I dont get how some people are failing to understand this simple concept. When you lose a starter, a guy lower on the depth chart is then asked to take a larger role. If that player was just as good, they would be starting. If Kevin Walter was out, I think most people would think David Andersen, although a nice player, would have less of an impact on the game.
Being on the injury report is different than not playing...lots of players are on weekly injury reports. The reason he doesn't get much action is because he's just not as good as the other options on the team. This isn't to say that he's going to go out there and catch 1 out of every 10 balls...but he is a downgrade from Collie. And in a game of inches, this could be the difference between a win or a loss for the Texans.
Garcon is an odd call, because he in general has horrible hands, but then he goes and makes catches like that crazy one handed one a game or two ago. He will most definitely be getting more balls thrown his way, Manning was already working on that last game. But yeah, he was getting ignored for much of the early part of the season. Whether Garcon makes the most of his looks remains to be seen. But if anyone can make just about any scrub look amazing, it would be Manning. This game concerns me.
msn- The full strength argument to me is a faulty one. Sanders was in when they were losing and we weren't fully healthy either. Not to mention our rookie db stinking up the joint. The last two years we've played them close and couldn't close out until this year. That said, to answer your question these days I'll take my chances with the Texans. Its all a moot point seeing as both teams are banged up. My only optimism comes from Schaub playing on the road.
Sweet! 6 more road games, and only 4 more home games! That means, on our current pace, we're gonna be 12-4! But then we're gonna get eliminated from the playoffs cuz we're probably gonna have a home game.
Anyone think the Texans will make the playoffs if they beat the Colts and start the season at 5-2? They'd only need to go 5-4 the rest of the way to be 10-6, which is probably good enough for a wild card.
Before the season even began I figured this was a playoff bound team, regardless with how difficult the season was going to be.
i don't think 10-6 will do it for a wild card spot when you consider baltimore, pittsburgh, jets and new england.
I agreed with this before the season, but that was also before it was realized how bad the defense was/is and that was assuming injuries were not a factor, which they have been.
You could be right. A team could go 10-6 and miss the playoffs. Will the Texans make the playoffs? I don't know. Depends on what we do this Monday night. If we lose, it won't be the end of the world or end of the season(I don't think) but it becomes even tougher. You have the Jets, Patriots in the AFC-E You have the Steelers, Ravens in the AFC-N You have KC(or whoever emerges from that division) in the AFC-W That's 5 spots, leaving only 1 spot for the AFC-S, which the Titans currently lead the division. Of course it's still early and a team(or two) could falter while another rises(or stays the current course). Just one of the many scenarios.
So, does that mean you don't believe they can make it? I still have hope. The defense has been awful, but so far hasn't killed us because our offense for the most part has carried us. I don't know how it would happen, but I'm hoping the defense get's it's crap together and at least becomes decent the 2nd half of the season like last year. We were bad last year before the turn around (when Pollard arrived?...IIRC), of course they weren't THIS bad.
While the Jets, Pats, Ravens, and Steelers have looked really good, I can still see a team like the Ravens faltering a little bit. Flacco has looked very shaky at times, and their defense was a bit exposed this past weekend. The Jets are also a team that hasn't looked completely unbeatable, and they've gotten lucky in a couple of games. The playoff races are still wide open at this point, so it's kind of pointless to say that we HAVE to win the division. So much is going to change over the course of the next 10 games. Remember, we hold our own fate in that we PLAY both of these teams, so really, it just comes down to who the Texans beat. But, I do agree that winning the division will PROBABLY be easier than winning the wild card this season for us. Let's start by taking care of the Colts, and going from there.
I still believe they can but i'm not near as optimistic as i was. I'm hoping that the secondary can improve on their zone coverages over the bye week. Hopefully Jax is hitting the gametapes hard. Dre and Mario need to get back to near 100%, especially Mario, it seems that he disappears whenever he has these nagging injuries. The loss of Demeco really hurts the most, imo. SUre, we still have some solid backups but it's just another question mark to add into the mix. Either way, it's going to be a helluva tough road. There is just no room for error.
Sucks being in the AFC. I look it like this - if the offense plays to their potential, if they play up to 80% of their potential, every week, for at least 3 quarters a game, they'll get those 10 wins. Unfortunately, you have to cross your fingers and pray we don't see the half-hearted schmucks that came out week 3. Winning the division might be needed to make the postseason: Jets and Pats in the same division Ravens and Steelers in the same division Us, Colts, and Titans in the same division Chiefs should be the only team out of the West. So Wild Card Race looks to be (Jets or Pats), (Ravens or Steelers), Us, Colts, Titans. Colts are decimated, but have a cushy schedule outside of the Pats (6 home games, a lot of patsies), so don't knock them out of the running too quick. More than ever, the division games are critical. I'd go so far as to say, if the Titans sweep us, we're out. You can rest assured that the entire nation is saying the exact same things about us.
