Can Texans maintain being the #1 defense in NFL?-lol

" lol " ??

How old are you, 13?

- Sincerely,
Smilies guy

 

LOL

 

This, to me, is why being a knee-jerk, angry, pessimistic Texan (sports) fan cannot possibly be any fun. This isn't *that* big a shock. They've had an elite offense three years running. Wade Phillips has always been a highly-regarded DC. Their defense was anemic last year. It stood to reason that even a slight upgrade, defensively, would likely lead to a much better season. Throw-in what we all thought was a pretty reasonable schedule (beyond the first six weeks, and that was BEFORE Manning was lost for the year) and... we're about where we should be.

If anything, you could actually argue they've been ever-so-slightly disappointing, letting a big 4Q lead in NO slip away and losing at home to an inferior Oakland team.

Once they pounded Tennessee, any old hang-ups I had were completely gone. No Texan team has EVER gone on the road and done that in a game that mattered against a (supposedly) quality opponent. There is not a team left on their schedule better than the Texans, IMO.

 

...but you wouldn't let anyone get away with doing that.

 

I want that feeling to stop...that feeling of "when will they f*** it up?"

Now that the possibility of 5-7 has gone by the wayside, I feel a lot more confident. Looking at the schedule, I want to believe there is no reason they can't finish out 6-1 and go 12-4 and get a bye. But the Texans fan in me says, "Whoa there. Gary Kubiak is still the head coach. Be happy with a playoff spot."

 

i was being a little sarcastic, but you cannot honestly tell me you thought 100% wade would have this impact, from worst (almost) to first. i knew they would be better but this has exceeded what i thought was possible in 1 year with no off-season.

we basically got a new dc, 1 fa corner, 1 fa safety (out last few games), and 1 rookie dl. everything else has stayed the same except the results.

 

Keep in mind two things: We've never had an opportunioty to truly evaluate Gary Kubiak in this environment. If you look back at the '09 and '10 seasons, I don't see "must win" games that fall in Kubiak's circle of blame. That brutal '09 stretch, when they lost 4 in row after starting 5-3, the margins of defeat were 3, 3, 8 and 5. And in 3 of those games, players were put in position to tie/win the game (if I'm remembering the Jacksonville game correctly). Even last year, they were 4-3 and then lost just 3 brutal games in a row (SD, Jax, NYJ) where... again, I saw a team in position to win (or go into OT) in all 3.

You can certainly bottom line that and put it on the coach but... And I know it was derided and mocked - but he did rally both teams to finish strong and I don't think that's irrelevant. I think he has the respect of his players. No one has quit on that guy in his six years here.

The other thing to remember, and I think this is flying under the radar - Kubiak has a pretty seasoned former HC on his sidelines again. Kubiak seemed to regress once Sherman left; now he has Phillips with him and I think that's mighty helpful; a good sounding board/advisor.

 

Worst to first? No, of course not. But I absolutely bought into the idea of bringing in a top defensive mind and signed off on the Phillips hiring immediately. Throughout the offseason, as fans lamented what they were sure would be an idle Texan team, I flew the flag high and proud that free agents or no free agents, Wade Phillips alone would be a significant offseason upgrade.

 

More than Phillips as a former HC, it's Phillips as a non-moronic DC that has things turned around, and beyond non-moronic, it's Phillips as an elite DC that has things turned around so unbelievably. #1???????? Holy crap.

 

I knew from the preseason games that we would have a top defense. This is not at all surprising to me. I have been boasting about the defense since week 1. Everyone was calling me crazy for saying we would have a top 5 defense. Now look at us No 1, with some favorable opponents in the future.

With the way Schaub has been improving over these past weeks, We are becoming one of the best Teams in the NFL