Ah, the refreshing stench of desperation accompanied by the enabling illusion of deniability with just the right amount of rationalization. Haven't seen this much cow manure written about an SOB player since last year when all of the smug Rockets' fans around here lined up to kiss Ron Artest's big black behind.
We can put this one to rest, from Chron twitter... ChronicleTexans "It wasn't a good fit for us at this time," GM Rick Smith said of Larry Johnson
Yes, not happening. Confirmed by Mark Berman, and well Chron twitter as rockets934life pointed out. http://www.myfoxhouston.com/dpp/sports/nfl/091110_johnson_wont_become_texan
Good. Guy hits women, slurs gays, slacks off in meetings, rags on his coaches, and doesn't play good football anymore. No reason to think he'd be an upgrade.
Interestingly enough, we also took a look at Edgerrin James last week. Tell ya anything about the RB spot?
I think the main reason he sucked so bad was because he didn't won't to be in KC. If he goes to a team where he knows they don't need him, but he needs them things could change.
One, show me one ounce of proof to back up your statement about Smith being a puppet. You are talking out of your ass. Did you read that from Richard Justice or something? You haven't been in the front office or the locker room, thus you don't know who's really making the calls. Don't you think that if Smith had no input, Dunta would've gotten whatever he wanted and been in camp? And DeMeco and OD would've already been re-signed in that case. On top of all that, it's been stated before that Smith makes the final call on draft picks. Two, those dynasties took more than seven years to establish, and have not been dynasties in over 20 and 15 years, respectively. If you think bringing in no-talent headcases like Larry Johnson is going to propel any team to a dynasty, you are out of your mind. Pacman Jones and Terrell Owens actually had talent, and look how well they worked out in Dallas. I want winners too. The problem is that Larry Johnson is not a winner. He was a decent back that had two monster years, 3 years ago, because he was a product of a good offensive line and scheme. He was overworked, and is now nearly 30- the age that running back after running back has fallen off in production. And he has fumble problems. I would say that I look forward to hearing your call in on one of tomorrow's local sportsradio shows, because you remind me so much of one of them- but I usually change the station at that point.
I'm surprised I'm saying this but I'd have to agree with DieHard on this one. It should tell you something when the 27th ranked rushing team in the league passes on both Edge & LJ. They are obviously not worth the risk. And to everyone that is comparing him to Cedric Benson, please don't. Cedric started all of one year in Chicago and if it wasn't for that boating incident he'd still be there with Forte. He still had talent and youth, these other two guys have none of that.
yeah, i mean its not like they didn't get out of the 1st round after 12 seasons and all. two totally separate situations, Ron Artest worked out damn well for the Rockets
Yeah right and how is that working out for the Rockets right now? Let's see: the flushed away yet another young player AND a draft choice for a psycho b*stard who is now playing for the Lakers. Yeah, that worked out really well. It's this kind of short-sighted thinking born of desperation that is the highlight of the last 13 years for the Rockets. Didn't the Texans flush away 2 years of this with Ahman Green? Kubiak went into this season with the smug attitude that the ZBS could work with the RBs on the roster. OK, fine. He clung to that position week after week despite evidence to the contrary i.e. the anemic rushing attack. Now in midstream, folks want to go out and get Ahman Green, the sequel, and pretend that is the magic bullet that will transform this team into a playoff team. Sorry but the time to get a franchise back was two years ago when they handed the ball (and a lot of money) to Green. If LJ is the answer, then why is his butt out on the street? It's not like KC was so stocked with RBs that he couldn't get on the field. He's this year's version of PacMan Jones - he blew chunks at KC and he'll really blow them here because the Texans use that ZBS that he's not familiar with at all. But maybe I'm being too harsh here - after all, the Texans can play pretend just like the Rockets did with Artest then the two situations would be the same.
not really; you said it yourself: artest cost the rockets a player and a pick; green was a relatively inexpensive gamble. not a whole lot lost. one of those RBs averaged 4.8 ypc last year and finished 10th among all nfl rushers. pretty smug, kubiak; pretty doggone smug. and arrogant! and while we're here: not enough fiery leadership! in 2 of the texans' 4 losses, they've been stuffed at the 1-yard line with a chance to tie a game and send it into overtime. i don't think anyone thought we'd be getting a franchise back; just one likely capable of greatly improving the role currently being occupied by chris brown. and i don't think that's terribly unrealistic. (nor a ringing endorsement of chris brown.) who should they have used that money on instead? same reason bernard pollard's butt was on the street - ok, not THE same reason but same regime. i leaned toward signing johnson, assuming he'd be on his best behavior with something to prove. but i think most of us recognized the inherent danger. BUT... when you're literally 2 yards away from being in position to be 7-2... and hey! lj averages 2.7 yards a carry...... i think he would have upgraded *a* component of a running game that is suffering across the board. and if... if, if he is on his best behavior and does have something to prove........ potentially a high ROI on a low-risk gamble.
