HOUSTON -- Houston Texans receiver Andre Johnson ruled out playing against Indianapolis this week as he recovers from a knee sprain. Asked Wednesday if there was any chance he could play against the Colts, Johnson said: "No. I mean as it looks right now, you look at me right now, no I wouldn't be out there on Sunday." The news is a major blow to a team that is 2-0 for the first time in franchise history and preparing to face a major AFC South foe. Rookie Jacoby Jones, who has two catches for 33 yards, will probably start in Johnson's place. Second receiver Kevin Walter has just two receptions for 17 yards. Johnson, who wore a large brace on his injured left knee Wednesday, said he is unsure of when he can return but didn't rule out next week's game. "I'm taking it day-by-day, week-by-week, and doing everything I can to strengthen my leg so I can be back," he said. An MRI Monday revealed no damage that would require surgery. Coach Gary Kubiak listed Johnson's official status for Sunday as doubtful. Johnson sprained his knee during the fourth quarter of the Texans 34-21 win over the Panthers on Sunday. He fell awkwardly on the knee after a 10-yard reception and remained on the turf for several minutes. He walked off the field on his own but was limping on the sideline. Johnson, who has missed just three games in his five-year career, said being on the sidelines Sunday will be difficult. "I'll probably be the team's biggest cheerleader," he said. "I'm going to go out and encourage these guys as much as I can." Johnson had seven catches for 120 yards and two touchdowns Sunday. His 262 yards receiving in the first two games rank fourth in the NFL. http://sports.espn.go.com/nfl/news/story?id=3027158
Im gonna hold out hope until the last second. Without AJ, I think we can still win with good ball control and no turnovers. The last time we beat these guys, AJ didnt have much of an impact. I think Schaub will do a good job of spreading the ball around and keeping the Indy defense off balance. And if we lose...well, AJ didnt play, so it doesnt count.
I read his whole comments on houstontexans.com and he is out for now. With or without him, WE ARE GOING TO WIN
i think so too. i don't believe AJ would be a focal point against the Colts, anyway. nice to have...but it won't kill us to be without him.
time for jacobey and the other andre to step up. it hurts, but there is still a chance. Especially when you consider that texans will look to control the clock by running the ball
The key to this game is going to be on the D Line putting up a great performance. If the Texans can put pressure on Manning, they can win without AJ. If they don't, they can't win even with AJ.
I hope so. This would be the perfect time for a coming out party. I hope he didn't get a big head because of the preseason. Preseason doesn't count. He hasn't done anything yet.
kubiak was going to use a smash mouth offensive game plan just like last year's victory. i am sure they are still going to use this game plan again and hand the ball off to green and dayne all day long. still dre is needed to keep the defensive backfield honest with a couple of deep passes. hopefully jacoby can successfully fill in for dre.
It's all good, RyanWagner and I will be in Club Yellow Lot at 8 am taking beer bongs 15 and 45 and shotgun 30 at the top and bottom of every hour. AJ needs to be ready to go on October 14th vs J-Ville we will be 4-0 and him being back will give us the boost we need.
Dear Mr. Kubiak, Since Jacoby Jones is on my fantasy team would you please please please consider starting him....(even though you want him in the slot, he is better than Davis and Mathis) If you do I believe he will have a break out game, Sincerely, rhester
Not surprising. Andre is incredibly valuable to our team, but losing Schaub would have been much worse. I'm not sure that we are going to win without Andre, but like others have said, he didn't have a huge impact on the victory against the Colts last year. Ahman Green and Ron Dayne need to really step it up and our other receivers need to prove that they can make plays.
The Titans had a chance to win against the Colts and didn't run or throw the ball well against them. Even w/o AJ, I think we still have a chance to win this game, but it will be our defense that needs to step up the most.
My fantasy team!!! NO! Well, I'm gonna be a homer and taking a risk. I picked up Jacoby earlier and if he can get what AJ has gotten, that'd be sweet.
the way I figure...in order for the Texans to get to the next level, Schaub is going to have to learn to use all his weapons...and if Jacoby Jones is ever going to have a coming out party....it might as well be on Sunday
I posted something similar in the game thread, but I'll post it here as well. I think that the Texans have a very legitimate chance at winning, but here is what needs to happen IMO : 1) Ahman Green and Ron Dayne have to be ready to carry 60% of this offense on Sunday. The way you beat the Colts is by keeping Peyton Manning off the field, and the way you keep him off the field is by running the ball. So far, the Texans running attack has been adequate and consistent, 2 things that are going to have to remain if we want a shot at beating the Colts. 2) Jacoby Jones, Kevin Walter, Owen Daniels, and Andre Davis are going to have to catch anything that comes near them all afternoon. Without Andre Johnson in the game to stretch the defense, Bob Sanders is going to crowd the box and put pressure on Schaub all game long. If we can make them play an earnest pass defense, that will allow our running game a little more space. 3) The defensive line HAS to get pressure on Manning the entire game. If we give Peyton Manning a chance to go through his reads, he will burn us. It's just that simple. We have to make it so that if the Colts are to win, it'll have to be on the ground. Our run defense ranks in the top 5 in the league right now in yards allowed, so this would force them to play into our strength. 4) Finally, we have to do OUR part. Those of us fortunate enough to be going to the game need to show up early, wear steel blue, and BE LOUD! WE ARE ALL TEXANS!!! 3-0 BABY!
