Travis Johnson--What Do You Realistically Expect?

by Tim on May 14, 2009 2:28 PM CDT in News Comment 30 comments

Too many people have mentioned the possibility of Travis Johnson entering a contract year and perhaps turning it on for me not to do a post about it. At the outset, let's establish that we're talking about this Travis Johnson, the 2005 first-round draft pick of your Houston Texans. Yes, he's played for a handful of different defensive coordinators. Yes, he's endured a switch from the 3-4 to the 4-3. Yes, whoever thought he could be a nose tackle (cough...Charley Casserly...cough...Dom Capers...cough) should never be allowed to speak again. I concede all of that.

But is there anyone out there who realistically believes that Travis Johnson is somehow going to flip a switch and become a player in the final year of his contract? If so, what in the name of all that is decent and holy have you seen that would make you think that? I can understand HOPING he puts it together in precisely the same way I hope that the breweries of the world unite and declare that beer shall be tendered free of charge from this day forth. Expecting it, though? That strikes me as pure lunacy.

So tell me, BRB...is there anyone among you brave enough to provide any sort of justification for the notion that Travis Johnson is about to become all we hoped he would be (heck, I'd even take 25% of what we hoped he'd be) back in April 2005? Hit me in the Comments below.

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Comments

No

What else is there to say?

When I'm on the mic, I'm like global warming, you can't ignore me.

by tehGrindCrusher on May 14, 2009 3:10 PM CDT reply actions 1 recs

No digo nada.

by ~Buck on May 14, 2009 3:11 PM CDT reply actions 0 recs

If Hell froze over

If he did manage to play well this year (I don’t believe it either) that would definitely say something.

He’s pretty much in a lose/lose situation in my books as far as the Texans are concerned. Either he plays terrible (which has been par for the course) and he is relegated to a backup DT somewhere else, or he improves significantly (which wouldn’t be difficult) and it’s obvious he was pulling an Albert Haynesworth just waiting to get paid.

I’m actually scared of him improving at all. I’d like to think that Smithiakush would see that as him only being motivated by monetary gain, but in the back of my mind I’m scared that they would justify it with everything Tim said above (multiple schemes, D coordinators, etc)

Overall, I think I just wasted my time typing all of this because contract or no, I don’t think he has it in him.

You know... for kids.

by Jake on May 14, 2009 3:32 PM CDT reply actions 0 recs

agreed that the point is moot, but

I think its a tremendous win for the Texans if he has a breakout year.

He is the black eye on our defense. If he steps it up, we make the playoffs this year.

Let him chase his money around the league in ‘10. We don’t want him anyway. But a good TJ is better than what we’re gonna get this year.

But again, its a moot point. He sucks.

Smushiak will take us to the playoffs in 2009.

by texanphil on May 14, 2009 7:49 PM CDT up reply actions 0 recs

Correction?

Didn’t Travis play the 5 technique for us in the 3-4 and not the nose? That was Seth Payne, no? Sure wish we had him back now, the way he played back then.

Bacon tastes good... Pork chops taste good.

by beefy on May 14, 2009 3:51 PM CDT reply actions 0 recs

Good Question

You know, I don’t remember offhand. Did TJ slide into NT when Payne was injured?

Looking forward to a day when being a Texans fan doesn't mean that April is the highlight of my season...

by Tim on May 14, 2009 5:18 PM CDT up reply actions 0 recs

I am pretty sure you are correct.

by Triple347 on May 15, 2009 12:48 AM CDT up reply actions 0 recs

And that's why...

he sucks so bad at where we’ve asked him to play. I’ll regurgitate Campbell’s thoughts (in summary):
He’s not a NT, and with the possible aside of Okam, we don’t have one on the roster.

He’s one of those players that you kinda have to force into a position in a 3-4 (which is another reason he was an absolutely horrible pick). And for some ungodly reason he becomes a 4-3 NT by default?
I’ll agree that he’s not that good, but we haven’t done him many favors, playing him where he’s been.
Now, if some of the rumors are true, and Bush is switching our style to more of a Tampa-2 scheme, he becomes a little more valuable, because traditionally, that scheme runs with smaller/quicker DT’s. We’ll see. Count me in the “not holding my breath” group, though.

Bacon tastes good... Pork chops taste good.

by beefy on May 15, 2009 9:37 AM CDT up reply actions 0 recs

I don't even buy him in the Tampa-2...

as the NT in the Tampa-2 may be undersized, but he’s almost always a very good tackler. Trav hits one of those two criteria, I guess.