Apples and oranges. Before the final downfall of Mcgrady last season, adding Artest was viewed as a move that could put the Rockets over the top and win a title. It was a risk, but the payoff could've been huge. And Artest still had some talent at least, despite his poor shot selection and declining defense. Texans are just trying to make the playoffs. Nobody is talking about LJ getting us to the Super Bowl, much less bringing him in to be a "key piece" as Artest was to the Rockets.
Ah yes, the consistent refrain of the also-ran: It won't hurt to bring in (fill in the name here). After all, we can get him for cheap - he won't cost us anything. Funny, but somehow after all of this gambling on the cheap (and dumpster diving) ends said team never seem to be any better off than before but hey, maybe I'm being a grouch for wanting concrete results. All I know is that the relatively inexpensive gamble that was Ahman Green was a total waste of time and money because it's two years later and the Texans still haven't found the answer at RB. Oh you want to talk numbers? OK, fine. I seem to have missed the playoff appearance these numbers produced last year. All of those numbers are nice but the one that trumps them all is won-loss record. Look, I admit that I am not as in love with Kubiak's methods as are you. I also find him arrogant and stubborn in his adherence to the ZBS despite the evidence to the contrary. Neverless, I still don't want him to fail because I don't want to see this franchise start down the path of (yet) another rebuilding. My position is that going after guys like this is the equivalent of digging for fool's gold. And it's no substitute for doing things the right way and by the right way, I mean going out and drafting a RB who can make a difference and not spending time rummaging though the NFL's refuse heap. IF, IF, IF - that's all I'm hearing here. Look if you have to preface your justification for a guy with the word IF, then you have your answer. Rather than wish or hope a guy like LJ can make a difference, I suggest that the Texans go out and get some real players the right way. You do your homework and then draft a RB that comes in and plays like Cushing has at LB, then you won't ever have use that word IF to justify bringing in that player. I am simply not in favor of watching the Texans go down the same road the Rockets have been slogging along for over 13 years but maybe I'm just not as patient as you.
so you basically favor doing... nothing? because you initially ripped the rockets for their go-for-broke ron artest deal then ripped the texans for bargain-basement shopping. so what's the proper course of action? what's your middle ground and how did the texans scorch it? they can't hook their computer up to a jim brown doll, don bras on their heads and create a dream running back. if ahman green came at the expense of a superior back available in the same cost range, ok - you'd have a point. but he didn't. i'm going off the top of my head but there's been exactly 2.5 above-average running backs available since 2006 (when kubiak took over): michael turner, thomas jones and cedric benson (benson rates a .5 because who knew if he was for real or not). and despite that uncertainty, the texans still made a concerted effort to sign benson - he turned us down (probably because kubiak was getting all smug and arrogant and telling cedric he'd have to back up the nfl's 6th leading rusher). turner cost a *boat*load of money, was unproven as an every-down back and was free to sign with whomever he wanted. and jones was dealt for a 2007 #2, which we didn't have because we used it to acquire our (likely) pro bowl QB. green didn't prevent us from landing any of those guys nor did kubiak act smug and arrogant about acquiring any of them. what should he have done, Hillboy? real world examples; don't spot some, "find a fiery running back with fire that ****s fire, gets mad, eats fire, acts like mike singletary and runs like earl campbell" bull****. who should he have signed? or traded for? or drafted (keeping in mind you have to give up whoever he did draft)? cheap and beneath you, Hillboy, and you know it. it wasn't steve slaton's fault the texans didn't win 12 games last year. i'm not in love with his scheme, Hillboy. but the "evidence," last year, was not contrary - steve slaton was the nfl's 6th leading rusher. he averaged 4.8 YPC and scored 9 rushing TDs in 15 starts. what evidence are *you* using? oh yeah? well how many playoff appearences has mr. cushing made? hmmm? hmmm?... you're living in a make-believe fantasyland. "go and draft a cushing-like RB - that's ALL you need to do....." well, cushing-like RBs aren't being left on the side of the road, and they sure as hell aren't readily available 9 games into a football season. larry johnson would likely improve the role currently being held by chris brown, who's terrible, unfortunately, because he's factored into two of our losses. i don't think anyone viewed him as walter payton. the problem with your position here is that you're completely dismissing last year as some 3-game fluke. steve slaton had a *terrific* year. kubiak would have been foolish to prioritize a RB over other positions that weren't returning the equivalent of a 1,200-yard runner.
Johnson expected to sign with Bengals. http://sports.espn.go.com/nfl/news/story?id=4660283 I hope this dont come back to bite us. There's no telling either would of worked out here but we passed on both of these guys.
Johnson to the Bengals makes sense. We all know that they have no problem bringing in guys with character questions.
