it gives them time to get healthy and that seems to be the case with the Arizona Cardinals. The Cardinals put out the first official injury report in a week and a half yesterday and it's probably fair to say that they are healthier right now than they have been at any point this season. Need proof? For the first time since probably very early in training camp every single member of the team participated in practice, although there were a couple of "limited" action guys. Here's a complete rundown:

Kenny Iwebema (ankle) - Limited
Steve Breaston (knee) - Limited
Darnell Dockett (ankle) - Limited
Reggie Wells (thumb) - Limited
Dominique Rodgers-Cromartie (finger) - Limited
Kurt Warner (shoulder) - Full participation

All in all that's very good news for the home team. Everyone is expected to be ready by Sunday although DRC is expected to have his thumb heavily wrapped (so you might not want to bet your mortgage on him recording his second INT of the season) as is Wells. The Texans, who have not had a bye week yet, released a much less favorable injury report after their practice yesterday.

In total they listed twelve players the report with four in the DNP category, seven in the limited participation category and one who fully participated. The worst news, for them, is that two prominent defensive starters, Mario Williams and Brian Cushing, were both held out of practice. Williams is expected to play and Gary Kubiak (Texans Head Coach) has already said that he could play without stepping on the practice field this week. Cushing is a different story though because he missed practice with "FLU LIKE SYMPTOMS" and the bug has been running through the Texans locker room. Two players, one of which was starter Eugene Wilson, missed their game last week with the same condition and their injury report still has three players listed under the "illness" umbrella. Losing Cushing would be a huge hit for a front seven that has already struggled to slow down opposing running games. The only other injuries of note include their starting right guard, Mike Brisiel, who was limited and starting corner back Fred Bennett who missed practice due to 'non-injury' reasons.

Thursday Thoughts: On Fines, Chester Pitts, Kasey Studdard, And The Like

Tim — Thu, 24 Sep 2009 22:04:48 -0000

First off...whew. As great as it's been basking in that victory over Tennessee, a small part of me was just waiting for the other shoe, in the form of suspensions, to drop. Freaking fantastic to see that your Houston Texans will not be without the services of the best wide receiver on the planet. In a related story, freaking terrifying to see that your Houston Texans will not be without the services of quite possibly the shakiest return man in the NFL.

I've given some more thought to the idea of an offensive line without Chester Pitts, and I'm getting increasingly concerned about it. First and foremost, you have to feel for Pitts. Dude has never missed a start and now, on the cusp of free agency, he goes down and undergoes a procedure that isn't exactly conducive to bouncing back, much less bouncing back and getting big dollars on the free agent market. We've seen a version of this song before; remember Fred Weary and his broken leg? While Chester Pitts may not ever take the field as a Texan again, I'm going to be rooting for him to make it back from this injury somewhere.

In terms of how Pitts' absence affects the Texans on the field, I'm perturbed. Kasey Studdard has shown flashes of competence in the limited time he's seen the field, but you have to wonder if he's ready for the increased responsibility and wearing a bullseye for opposing defenses. And I say that as someone who absolutely loved the Studdard pick back in '07. I'm hopeful he steps in and the OL doesn't miss a beat, but Pitts is leaving fairly big shoes to fill. Pitts made it that much harder for defenses to blow up the left side of the line, and that's HUGE, considering Duane Brown isn't exactly a ten-year starter. It's going to be on Eric Winston, Chris Myers, Mike Brisiel and, most importantly, Alex Gibbs, to cover for Studdard during the transition. If Studdard can't get the job done, Antoine Caldwell or Chris White had better be ready to go.

From a long-term standpoint, Pitts' injury could feasibly benefit the Texans. The Texans get to see if Studdard can be a viable solution at guard, and presumably Caldwell should get some more work as well. The stars were aligning for the Texans to have a very hard decision to make about Pitts at the end of the season. Now, the decision, at least football-wise, would appear to be much easier. For the purpose of putting the best team out there this year, though? Little doubt the Texans suffered a sizable blow in Nashville a few days ago.

Decision Day: 53-Man Roster Speculation

bigfatdrunk — Sat, 05 Sep 2009 14:13:47 -0000

More photos » by Steve Nesius - AP

3 months ago: Houston Texans' David Anderson (89) congratulates James Casey (86) after Casey's 11-yard touchdown catch from quarterback Rex Grossman during the second quarter of a preseason NFL football game against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, on Friday, Sept. 4, 2009, at Raymond James Stadium in Tampa, Fla. (AP Photo/Steve Nesius)

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With cuts due by 3pm CDT (I believe, please correct me if I'm wrong), I wanted to pontifibate one last time on the 53-man roster. It's not going to be much different than my first take.

