Peyton Manning, after Sunday's loss: “I would like to have played a lot better. Just no consistency all night. I thought Philly just out-executed us.” “Philly has an excellent team. I thought they really executed their defense well. They have excellent players. I think when we look at film, we'll see some things we just didn't do good enough. “The offense has to do a better job. That starts with me.” ++++++++ See? They *ALL* - coaches, players - say the exact same thing. You just have to hear it/pay closer attention to it 16 weeks in a row with the Texans and Kubiak. I don't think his pressers are any reason for concern. He's purposefully not saying anything that would alienate his players - thus Kubiak's constant, "It's on me" mantra.
No leadership. So sad when the other team just wants it more and your guys just can't dig down deep and find that extra 10% along with that fieriness. If there's one thing you can't win games without in this league, it's HEART. ./throwingupinmymouth .
LOL, I think this is the first official "callout" thread directed towards me since I've been here - and I've been here a long time. FWIW, I never said his pressers were anything more than just mind numbingly annoying. And I reserve the right to make fun of them.
You really needed a new thread for this? And for someone who is 'definitely NOT defending Kubiak' you sure are working hard at it.
Yeah, I kind of feel like I'm sliding back into David Carr territory, lol: In an effort to try and balance out the vitriol, I slip further and further into defending the guy. Honestly, I haven't really made up my mind about Kubiak, and probably won't until I see how the season plays out. It seems silly to me to get too upset with 8 games left. I mean - if they go 12-4, a lot of people are going to be backtracking. And that's not a cop-out. I obviously don't expect them to do it - but stranger things have happened. If he's a good coach, he'll get 6 wins out of this team, they'll make the playoffs, and he'll save his job. At the same time, I certainly understand everyone's frustration - I'm right there with 'em on a lot of it. If the Texans win 8 or 9 games again, I'd probably suggest: Fire Rick Smith and hire an experienced GM; rip player personnel control from Kubiak; and force him to hire a seasoned, winning defensive coordinator. I might also strongly suggest that he hires an experienced former head coach who can help him manage the game better. I'm probably not as down on him as a coach as I am on him as a GM. To me, putting too much faith in inexperienced players and coaches has been his greatest falure.
Yes, it does. But a lot of us who are upset aren't just upset about this season. To be honest, he lost my support after the MNF loss to the titans last year. I defended him up until that point. Let's make it interesting. If that happens, I will "backtrack" all up and down Kirby, during rush hour, for the entire week leading up to the playoff game - in the nude. You mean like when Bud Adams forced Jack Pardee to hire Buddy Ryan? What could possibly go wrong? Spoiler <object width="480" height="385"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/bPK3cDl7Ftw?fs=1&hl=en_US"></param><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"></param><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/bPK3cDl7Ftw?fs=1&hl=en_US" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="480" height="385"></embed></object> But seriously, it sounds like you want to turn him into an intern or something. If you're going to take that much power away from him, why keep him in the first place?
Honestly? The offense. I would be very concerned about turning it over to someone else - unless the guy was Gruden or someone else familiar with what he's doing here. I actually briefly suggested last year that Shanahan would have been the *ideal* replacement. That's why Cowher concerns me. Not only are we looking at a revamped defense, but this is not the style of offense he has traditionally used. Cowher, to me, feels like a total rebuild on both sides. Then again: Cowher's no dummy; maybe he keeps the offensive side as is and works on the defense. I think McNair probably gave Kubiak more than he could chew way back in 2006. This would be a course correction that avoids any whiff of a complete revamp. It keeps the offense intact, addesses the team's greatest issue and brings in a new perspective on player personnel that has the skins to challenge Kubiak when he wants to... oh, I don't know: hand his secondary over to two 15-years old and a couple of retread safeties when they're still playing Peyton Manning twice a year.
People are upset because they see squandered opportunity and what looks like another year of watching the playoffs from home, if not a flat out losing record. They blew their chance in 2008, they blew an even better chance in 2009, and now they look to have already blown their chance in 2010 with 3 losses (2 inexplicable, Cowboys/Chargers, and 1 that was winnable, Colts). If we had cupcakes left on the schedule left to cream I'd be more patient, but we look like we're ready to take a solid thrashing to end the year. People are ready to hang Kubiak, and I can't blame them.
