<blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p>Kubiak now at podium. Said there are many problems, but consistently the 1 main problem has been third and long.</p>— Houston Texans (@HoustonTexans) <a href="https://twitter.com/HoustonTexans/status/283226296383840258" data-datetime="2012-12-24T15:03:05+00:00">December 24, 2012</a></blockquote> <script async src="//platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script> <blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p>Kubiak: To have 12 3rd down plays and not one was a run was disturbing. We haven't run the ball well the last month.</p>— Houston Texans (@HoustonTexans) <a href="https://twitter.com/HoustonTexans/status/283226803496165378" data-datetime="2012-12-24T15:05:06+00:00">December 24, 2012</a></blockquote> <script async src="//platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script> <blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p>Kubiak: OLB Reed got sore, which was expected. But no setbacks. RB Foster is getting some tests run today, but all has been positive.</p>— Houston Texans (@HoustonTexans) <a href="https://twitter.com/HoustonTexans/status/283226563917520896" data-datetime="2012-12-24T15:04:09+00:00">December 24, 2012</a></blockquote> <script async src="//platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script> <blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p>Kubiak: Brooks Reed (groin) "got sore" yesterday. <a href="https://twitter.com/search/%23Texans">#Texans</a> expected that. There were no setbacks & he's moving forward</p>— Nick Scurfield (@NickScurfield) <a href="https://twitter.com/NickScurfield/status/283226838183075842" data-datetime="2012-12-24T15:05:14+00:00">December 24, 2012</a></blockquote> <script async src="//platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script> <blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p>Kubiak: "Running some tests w/ Arian (Foster) just to make sure, but everything has been positive. Expecting him to be back also." <a href="https://twitter.com/search/%23Texans">#Texans</a></p>— Nick Scurfield (@NickScurfield) <a href="https://twitter.com/NickScurfield/status/283226958601547777" data-datetime="2012-12-24T15:05:43+00:00">December 24, 2012</a></blockquote> <script async src="//platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script> <blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p>Kubiak: "Obviously, we’ve got a problem on 3rd downs right now. Has not been good the last 3 weeks." <a href="https://twitter.com/search/%23Texans">#Texans</a></p>— Nick Scurfield (@NickScurfield) <a href="https://twitter.com/NickScurfield/status/283227227066355712" data-datetime="2012-12-24T15:06:47+00:00">December 24, 2012</a></blockquote> <script async src="//platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script> <blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p>Kubiak: "Consistent issue is 3rd & long. 12 third down plays yesterday & not 1 of them was a run." <a href="https://twitter.com/search/%23Texans">#Texans</a></p>— Nick Scurfield (@NickScurfield) <a href="https://twitter.com/NickScurfield/status/283227453269372928" data-datetime="2012-12-24T15:07:41+00:00">December 24, 2012</a></blockquote> <script async src="//platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script> <blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p>"Everybody is thankful that things are going good. It’ll be great to see him back on the sidelines this week." Kubiak on Chuck Pagano</p>— Nick Scurfield (@NickScurfield) <a href="https://twitter.com/NickScurfield/status/283227835223658497" data-datetime="2012-12-24T15:09:12+00:00">December 24, 2012</a></blockquote> <script async src="//platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script> <blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p>"He is encouraging as a coach because he can be physically dominant." Kubiak on rookie G Brandon Brooks <a href="https://twitter.com/search/%23Texans">#Texans</a></p>— Nick Scurfield (@NickScurfield) <a href="https://twitter.com/NickScurfield/status/283228256013012993" data-datetime="2012-12-24T15:10:53+00:00">December 24, 2012</a></blockquote> <script async src="//platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script> <blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p>Kubiak "I thought we were ready to play, but obviously we did not play very well. We’ll regroup and move on." <a href="https://twitter.com/search/%23Texans">#Texans</a></p>— Nick Scurfield (@NickScurfield) <a href="https://twitter.com/NickScurfield/status/283228759560183808" data-datetime="2012-12-24T15:12:53+00:00">December 24, 2012</a></blockquote> <script async src="//platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
Random musings as I rewatched our offensive plays, focusing on the passing game. I do think Schaub gets way to locked in on Andre. At the end of the first drive that resulted in a FG, it was 3rd and 10. Minnesota rushed 3 and dropped 8. Schaub threw it to Andre who ran a 3 yard route and was double covered and the pass was incomplete. On the same play, Walter ran a short route on the opposite side of the field and was open (though he wouldn't have had the first down), and Posey found a hole in the zone and was wide open on a deeper out route that would've picked up the first down. The next drive we go 3 and out. On 3rd and 10, Andre's open on a short curl so Schaub throws him the ball. Arian's coming out of the backfield and is open and has momentum. That would've been a short throw too but he had room to run and make something happen, Andre didn't. I couldn't see what the other receivers were doing on the play. Sometimes Schaub doesn't let plays develop and takes the first thing remotely available. 