Chron: Texans starters to play more against Cowboys

I hope to go to this game to cheer on my Texans!!

http://www.chron.com/cs/CDA/ssistory.mpl/sports/3319673

For Capers, Big D still holds the key
Texans starters to see more work against Cowboys
By JOHN MCCLAIN
Copyright 2005 Houston Chronicle

The best thing about the Texans' third preseason game at Dallas on Saturday night is the starters will play more than they did in the loss to Denver or the victory over Oakland.

Like the coaches, the fans should have a better idea of how far along the starters are when they watch the Texans play the Cowboys.

"We've been looking at a lot of young players in our first two games, but in this game, we're going to play the starters a little longer and do more game-week preparation," coach Dom Capers said Sunday. "There have been some positives in all three phases, but there are a lot of things we need to work on."

Based on Saturday's 19-17 victory over the Raiders, the Texans need their offense to stay the course and the defense to show significant improvement against the Cowboys.

For the second consecutive game, quarterback David Carr led the offense on an impressive opening drive.

Against the Broncos, the Texans failed to score from the one on four running plays. But Saturday, the Texans scored against Oakland on Carr's two-yard pass to Reggie Swinton.


Big-play bummer
The defense was another story. It allowed scoring drives of 72 and 74 yards on Oakland's first two possessions. Kerry Collins threw touchdown passes of four and 70 yards to Doug Gabriel.

"One of the positives on offense is that we haven't turned the ball over in two games," Capers said. "We spend a lot of time in practice on that, and we talk a lot about the importance of winning the give-away, take-away battle.

"I'm disappointed in the big plays that were made against our defense. We allowed too many big plays in the running and passing games. We're always disappointed when we give up touchdowns, especially on big plays like that long pass.

"We have to improve our consistency on defense. But the defense battled back after those first two series. We made two crucial interceptions in the end zone (by safeties Marcus Coleman and Jason Simmons), and any time you do that, you're taking points off the board for them. After those first two series, we kept them out of the end zone."


End in sight
The Texans will end the preseason at Tampa Bay on Sept. 1 before starting preparations for the opener against host Buffalo on Sept. 11.

The Cowboys represent a make-or-break game for many of the players. Rosters must be reduced to 65 on Aug. 30, not counting players who have NFL Europe exemptions. The final roster reduction is Sept. 3 (to 53 players).

Players then can be signed to the eight-man practice squad.

"There's no doubt that our decisions will be the toughest we've had to make," Capers said. "We've got better competition and more depth because this is our fourth year.

"When we make those decisions, special teams have to be factored in so many cases. The players know they only get so many chances to show what they can do, and they better take advantage of them."

The victory over the Raiders was achieved with many reserves on the field, but the week will be more enjoyable than one following a loss — even if it was just an exhibition game.


Poise a plus
"There's a lot to learn from the Oakland game, and one thing is that if you fall behind, keep your focus and don't lose your poise, you've got a chance to win," Capers said. "Right now, players are going through the process of learning what it takes to win. You can talk about all these things, but when they experience it, it has a far bigger impact."

john.mcclain@chron.com