It is called parity. The Texans were tied with the last spot for playoffs. If Kris Brown makes the two missed field goal attempts in the first game against the Titans...the Texans are the third best team in the AFC. At the very least you have to say the third best team in the AFC is elite....the Texans were 4 points away twice from being that.
If you are trying to drag your biased opinion into here as unbiased, you already lost. I know you would jump in front of a bullet for Morey, (rightly so) but to say they aren't even comparable just shows your inability to accept reality. The Texans talent is exceptional compared to the Rockets? Whatever you are smoking, I want some. I'm not even kidding.
First off you coudn't afford it Secondly, The Texans have have the Best Wide receiver in football while the Rockets have no one that close on their Roster. This years Rockets had Zero Lottery Picks (except Jordan Hill) on it's roster. Nothing but late 1st and second rounders. Texans have been picking mostly from the early first round for close to a decade and haven't made the playoffs. Two different organizations from head to toe bro.
Yeah well if I couldn't afford it(which I doubt) I would just grow it. Everyone knows that there are 55 players plus your practice squad in the NFL compared to 15 (3 unactive) along with the D League. My point is that, drafts in both of these sports are completely different in terms of relevance. All it takes is one home run pick and a good free agent signing to make you a legit contender for 10-15 years. The NFL takes years on years of making smart picks to build a legitimate winner. The only thing the two sports have in common is a Salary Cap, then again the NFL is under a "hard cap" while the NBA is under a "soft cap". If you were really going to offer up a real argument, starting with the amateur drafts was a poor place to start. What would Morey do if he had to stay within designated cap and couldn't be bailed out by Les with the Luxury Tax? Also, a huge difference is guaranteed contracts which we can get into later. I will say that Ahman Green was a horrible signing but it looks like the Texans FO learned their lesson.
Here's my take on FOs. (Each grouping is in no particular order) Keep in mind this is just subjective opinion and as such some of these I could see changing from year to year, or were even different as of last year. Elite Colts Saints Vikings Steelers Patriots Great Cowboys Ravens Chargers Jets Eagles Good Texans Titans Cardinals Packers Falcons Bengals Giants So there you have it. Texans are very, very close IMO to being a top 10 FO. They're bunched with a lot of other teams. But I feel their obvious upward trajectory (young team, tons of talent, all signs point to win) and consistent improvement (in all areas of the game, every single year) from 2006 is pretty remarkable and noteworthy. Kubes' braindead moments (play calls, clock management issues), and some non-recurring (as in not a problem from year-to-year, but rather a problem that existed within a singular season and is being addressed) execution failboats (fumble at the goalline, missed field goal) aside, the front office as a whole (from the GM to the scouts to the coordinators) has been doing a great job. Hopefully they can crack that top 10 this year by having a few of those unlucky bounces go our way and a few of our younger players and recent acquisitions step up.
The Vikings are not elite. The Cowboys are so far from great. The Ravens are definitely elite. Other than that, I like it. I can accept Houston being good, but as soon as we clinch a playoff birth, we move right up to Great. Ozzie Newsome is the man!
I don't know if I'd say the Texans underachieved. To go 9-7 with no running game (Slaton + Pitts injuries plus weak interior OL in general), a secondary without an above-average corner and one of the worst kickers in the NFL - they probably ended up right around where the talent would dictate. The Texans are much improved from where they were a few years ago, so people want to believe the talent is elite - but last year's team did have some flaws of note (talent-wise) that differentiated them from the 12-4 or better types.
The Vikings have done an amazing job getting talent and skilled coaches on staff in the last 4 years. Going from 6-10 to 12-4 and a hair's breath away from the Superbowl. Their team has become loaded with talent on both sides of the ball, and the only thing they lacked was a QB to drive the machine... which they subsequently went out and got. They are a very similar story to the Saints which started their ascent 5 years ago (put together a good team, and a found a great QB to take them over the top), elite in my book, for now. The Cowboys have an undeniably talented roster and have posted wins of 9, 9, 13, 9 and 11 the past 5 years in what has been the NFC's strongest division. Don't let your hatred fool you, they have a great FO. Even though we're going to beat them this year. Ravens may well become elite this year, that roster is scary, but they're a notch below the big boys until that offense can prove it can win games.
Agreed, I just don't think you should be considered Elite if you have to wait to see if your QB is Brett Favre or Sage Rosenfels right before camp starts. I admire teams that don't have to spend all the money in the world (just under the cap) to be contenders. I'll agree to disagree though. Wins are wins no matter who is spending the money. You are right.
I'm willing to give them the benefit of the doubt until I see that team fall apart without Favre. Rosenfails never got his chance, and I firmly believe he would take them to at least 10 wins and the second round of the playoffs. It has been a major black mark on the Vikings FO though that they have been unable to cultivate their own QB to lead their team through the draft. They seem to know the magic recipe for everything else, though.
I really don't see the Steelers being elite this year with no Big Ben for at least 4 games, and not to mention a shaky offense to begin with that loses its big play weapon (Holmes). The Jets I believe are very close to being elite. If Sanchez can play with the cautious nature of a 2000 Trent Dilfer, I can see them winning 13 games, their run game is stacked and the defense is scary good, not to mention they upgraded their receiving corps. Dustin Keller is a pretty damn good TE as well.
LMAO Nice dude. I'll talk the Vikings as a great team until they get an established Franchise QB who isn't 40 or older.
I'm talking about the FO, not the team in general. I have no problem considering the Steelers FO to be amongst the very best in the NFL. Their team may take steps back every once in a while, but it won't last long.
Yeah you know they are a good FO when they can dangle their Franchise QB and release the guy who made the Super Bowl winning catch and not think twice. I'm not being sarcastic. They have balls and the means to make these controversial moves. Although I think dangling Ben was just to send a message.
My mistake. Not released. 5th round pick of Jets in exchange. If he wasn't traded, i think he would have eventually been released.
Your first point is completely untrue, Baltimore and New England are always big free agent/trade. players and the Colts get free agents when they need them as well, the Steelers are the only team that almost exclusively builds through the draft LOL at the Texans being better run that the Rockets, Daryl Morey is the best GM in basketball. Explain how the Texans spend more wisely than the Rockets because that statement just isn't true. The Rockets were missing their franchise player and still nearly made the playoffs. If the Texans went 9-7 without Schaub, then that would be comparable. How exactly do you define ELITE? Elite is not good, not above average, elite is THE BEST. The Texans franchise has never made the playoffs, elite is an exclusive word that cannot just be thrown around and labeled for 20 teams in the NFL. And Kubiak made plenty of mistakes last season, they never should have been in a position where they were 5-9, but he trusted the Browns on far too many occasions along with many other mistakes, imo he is the weakest link on the team. He has no killer instinct. And having a players coach vs. a hard ass is completely subjective, there is no evidence that says having one is better than the other. But again, the discussion was about front offices. ELITE would be the top 5 or so in the league, the Texans are in the top half which is good, they are not in the top 5. good analysis, I agree
