re: the "first AFC South Division Crown watch", the only thing I've "watched" so far are more excuses and more mediocrity. *yay*.
We need to win the first 3 and the last 3, and take care of JAX on the road. That should make us 10-6 and win the division. Plus it would create a fairly epic week 17 matchup with the Titans, whom will also likely be 9-6 going into that final game.
Cincinatti and Carolina are not gimmie games by any means. In fact, I'm quite worried about them both. Thank gawd our conference games (vs CLE, @ CIN) are easier than the Titans though (vs CIN, @ BUF).
Carolina is 1-5 after going 2-14 last year. The QB puts up big numbers but they aren't very good as a team at all. It's not a "gimme" in that no game in the NFL really is a gimme, but if the Texans are remotely a playoff team, that's a game they should win, especially at home. Cinci is 4-2, which is pretty impressive. 3 of their wins are against some of the wrost teams in the NFL (Indy, Jax, and a not-quite-as-bad Cleveland) and they have a loss to a bad Denver team. But they do have a win against Buffalo, showing they have some kind of potential there.
Despite the W/L record , the panthers are a decent team that would scare anybody. The Bengals have been surprising to me so far , i thought they only have around 4 wins the whole season.
Cinci will be at home with the NFL's 2nd ranked defense, they're no pushover. And Carolina with a wildcard like Cam Newton should scare the bejesus out of any fan familiar with the Texans propensity to lose games they should win. We can always hope the Titans completely s**t the bed, though.
we're excited and hopeful for the playoffs, because two teams have become absolute jokes and we hope another will "s**t the bed". Does that not seem ridiculously pathetic to anyone else? We need one team's QB to break his neck, another team to fall off the map, and another to "s**t the bed" for us to have a chance to bumble and stumble our way into the playoffs while losing to the freaking Raiders. Mediocrity, thy name is Texans.
Teams like Carolina and Cincinatti are the difference between runnin away with this pathetic division and making the week 17 game must see TV
It doesn't matter how a team gets into the playoffs , you gotta get into the playoffs. If Texans win their division , they will most likely host a wild card team with a better record. But at least the Texans can say they are playing at home ala Seahawks last year.
What's sad is that despite looking just as mediocre as previous years, the Texans will still likely get to the playoffs due to this horrible divison. And then Kubiak will be retained. And next year, we might still win this division if Peyton's really done, and McNair will give Kubiak a life-long contract. Now it's one thing if we truly turn it around and finish with a 11-5 or 12-4 record. But a 9-7 playoff berth would be bittersweet to say the least.
I agree that playoffs are good regardless of how you get there. And, these are my Texans no matter what. But we haven't turned any corner. Not yet.
Sure - if the Texans keep losing games they should win, then Carolina is a concern. My only point is that if Carolina is a concern, we shouldn't even be talking about the playoffs because every game should be a concern. They are 3-19 in their last 22 games, with all 3 wins coming at home. Those wins are against 1-5 Jacksonville, 6-10 San Fran and 5-11 Arizona. If they beat a +0.500 Texans team on the road, that would be a stunner for them.
Seriously. And I'm not on board with the "who cares as long as we make the playoffs" crowd. A first round embarrassment isn't something I'll be happy about. No one respects the garbage that's come out of the NFC West the last several years. The only thing that will change is all the apologists will be ringing the bell about how the Texans are a playoff team, so get off their back! After years of watching Manning go crazy on the sidelines wanting to get back on the field when behind, it's embarrassing watching Schaub turn pale and shrink into a fetal position every 4th quarter.
9-7 is my current prediction, but I can also see them drop off and go 7-9. This is the point in the season where they usually start failing. If the Titans don't totally fall off the road, I'm no longer willing to assume the Texans take the division. With this team coached by Kubiak, you can't take any games for granted.
msn, think about the '97 Astros. Pretty terrible team that won a pretty terrible division. But they got over the hump, dipped their toe in a pool of success... and then absolutely torched in 1998. Sometimes, teams just need to get over the hump first. I will gladly take an underwhelming division title if they can play some meaningful games, learn some things about themselves and then build on it.
so will I, Ric. so will I. Of course, the Astros had had a couple rodeos prior to '97, but your point in general still makes sense.