Yay, sports.

by MDC on May 15, 2009 11:20 PM CDT up reply actions 0 recs

Yup

He was drafted to be the 5, which makes the signing of Anthony Weaver (who was a 5 for Baltimore) even more painful in retrospect. Tim is correct, though, that he played some NT by default when Payne was out, which is why he still inexplicably has the NT designation on NFL.com’s depth chart.

To the bigger point, though, I’m not holding my breath at all. He wasn’t a good fit for Capers’ 3-4, he’s not a good fit for anyone’s 4-3 at the NT spot, and (most importantly) he fucking blows.

Yay, sports.

by MDC on May 15, 2009 11:19 PM CDT up reply actions 0 recs

Those stats don't tell the whole story.

He produces just as much on offense, too.

by WhiskeyR on May 14, 2009 4:37 PM CDT reply actions 1 recs

If you want to put up ridiculous constraints like realistically

then I have nothing. But the Mary Poppins in me (by that I mean a pragmatic optimist, not a british nanny) wants to believe he can. Don’t crush my dreams by expecting me to make a cohesive argument. I can remember a handful of plays over the past 4 years, where TJ did not suck. Now all he has to do is play like that on every down and he will rise to the level of mediocrity which is all that we can realistically hope for.

All we need to succeed this year is for underperforming guys like TJ to play like they give a damn and for our stalwarts to just keep doing what they have shown they can do. Avoid injuries, add in a little luck and we will be playing for real stakes in December.

I know that it’s way too early for predictions, but I ran across this page that predicts all the games for the upcoming season. This guy has the Texans starting out 5-2, but then fading to a 9-7 finish. He sees us going 3-3 in our division; sweeping the jags, losing 2 to the Titans and splitting with Indy. I think we have a good chance of going one better, and am hopeful that 10-6 gets us into the postseason.

by oiler-texan diehard on May 14, 2009 9:37 PM CDT reply actions 0 recs

"Handful of Plays Over the Past 4 Years"

That’s tragically well said. On only a few occasions during his time in Houston has Travis Johnson not looked like hot garbage.

Looking forward to a day when being a Texans fan doesn't mean that April is the highlight of my season...

by Tim on May 15, 2009 8:11 AM CDT up reply actions 0 recs

Realistically, someone can predict the outcome of games, but that doesn't mean it will happen

But like you, I also wouldn’t put the entire outcome of the season, whether they go to the playoffs or not, on the shoulders of Travis Johnson…at least before the season starts. Agreed, he is just one cog in the machine. The position of DT is a weakness as this blogger has pointed out. I guess that is the point. Not much disagreement from what I see. There are a lot of positives in this team. I guess it is a good thing we are talking about DT being a weak position and not WR or LB. There are a lot of unknowns on this team. We expect that Cushing is going to bring in his toughness to the LB position, but we will see. We expect that Robinson wil return to his pre-injury form at CB, but we are collectively holding our breaths. We expect that Schaub will pick up where he left off last season, but we are praying that he stays on the field. There are a lot of question marks, ifs, hopes, whatever…but the coaches have a system that they believe will work and when things happen, the team will adjust. Should be a good season!

It will happen

by Rip Jersey on May 15, 2009 11:24 AM CDT up reply actions 0 recs

I think you hit on a key point

There are many question marks on the Texans. We have the potential to make the playoffs, but in the NFL there is a very thin line between winning and losing. We also could, God forbid, have another disappointing season of mediocrity. Here’s hoping it is the former.

by oiler-texan diehard on May 15, 2009 8:02 PM CDT up reply actions 0 recs

He will be a Living God Next year

If he takes enough HGH to grow a damn tail, and then checks down the cracks in the couch in a vain attempt and find his balls. then we have ourselves a player. some sort of illiterate godzilla. Then i wake up. then I drink away any recollection of him being a texan.

here’s to travis not being a texan as fast as humanly possible. cheers

Looking forward to not having an 8-8 year!

by BattleRedHusker on May 15, 2009 8:45 AM CDT reply actions 2 recs

Rec'd

For every single word in that comment.

Looking forward to a day when being a Texans fan doesn't mean that April is the highlight of my season...

by Tim on May 15, 2009 9:26 AM CDT up reply actions 0 recs

lol

maybe eventually he’ll go from this Player To this one. but sadly the common factor between them both is that they have a strong opposition to using their brains so either way he’ll always have a special place in the deepest most hateful spiteful place in my heart.

Looking forward to not having an 8-8 year!

by BattleRedHusker on May 16, 2009 1:55 AM CDT up reply actions 0 recs

oh

and on that first video, check out the screen at 1:01. Unless Hef unleashes 5 playboy bunnies into your house, i’m confident its the best thing you’ll see today.

