Nice to finally be able to talk football again, ain't it? Even nicer to talk about the local team when: -- the team isn't fresh off a losing or underachieving season -- the team hasn't done something remarkably stupid over the winter (harkening back a few years with that one) -- talk about david carr, vince young, or reggie bush is now entirely irrelevant and off the radar. Sweet.
Dwayne De Rosario Let me begin by saying this, to me winning is everything and finishing runner-up is the same as finishing last or in some cases same as getting swept in the World Series (Astros Losers ). Now back to Dwayne, The rap sheet: 2001 MLS cup MVP - kicked the game winning goal for the San Jose Earthquakes (former name of the Dynamo). 2006 MLS Cup - Converted a crucial penalty kick to help the Dynamo win their first MLS Cup after relocating to Houston. 2007 MLS cup MVP - kicked the game winning goal for the Dynamo against New England Revolution giving them Back-Two-Back Championships. Only player in MLS history to score two game winning goals in the MLS Cup Final. Individual Honors: MLS Cup MVP: 2001, 2007 MLS Goal of the Year: 2004, 2005 Major League Soccer Best XI: 2005, 2006, 2007 George Gross Memorial Trophy: 2009 Canadian Player of the Year: 2005, 2006, 2007 The Voyageurs International Player of the Year: Second place: 2007 Third place: 2006 Now beat that resume. Too bad we traded him last December to Toronto for Julius James and cash.
Using the records you provided, I get winning percentage without andre johnson: .29 (2-5) winning percentage *with* andre johnson: .37 (34-58) Using the records I get from ESPN's game logs for AJ, I get winning percentage without andre johnson: .27 (3-8) winning percentage *with* andre johnson: .39 (33-52) Granted these numbers are not very valid as the NFL plays so few games, AJ has many seasons when he played all 16 games, and the team has changed so much each season. Really the only data that doesn't completely suck for with/without analysis would be 2007 where AJ played 9 and missed 7. winning percentage without andre johnson: .29 (2-5) winning percentage *with* andre johnson: .67 (6-3) All these numbers tell me that AJ is important to the Texans, but I don't think they are good enough to quantify how important he is.
I don't know. I can't decide. It's like comparing avocados and diet dr. pepper. All play different sports that require a different set of skills. It's already pretty difficult selecting one mvp for one sport. =( Anyways.. I pick Berkman and yao ming as co mvps of Houston, and give them the key to spring branch.
d'oh! you're right. but my point was intended to be much broader: they lose with or without him. i didn't intend to quibble over percentage points (especially since i'm obviously incapable of correctly calculating them). sure - but this gets into why this is such an empty (but fun!) excercise: too much context in a sport that's completely team-driven. which leads to: minutiae!! three of those five losses without him were by sizeable margins - 37-17; 38-36 (tennessee actually led at one point 32-7 in the 4Q); and 35-10. with him, without him - they almost certainly lose all 3 of those games. the fourth loss was to indianapolis. the score wound up being close (30-24) but it really wasn't close - the colts led 27-10 after the 3Q. he may have had an impact on that game - tough to tell. the offense sputtered that day fo sho. but he's not a 2 TD/game guy; he's barely a TD/game guy. and obviously, dynamics change with him in there, so who knows - i'm just pointing out they were thoroughly thrashed certainly in those 3 games and i doubt he makes up the difference. the only game he almost certainly would have swung was the loss to atlanta - though, honestly, they should have been able to beat atlanta without him so maybe they lose that regardless. POINT BEING...... they didn't go 2-5 simply because andre johnson was out of the line-up.
The what if game. It is easy to say the Texans don't win those games if you don't think AJ is an elite player. It is easy to say the Texans were much better with him and without. I think the Texans easily win one of those five losses and possibly two are a serious playoff contenders the rest of the season.
Absolutely gotta be Andre Johnson for me. Yao is a VERY close second, but the team has had to get by without him so often that I feel like the players are almost expecting it now. Aside from the injury AJ got 2 years ago, he's been as steady as they come. I think this year, Johnson is going to further separate himself from the rest of the pack and truly establish himself as the best receiver in the NFL.
So, he's value but expendable? Really, he can be both?? Yao Ming is the sexy, sleek candy-appled red camaro your older brother got when he graduated and said you could use it whenever you need it. SWEEEEET! And every time you reach for the keys, you can't have it.
At least we have a winning team without Yao(skip ahead to 2:20): <object width="560" height="340"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/FIDp6IZEdrQ&hl=en&fs=1&"></param><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"></param><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/FIDp6IZEdrQ&hl=en&fs=1&" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="560" height="340"></embed></object> Prior to this season the Rockets were 20-46 without TMac
Well he's the MVP of the Rockets, and one player can make more of an impact in basketball than the other major sports. He is the logical choice.
Yes, one player can make more of an impact in basketball than any other sport, but given the fact that the Rockets have won nearly 54% of the games he has not played in (which is a fairly large sample size), I just dont see how he is that valuable. Yes, he is one of the best centers in the NBA, but at the same time, the style of play changes for the Rockets when Yao is out...and many times, that style of play is better suited for the players we have built around Yao. Sorry, but Yao cant possibly be the most valuable player when his team wins so often without him and while he has failed to play as often as he has. There is no logic in choosing Yao for MVP of Houston.
Ric, youre actually throwing in the Texans records pre-kubiak, when debating Andre's value? Come now, thats silly...we had a practice squad team competing every day. Look, over the last 2 seasons, there is really no debating Andres impact. Look at the games in which he receives for 75 or more yards...that should make it clear to you that if we want to win football games, we need to get AJ involved. If you arent calling AJ a game breaking WR, I'd like to know who, currently, in the NFL should be considered a game breaker? Im not trying to call you out or anything, Im just really curious.
No, he's not. He was the MVP last season. What is Yao to the Rockets RIGHT NOW? Most. WORTHLESS. Player. ...again.
Where is Andre Johnson? He in my opinion is the best WR in the NFL, and has led the Texans to success in past years, along with Schaub. For me, he is the MVP of Houston sports.
i did indeed; in fact, flip back a few pages. if you're racking up a ton of catches but not scoring TDs or registering a paticualrly high YPC... what else are you? it's not a dig by any means. he's a tremendous possession receiver. rezdawg, let me put it to you this way: if matt schaub completed 65% of his passes; if he threw for 4,000 yards; if he threw fewer than 10 INTs... but only had 5 TD passes - how would you rate his season? it's a great season - he moved the team efficiently, didn't turn it over.... but the lack of TD passes would be glaring, wouldn't it? it wouldn't be all his fault; maybe slaton racked up a ton; maybe they spent an inordinate amount of time inside the opponents' 5-yard line.... still, 5? why is it no different for johnson? he's never, ever, not once broken double-digit TDs. this despite catching 103 and 115 passes in '06 and '08. heck, he's averaging 85/year for his career ('07 excluded) and yet... it doesn't make him a *bad* receiver by any means but i don't think you can dismiss it when evaluating him. and in terms of "value" - which is the point of the thread, right? - 5.5 TDs/year is easy to replace. sorry, it just is. current game breakers: moss, fitzgerald, obviously... on the downside, sure - but terrell owens is up there. younger, up-and-coming gamebreakers: calvin johnson, greg jennings. burress, before he shot himself, was a gamebreaker. those are off the top of my head. look at their recent #s and compare them to johnson; two things are likely to jump out: TDs and YPC.
I don't know that I'd call AJ a possession receiver... but Steve Largent led the league in yards 2x in his career. i know Haywood Jeffires did once, as well. i'd call both of those guys possession receivers.
