Noon Sunday on FOX. Announcers are Ron Pitts and Jim Mora. Seems Mora has been replaced by Charles Davis this week since he accepted the UCLA job.
a little scared our D-line's over aggression might be just what Cam Newton needs to shimmy his way with his feet down the middle. This is a game I wish we had Mario for. I have faith our secondary will have some takeaways though so I', doing 24-17 Texans.
Texans 31-17 All eyes on the Denver Tebow's vs. New England and San Diego vs. Baltimore. Best chance left this year for losses by our competitors for the #1 seed.
They better, or I will officially be concerned about the regression of our zone-blocking, FB blocking, and overall running game.
Carolina's #24 (tied) for run defense. That alone should seal their fate. Control the game on the ground, dominate TOP, keep Newton on the sidelines. If Reliant was loud for Atlanta, I could only imagine what it'll be like Sunday. I'm GEEKED for the game and the town is bursting at the seams. Cam better practice a no huddle silent count all week. Forget about audibles. They also allow over 62% completion rate (#24) with 8.4 YPC (worst in the NFL). Good training day for Yates. Once at midfield, they should really see what he can do. OD is the B&B, but it's important that Jones show up and give him a deep target. On D, we've got Joseph on Smith, which'll be something. This might be the rare game where we want S help over the top for him on 3rd downs. Olsen's their safety valve, so the LB's need to key on him unless Quin's pulling duty. And then there's the O'ROY. It's like old school Vick - the edge rushers need to be careful. If they dive and miss, he's got daylight in the flats and will be gone every time for 8-15 yards. Collapsing the pocket can be the most dangerous thing you do against a guy with legs like this. It's infuriating for sack guys, but you almost need to play containment and hope a delayed blitz from Cushing up the middle does the trick. Williams and Stewart aren't mealtickets anymore. They can still get numbers, but they aren't winning games for the Panthers. Keep Newton on the sidelines. Keep containment on Newton. Win the turnover battle. Have fun.
Texans 27 Panthers 17 K. Jackson has still not learned to look for the ball and will get burnt once or twice. Offense punches Panther's in the face with the run game.
Anyone know if they will raise the division champ banner at this game? Or are they waiting until the first playoff game?
The Texans will have to completely blow this game to lose. Cam Newton lost the Falcons game in the 3rd quarter. Panthers defense is pathetic and they just don't know how to win. I expect the defense to create several turnovers. If the Texans fall behind early, don't panic because the Panthers (to their long term benefit) usually fall apart in the 2nd half if they are ahead. Almost like clockwork.
Will you be concerned if Tate runs well in limited carries and Arian runs mediocre in the majority of the carries? Arian has been amazing in the passing game, but has been up and down all year in the rushing game. Tate's production on limited carries makes me think Arian isn't 100% and opposing teams are doing a better job at playing their assignments. Tate is the better runner at the point of the attack (not counting the red zone).
13-3 prediction still alive Yates has an awesome quarter and a half. Foster and Tate gobble up their terrible run defense the rest of the way. Cam gets his, but it's catch up yards. Texans - 34 Panthers - 10
