Who is on the Houston Texans' Mount Rushmore?

I don't have to dig too deep to come up with one name, Andre Johnson. Now, give me a bigger shovel, or in this case, a bigger chisel. I'm talking about the Houston Texans' Mount Rushmore. If you started carving the busts right now, AJ is on there. He is already on his way to the NFL Hall of Fame, if you ask any fan of the Houston Texans. He has done things as a WR in the NFL that only Jerry Rice has done before. That is good company. Put AJ on Mount Rushmore. After AJ, I am having trouble justifying anyone else going up there.

DeMeco Ryans? He has been the Captain of a mediocre defense and he has done it for what I would say is not a full career, yet. His most recent season was an injury plagued season where he was out with a ruptured Achilles tendon for the second half of the season. He has doctor's approval to play, but the jury is out until we actually see him out there for a few games. Then and only then, will we be satisfied that he's back. And, back to what? He's good, but how good? Mount Rushmore good? I am leaning towards saying he is good because there is no one better on the Texans. That is not exactly a great compliment, because the Texans defense has never been good in nine seasons. Here's hoping, though, that DeMeco comes back fully and the new 3-4 scheme lights it up and we can all be singing his praises. DeMeco is a fan favorite, he is talented, and if this team attains some success while he is leading the defense, I will be nominating him for a bust on the Texans' Mount Rushmore. It is not his time, yet.

Mario Williams? He was the number one draft pick in a draft that had three at the top that were all thought to be superstars. Mario is a physical freak. His performance on the field has not been freakish, though. Don't get me wrong. Mario has been very respectable. He has played hurt. He has maintained his quiet determination as he has faced incredible pressure and expectations. I'm sorry, though. I'm not ready to put Mario's bust on the Texans' Mount Rushmore. I need some seasons of domination from him. Perhaps a new scheme and a new position will do that for him.

Matt Schaub? There's nothing wrong with Matt Schaub, except that he is not a winning QB. He is QBing one of the most potent offenses in the NFL. He is certainly a capable QB and he has the respect of his coaches, fellow teammates, and the fans. He is merely the victim of the same circumstance that DeMeco and Mario are; he hasn't won and he hasn't had a career of success.

Pre-Kubiak? Chester Pitts? He was a Texan for a long time. I can't do it. Chester Pitts held down a starting spot on a mediocre to bad team, and he never shined. No one ever talked about how Chester Pitts pancaked opponents. He is a player I would point to as playing for the Texans merely because there was no one else better. There were a lot of players on the Texans over the years who fall into that category. This Texans team simply had no success other than AJ, and how was he able to do what he did with David Carr throwing the rock? I don't know.

So, as you see, I am putting a high value on winning and there can't be any dispute that the Texans haven't won. The only player on the Texans who can overcome that detriment is Andre Johnson. He has risen above the team's losing ways and performed at a Pro Bowl level every season he has been in the game. Andre is by himself on the Texans' Mount Rushmore. There is hope for others, but this team has to win. This team needs several players to start performing at a Mount Rushmore level so they can start winning. They need support players to make names for themselves. There are players that I didn't mention above that may be future Mount Rushmore candidates. Arian Foster gave us a season of Mount Rushmore-worthy play and now he needs to continue at that level. Brian Cushing had a tainted season of success and let us down last season. To name any other names, I would have to start naming players that have never played in the NFL. Maybe, one of the rookies recently drafted will attain the heights of Mount Rushmore. Who knows? T.J. Yates, anyone?