2nd quarter, 2:30 left, first play of the drive. Schaub tries to throw an out to Walter (who is covered well) but is errant and the ball sails out of bounds. Right after he starts his throwing motion, Andre makes his first cut on a crossing route and is open. Also Graham gets wide open with room to run and would've probably gained 20 yards on the play. 3rd down of that drive, 9 to go, we finally have all our recievers (5, including Daniels and Foster who's split out wide) run routes past the first down marker. But the Vikings bring a corner blitz, Winfield unblocked, and Schaub is on the ground before anyone can get open. The next drive, the one to end the half. Same thing. 3rd and 10, we run 5 receivers past the marker. But Ryan Harris gets beat easily, Schaub gets pressured and makes an errant throw despite Andre being open. 3rd quarter. After the Minnesota turnover and the barely missed bomb to Andre. 2nd down, nobody is open initially, Derrick Newton gets bull rushed back into the pocket and Schaub has to scramble. Nobody's open and Schaub has to throw it away. Duane Brown gets called for a hold. Newton gets beat quickly on the next play too but Schaub is able to get the ball out in time to Graham. On 3rd an 8, Schaub goes underneath to Tate who only ran a 2 yard route even though Posey is wide open on a curl route on the sideline, right around the marker. 4th quarter, 3rd and 3 in our own end. Schaub's not being pressured but he takes the first available receiver which is Graham running to the flat, short of the marker. We end up at 4th and inches. Andre and Walter are running short slant routes but Schaub has thrown the ball before they make their cuts. Walter looks like he would've been open. Andre might have been given an extra half second. Both would've been past the marker. So what I saw earlier in the game was a lot of favoritism to Andre. Sometimes justified and sometimes not. The first few 3rd and longs, we ran Andre on short routes. Why? I get why maybe you don't want everybody to run 10+ yard routes because it puts too many defenders in the same area, but why are you running your best receiver, your QB's favorite target, 3 yards past the line of scrimmage on 3rd and long? After two unconverted 3rd and longs, Kubes tries a different tactic, running everybody past the marker. Our O-Line can't protect long enough for the longer routes to develop. The Vikings run a corner blitz, but Arian is split wide so there's nobody to pick him up. Then Newton gets beat and Schaub gets hurried. Of course, the big problem is that we're in so many 3rd and longs to begin with. It was rarely 3rd and short. I do remember a 3rd and 2. We ran a fake toss to Foster and ran Schaub on the bootleg. The linebackers didn't bite and there was nowhere to go with the ball and Schaub had to throw it away. The lack of the running game killed us. You can't get yards on 1st and 2nd down, you run for no gain and/or throw an incompletion and you're behind the ball and that happened a lot on Sunday. My biggest direct criticism of Schaub is his willingness to take the first thing that comes available and not letting plays develop, even if a successful completion will be far short of what we need. The 2 short passes to Andre that resulted in 4th downs. Missing Posey a couple of times when he was wide open at the first down marker. Immediately throwing the ball to Graham short of the first down, not letting Andre and Walter come out of their breaks which were on short routes too, but ones that would've given us first down. It's like if he's not initially looking to throw the ball further down field (and I mean like only 10 yards), then he's more than happy to get rid of the ball quickly on a 2-4 yard curl in the middle or pass it out to the flat. That might be OK on 1st or 2nd down, we're picking up positive yardage. But you can't consistently do that on 3rd and long. It doesn't work. Finally, Newton at RT freakin' sucks and Harris is probably worse. Not only in the running game but the passing game as well. Schaub is almost always scrambling to the right because Newton will get beat and the only thing he can do try to redirect the DE away from the pocket a bit to give Schaub space to escape. People b****ed about Eric Winston sometimes but I'd much rather have him back at RT instead of those two. The biggest mistake by Ric Smith in the offseason was thinking we could let go the right side of our O-Line and that we'd be OK.
Whatever happened to our sugar huddle?? We were yelling for kubes to change it up as it was obvious the game plan we came in w was going nowhere. Change the tempo, sling it around, add some wrinkles... Anything!
Our backup safeties, Demps and Keo, suck and make boneheaded plays. That long Luck TD in the 2nd quarter of the Colts game was on Demps. I don't know if he got hurt or if he got benched, but Demps was inactive yesterday which is why Keo saw time at safety.
I still trying to figure out why we have such a hard time getting Andre into the Endzone These 12 catch 134 yr and 0 TD games are bothersome Rocket River
AJ should always be on the field when it's down and goal. Kubes for whatever reason likes to go 3 TEs. how can you not have your best reciever out there?
Certainly it didn't influence Kubiak's decision, but that's the game plan you heard about... everywhere. All week. Just saying it was predictable.
Neither Adrian Peterson or Ponder killed us. the blame is solely on the offensive side of the ball...oline, foster, schaub.
Ponder himself ran more yards on a single play than Foster and Tate did combined for the whole ******* game.
It's clear that we'll be drafting an offensive linemen with our first. The O line needs to man up. They get the majority of the blame for yesterday's disaster.
All I know is that 3rd and long is our crux, too far for a run but Kubes will do it anyway because he knows any semblance of pressure to Schaub and Schaub will just throw it away. We're an easy team to gameplan against and it's painfully obvious now. I don't hear the "the most balanced team" label about us anymore.
Don't be so sure, the oline is young with Newton, Jones and Brooks, I could see them letting Barwin walk and going pass rush again.
The ILB opposite Cushing is a 2 down player. No business taking a 2 down player with our 1st round pick.
