Before the start of the season the general consensus was that Texans would win 6-8 games, representing a step forward from last year but nothing to get too excited about. I think we can all agree that this team still has holes, but based on a stat that came across my ESPN mobile app, teams that start 2-0 reach the playoffs 63% of the time. It's not farfetched to see the schedule playing out as so: @Giants - W Bills - W @Cowboys - L Colts - W @Steelers - W @Titans - L Eagles - L @Browns - W Bengals - L Titans - W @Jags - W @Colts - L Ravens - L Jags - W That would get the Texans to 10-6 and likely a wild card berth into the playoffs or even an AFC South Division title. With that said, have your expectations for the season changed from where they were 15 days ago? Would an 8-8 season be a disappointment? Personally, I'm cautiously optimistic. This team has let us all down in the past but maybe the new coaching staff has successfully instilled the culture of mental toughness that was missing in the previous regime. Heck, I wanted to give the Texans a win @Cowboys and @Titans but I'm not ready to project 12-4.
My expectations have changed a little. I'm more confident in the defense than I was going into the season but I think we need to face a competent QB. I still don't believe 10-6 is probable. If any of 4 stars on our team are injured (Watt, Cushing, Johnson, Foster) this team could easily slip to 8-8.
Losing to the Cowboys, Titans, and Ravens would be a little bit embarrassing, but I could see 10-6 happening and IMO that would be enough to win the division.
Last year the Texans started off 2-0 as well. I do hope the Texans can make it back to the playoffs though
hah, I thought the same thing. I think the first real challenge will be week 4 vs. Buffalo. The Bills are playing well & are very physical. It will be tough to run on them.
It'd be nice if at least one of the games with the Jags was early in the season so we'd face Henne. It'll probably be Bortles by the time we play them which could be a challenge if he picks up where he left off in the preseason.
Maybe if we had beaten a couple of good teams, sure. Until I see them beat some decent teams, I really couldn't care less. I'm happy they won, but these 2 games haven't proven anything to me other than they can beat bad teams or teams playing badly. Then again, that may be a step up from last year. lol.
I don't expect fitzpatrick to play this well on average. He hasn't been asked to do much but he has done what they needed him to do almost flawlessly.
Coming into the season, I felt there were two possibilities with our team. 1. We sucked last season because we simply were a horrible team. We were a true 2-14 team and basically the only major changes (coach, QB) weren't really upgrades means we're not really much better if at all. Given that BOB is new and Fitzpatrick is lol. 2. We sucked last year because the team quit, locker room was horrible, Kubiak lost control, and we actually had the talent to be close to the team that was a pick-6 way from beating the SB champions in NFL's biggest home field advantage. At this point, signs simply point towards the Texans being close to possibility #2 rather than #1. In some ways I'm happy. In other ways it does make it less likely we can get our franchise QB in next year's draft.
I've heard people mention it's better to not be good because we need a high pick to get our franchise guy lonf term. Dating back to 00, only 5 of the 15 SB winning QB's were drafted in the top half of the first round by the champ. So it's a myth that you need a high pick to find a guy that can win you a SB. I always thought this was a 7-9 win team, this roster wasn't 2-14 bad. I knew exactly what to expect from Fitz, so this isn't really a surprise. I would obviously like to make the playoffs, but I still don't expect to, although it's certainly not unrealistic.
I'm super pumped about how we've done. I thought we would be one of the bottom 5 teams in the NFL about I think we'll end up in the group above that. I think we can get to 7 wins when you look at how relatively weak our schedule is. I'm glad we played Washington in weak 1 because I think they are going to get a lot better as the season rolls on. Oakland was just bad. Still, it's a good sign when a team beats teams it should beat. This is IF (I can't stress how massive that if is) our main guys can stay healthy. AJ, Foster and Cush were the biggest concerns at the start of the season and then Clowney comes in and tears up his knee and is knocked out for half the season. That's really pushing our luck considering the probability one of those other guys doesn't go down. Pleasantly surprised so far and I hope it keeps coming.
If 33% of SB winning QBs come from top-15 picks instead of picks 16-end of draft, I'm not sure you're making a good argument against tanking. It clearly shows that having a higher pick does lead to higher likelihood of getting that franchise QB. Not that I want the Texans to tank, but it's not easy to watch Ryan Fitzpatrick as the QB even when the team's blowing away the competition.
My expectations have changed simply because of the way which we beat the two teams. Yes, we started off 2-0 last year as well but those 2 wins were EXTREMELY lucky and showcased our flaws as a team and left you feeling shaky as a fan about how they would do for the rest of the season, which ironically ended being 0-14. Now, after these first two teams we beat, I feel alot more confident about what this team can do, especially with the schedule we have this year which is MUCH easier than last year's
Yeah after 2 overtime wins where we actually looked pretty bad. 2-0 this year with a easier schedule and better coaching staff makes a big difference.
8-8 still looks like the call after 2. There are 4 quarterbacks I'd like to have: Petty, Hundley, Mariotta and Winston. One should still be there at 16.