Yeah, no - I get why people are upset; *I'm upset*. But all the "Fire Kubiak", "the Texans suck" rhetoric - right now - feels a little premature. There will be *plenty* of time for that if they roll into the station with fewer than 10 wins. I look at these final 8 weeks as a golden opportunity. They will play 6 teams that can, right now, consider themselves legitimate wild card contenders. On paper, this sets up nicely for them. Again: all on paper.
My hats off to you for your optimism. I can't see us pulling more than 4 wins out of this stretch, I really can't.
The problem is that we have been down this road for the last three years, and patience has run out. Yes, if he gets 6 wins in the final 8, he's a good coach -- but the past two years (and more relevantly, the past two games) tell us how much of an anomaly that would be for him if that did happen. If this were an ordinary season, there would still be plenty of hope. One game out of first place through half of the season. Hey, that's not bad for the Texans. But, this is 5 years in and there is absolutely no reason we shouldn't be at minimum a 10 win team, but here we are at a point that we're going to have to get extremely lucky for that to happen. I've been patient with Kubiak, supported him after we won the last four games last year and he got the extension last season (i supported that with the condition that this year he must make us at minimum a 10 win team), yet here we are again right on the cusp of going 8-8 or 9-7, if even that. I realize that the NFL can be very funny sometimes, and it's entirely possible that we win 6 more games. I'm just pissed off beyond reason that we just blew the last two games, when both were VERY winnable and would have vaulted us into contender status. Yet here we are again, hoping and praying for another desperate winning streak so we'll even have a shot at the playoffs ... when we could be talking about going for 11+ wins had we won the last two. A good team would have won these past two games, plain and simple.
I have no optimism whatsoever, lol. Recognizing a golden opportunity is one thing, thinking they'll take advantage of it is another. I'm fully prepared for 7-9 wins.
This is so on point. And, it needs to be given more credence. Many Houston fans are so done with "here we go again" moments. I felt precisely the same way each of the last two weeks. When, when, WHEN will we have a football team in the football capital of the freaking world that delivers something other than excuses and "maybe next year"?
You see this as a "golden opportunity". I see it as a "inevitable royal ass-kicking". I'd say you're slightly more optimistic than me.
I agree with this. Cower is the sexy pick, but I can see the team going back to the way it was under Capers. Cower almost seems to me like a guy that was just in the right place at the right time in Pittsburgh. A defensive-minded coach with a team/franchise whose entire legacy has been built on defense. I'm intrigued by your suggestion of Jimmy Johnson in another thread. He may be anxious to erase the memory of his time in Miami and give it another go. You certainly can't argue with his GM pedigree after what he helped build in dallas. And you know bringing him in here would instantly convert half the cowboy fans living in Houston into Texan fans. McNair would certainly like that. Oh, by the way...he also won a Superbowl 3 years after going 1-15. If nothing else, it certainly would put an end to this kind of thing: Spoiler
No! Don't invoke the Dark Times! So in other words make him an offensive coordinator. I dont' see the point. I doubt Kubiak would really stick around for that anyway; it's rare that a coach will get so many duties taken away from him but stay and let it happen. I see it as a combination of the two. Failing to utilize Foster correctly in the game plan is a coaching mistake, for example. Someone who will actually keep going with what works, like running Foster while he's carving a defense up? Someone who would actually plan ahead on crucial downs? Someone who actually knows the yardage necessary on a critical 3rd down? At this point I'm concerned if we don't consider turning it over to someone else. Believe me, if we really do go 12-4 the rest of the way and storm into the playoffs I would be thrilled. And I'm not even saying that we can't still at least make it into the playoffs. But the criticism of Kubiak at this point is well justified. And unless he suddenly stops making these kind of mistakes the rest of the year it's pretty clear he's just not a very good head coach.
You don't keep Kubiak around if the option is stripping him of power or firing him. Not after 5 years. IMO, if they do not make the playoffs again, it's apparent to me that Kubiak has taken this team as far as he could. It's a great deal better than the previous regime that I'd rather not name. But it's beyond time to take that next step. Offensively, there is only one currently available candidate...Jon Gruden. I think he'd be the ideal coach for this franchise. He's got everything needed to take this franchise to the next level.