Looking forward to not having an 8-8 year!

by BattleRedHusker on May 16, 2009 1:57 AM CDT up reply actions 0 recs

The biggest question is...

No matter HOW well or poorly he plays, does anyone think he stands even the slightest chance of being re-signed by us next year?

Bacon tastes good... Pork chops taste good.

by beefy on May 15, 2009 9:43 AM CDT reply actions 0 recs

I would say no...

but this is a franchise that kept Richard Smith for about two too many seasons and paid David Carr a roster bonus only to cut him, so anything is possible. If Trav’s average (a huge upgrade), I’d put his odds of getting resigned at no worse than 3-1.

Yay, sports.

by MDC on May 15, 2009 11:22 PM CDT up reply actions 0 recs

Here's how I see it...

Worst case: he continues to not do much of anything, it’s not like the Texans lose anything except some of McNair’s money.
Best case: Opposing QBs and/or RBs spending less time kicking our ass and more time being slammed down onto the turf.

It’s a win-win! At least that’s what I tell myself at night.

by D.T. on May 15, 2009 10:44 AM CDT reply actions 0 recs

I dunno about "realistically" but....

Am I the only beliver in Murphy’s law or chaos theory? How about the Cato theory? TJ has more support than ever, a good looking schedule, a chance to cash in and make it LOOK like he’s simply failed year-after-year-after-year all b/c of poor coaching & schemes…and he can do all that in one short season…My guess is he sucks his way into 31/2 sacks…just enough to make a crappy-run organization think…"Hey this guy could be “GOOD!” and end up stomping on the flaming bag sitting on thier porch thinking they are “solving their line problem” when really we’ll all be snickering when they end up with sh&t on their heel.

by Smittybaby on May 15, 2009 1:29 PM CDT reply actions 0 recs

TJ has 2 sacks in 4 years. Yes you read that correctly, 2 sacks in 54 career games

If he gets 3 1/2 sacks this year I will be doing cartwheels. And I’ll still get a hearty chuckle when he gets a big contract from the Raiders or Bengals or Lions, etc. cuz like you said …"Hey this guy could be "GOOD!"

by oiler-texan diehard on May 15, 2009 7:57 PM CDT up reply actions 0 recs

the over/under on TJ's sack total

is still 0.

Smushiak will take us to the playoffs in 2009.

by texanphil on May 18, 2009 9:23 AM CDT up reply actions 0 recs

expectations

TJ has done a great job of eliminating any expectations from the fans. And in a contract year.

Can he do anything this year that makes us say, wow, he’s WORSE than we thought?

Probably not, so in most scenarios he comes out this year and looks like he worked tirelessly in the offseason and hugely improved. (I’d start with zero GAME CHANGING personal fouls)

Then the comment about the Raiders, et al, signing him almost guarantees him a raise in 2010. And that is definitely a win for us. A bigger win would be if he signs in our division, and he starts to give back.

Smushiak will take us to the playoffs in 2009.

by texanphil on May 16, 2009 8:13 AM CDT reply actions 0 recs

"Can he do anything this year that makes us say, wow, he’s WORSE than we thought?"

Famous last words, my friend. I’m pretty sure I’ve said the same thing in regards to Petey and Mr. Mittens many, many times. The answer is often a resounding “yes”.

by Nashmeister on May 16, 2009 10:32 PM CDT up reply actions 0 recs

I'm trying to think

he can’t get negative sacks.

He could fumble, but for that to happen he’d have to miraculously come up with the ball. A net gain unless, while he had the ball, he ran the wrong direction.

Fewer tackles?

He has a monopoly on personal fouls already. We get our fair share of holding on offense, but he’s in charge of the big time penalties.

Smushiak will take us to the playoffs in 2009.

by texanphil on May 18, 2009 9:22 AM CDT up reply actions 0 recs

You want an argument for Travis Johnson's shadow?

Not a problem. How could Travis Johnson’s shadow miraculously become a good player? Simple. Greed. I’ll repeat that. Greed. It’s something that factors into any fantasy football draft I’m involved in. Is this a contract year? If so, circa age 26 running back or wide receiver X, who is always hurt or non-productive, will somehow pull the football out of his ass and become a productive player. For one year. Wait ‘till you see the big dump Albert Haynesworth takes in Washington. It happens all the time. Unlike other years, this is the year to do HGH and steroids, workout and take chances on the field. You evade the drug tests for one year and all is good in the financial world. It’s really simple. Tim, I’m surprised you asked, but there you go.

The true test in the life of a Texans fan is how gracefully you endure it.

by TexanKurt on May 18, 2009 1:20 PM CDT reply actions 0 recs