As a refresher, here's the composition of the Texans original 53-man roster last year:

2 QBs
3 RBs
1 FB
5 WRs
3 TEs
5 OTs
5 Gs (1 C/G)
1 C
3 Special Teamers (P, K, LS)
6 DEs
5 DTs
6 LBs
4 CBs
5 Ss

Again, there's substantial reason to believe the roster will be similarly composed. So here goes:

2 QBs: Matt Schaub and Dan Orlovsky
3 RBs: Steve Slaton, Chris Brown, Arian Foster (over Ryan Moats)
1 FB: Vonta Leach
5 WRs: Andre Johnson, Kevin Walter, Andre Davis, David Anderson, Jacoby Jones
3 TEs: Owen Daniels, James Casey, Anthony Hill
4 OTs: Duane Brown, Cliff Washburn, Eric Winston, Rashad Butler
5 OGs: Antoine Caldwell, Chester Pitts, Kasey Studdard, Mike Brisiel, Chris White. Last year, there were 5 OTs and 4 OGs.
1 C: Chris Myers
3 Special Teamers: P - Matt Turk, K - Kris Brown, LS - Clark Harris
5 DEs: Antonio Smith, Mario Williams, Connor Barwin, Tim Bulman, Jesse Nading
5 DTs: Amobi Okoye, DelJuan Robinson, Frank Okam, Shaun Cody, Jeff Zgonina
6 LBs: Zac Diles, Xavier Adibi, DeMeco Ryans, Brian Cushing, Buster Davis, Kevin Bentley
5 CBs: Jacques Reeves, Fred Bennett, Brice McCain, Glover Quin, Antwaun Molden
4 Ss: Dominique Barber, Eugene Wilson, Nick Ferguson, John Busing

Again, that leaves us with 52 of the 53 spots. I think it's going to come down to:

Rex Grossman: He'll be tough to cut after last night's performance.
Glenn Martinez: Was a fiend on special teams all preseason.
Joel Dreessen: Your basic, but very good, utility TE.

After Anthony Hill's performance last night, I believe Dreessen takes the last spot. While Casey needs some time to mature into the position, Hill is definitely not ready. Dreessen will be the steady hand.

As far as Grossman, I believe there's a chance he still makes the team over Jeff Zgonina. Kubiak hasn't shown any indication he's going to take three QBs, and after last night's game, he seemed pretty non-committal about keeping Rex. Personally, I don't believe Rex makes the team.

I'll be out of town when the cuts are made, but I'll be back this afternoon.

bfd's First Take at the 53-Man Roster

bigfatdrunk — Sun, 23 Aug 2009 23:31:53 -0000

Great discussion last week on the possible composition of the 53-man roster started by Texans-Brocos. Here's my take with a little bit of background.

Last year, the Texans' opening roster consisted of:

2 QBs
3 RBs
1 FB
5 WRs
3 TEs
5 OTs
5 Gs (1 C/G)
1 C
3 Special Teamers (P, K, LS)
6 DEs
5 DTs
6 LBs
4 CBs
5 Ss

I think it's reasonable to believe the 2009 roster will be similarly composed. After last night's game, here's my guess as to how the 53-man is shaping up:

2 QBs: Matt Schaub and Dan Orlovsky
3 RBs: Steve Slaton, Chris Brown, Ryan Moats (depending on his injury)
1 FB: Vonta "Human Coke Machine" Leach
5 WRs: Andre Johnson, Kevin Walter, Andre Davis, David Anderson, Jacoby Jones (almost by default)
3 TEs: Owen Daniels, James Casey, Anthony Hill (no Joel Dreessen, which is our loss)
4 OTs: Duane Brown, Cliff Washburn, Eric Winston, Rashad Butler
5 OGs: Antoine Caldwell, Chester Pitts, Kasey Studdard, Mike Brisiel, Chris White. Last year, there were 5 OTs and 4 OGs.
1 C: Chris Myers (depending on his health, obviously)
3 Special Teamers: P - Matt Turk, K - Kris Brown, LS - Clark Harris
5 DEs: Antonio Smith, Mario Williams, Connor Barwin, Tim Bulman, Jesse Nading
5 DTs: Amobi Okoye, DelJuan Robinson, Frank Okam, Shaun Cody, Jeff Zgonina (no Travis Johnson)
6 LBs: Zac Diles, Xavier Adibi, DeMeco Ryans, Brian Cushing, Buster Davis (depending on Cato June's health), Kevin Bentley
5 CBs: Jacques Reeves, Fred Bennett, Brice McCain, Glover Quin, Antwaun Molden (no Dunta Robinson...just in case)
4 Ss: Dominique Barber, Eugene Wilson, Nick Ferguson, John Busing

Several differences from last year, though nothing crazy. Last year, we carried 6 DEs and 5 DTs, whereas I have us carrying 5 DEs this year. Sadly, I still have us carrying Jeff Zgonina as I just don't see anybody on the roster otherwise. There's the difference in OGs and OTs, and I have us keeping 5 CBs and 4 Ss, where that was swapped last year.

Also, and I doubt you noticed, but I have listed only 52 players for 2009. If Dunta signs, I do believe we'll keep 6 CBs on the roster as I believe the Texans, rightly so, would be afraid to release either McCain or Molden, who are the two I believe to be most on the bubble. I also believe that one of the CBs will be in line for a position change to S.

One guy who really intrigues me is Glenn Martinez, as he was the most "on" last night. He can return punts and kickoffs and looks like an excellent gunner on special teams. As I said in the game thread, he reminds me of Steve Tasker in the way he plays. There's a chance he overtakes Jones, but because we're carrying extra CBs, it'll make it tougher for Martinez to win a job.

What do y'all think?

Contracts, Salary Cap, and the Future?

Riott — Fri, 10 Jul 2009 02:16:59 -0000

With all these questions about new deals for players springing up, and with contract negotiations dominating our attention as Texans fans, I decided to do a quick cap preview for the next 4 years, using InTheBullseye.com, Rotoworld.com, and pulling numbers out of my ass to acquire data to analyze. This examines the hypothetical future for our Houston Texans under new deals for our big name players in question.

According to InTheBullseye.com, for 2009 we are under the cap by about $10 million, and for 2010, with DeMeco Ryans, Mike Brisiel, Ryan Moats, and Tim Bulman (and others) as RFAs, and Chris Brown, Travis Johnson, Chester Pitts, Chaun Thompson, Kevin Walter, and Dunta Robinson (with some more low dollar contracts) as UFAs, we are $39.97 million under. If we pretend that Owen never signed his RFA tender, then we have an unsigned O.D. this year and the cap space for 2009 is $12 million.

Using the benchmarks Tim provided, as well as Rotoworld.com salaries for some comparable players, I established what I feel would be good deals for the three players in question:

DeMeco Ryans – Six years, $48 million contract. The deal includes $24 million guaranteed. 2009: $1.35 million, 2010: $1.85 million, 2011-2013: $4.35 million, 2014: $4.85 million, 2015: $5.5 million, 2016: Free Agent

Dunta Robinson - Four years, $16.8 million contract. The deal contains $8.5 million guaranteed, including a $6 million signing bonus. 2009: $2.15 million, 2010: $2.9 million, 2011: $3.293 million, 2012: Free Agent. (This is Cortland Finnegan’s deal. This is what Dunta deserves, as he hasn’t proven that he is worth a huge deal, but he is still a leader and an impact player if 100%. Undoubtedly, we will pay more than this to keep him, but we shouldn’t.)

Owen Daniels - Six years, $30 million contract. The deal contains $14 million guaranteed, including an $11 million roster bonus in the second year. 2009: $620,000, 2010: $2.325 million, 2011: $3.7 million, 2012: $3.8 million, 2013: $3.85 million, 2014: Free Agent ( This is Chris Cooley’s deal. I think this is too much for Owen, but he is a proven commodity and worth keeping around. HOWEVER, if someone dangles anything that even resembles a first round pick for him...bye Owen, and thanks for all the fish. )

I think those are fair deals. Will they accept them? No, but if they did, let us take a look at our salary cap scenario for the 2009 season. DeMeco’s cap number would be $5.35 million, Dunta's is $4.27 million, and Owen’s is $2.9 million. That allows us to just barely squeak by under the cap for the upcoming season, with probably less than a million dollars of cap space available (Remember, I am rounding).

What about the 2010 season? DeMeco’s cap number would be $5.85 million, Dunta’s at $4.32 million, and Owen’s at $4.65 million. Along with the rest of the salaries on the roster, that leaves $25.15 million left to re-sign Chris Brown (if he doesn’t break his wrist signing), Ferguson (if we still suck at safety after the 2009 season, my brain will explode), Travis Johnson (brain explodes), Chester Pitts (big contract here), Chaun Thompson, Kevin Walter, Matt Turk, Mike Brisiel, Tim Bulman, Ryan Moats, and some back-up fodder. Not too shabby, I think.

After 2011 is even more hypothetical, as there are so many variables as to who will even be here in two years, but for S&Gs let’s take a gander.

2011 is where it starts to get interesting. Mario Williams' cap number is $17-20 million, Andre Johnson’s is $8.675 million, and Schaub’s is $6.86 million, Antonio Smith is going to be about $6 million, and, by now, I bet we have given Steve Slaton a new deal. Lots of money there, plus Leach, Fred Bennett, Bentley, and a whole bunch of backups need new deals.

2012, I firmly believe, will suck. A lot. First, Mario needs a new deal. My stomach turns thinking about how much money I am absolutely willing to spend to keep Mario here: 6 years, $80 million is probably the price tag we will be looking at (if not much more). Schaub, AJ, Antonio Smith, Winston, DeMeco, Dunta, and Owen will all be making a lot of money. We will probably be paying Cushing quite a bit on his rookie deal here as well. We will need to resign Eugene Wilson, Apostrophe, Chris Myers, Dan-O, David Anderson, and if they haven’t already, Steve Slaton. Something’s gotta give, methinks.

The next few years look to be pretty interesting. We have finally reached the negative part of no longer sucking – paying the players who don’t suck. Managing contracts and acquiring cheap talent are going to be important parts of the future. We are going to see our first money casualties in the next few years, and watching one of our real stars leave for cash elsewhere for the first time is going to blow. Hopefully, this gave you guys and gals a little bit better idea of what the future may look like for our Houston Texans.

Sound off below.