A lot of people were, shall we say, disappointed with my recap of the Texans 31-12 loss on Sunday.  People said that I was looking at the game through Vandermeer-colored glasses.  After all, the Texans just lost by 19.  How can you say it was a good game?  I'm glad you asked.

Yes, the Texans lost and yes, the Texans had some bad plays in there.  Despite all that, I saw a world of awesome plays and even better, a winning game plan.

Let's look at the numbers.

The Texans' offense ran 65 plays.  Even with the frantic passing attempts at the end of the game, they still came away with 57% passing/43% running.  That's an incredibly balanced offensive attack.  These plays were run out of 19 different formations.  That means the Titans' defense saw a new look at least every 3.4 plays.  It was far more often than that on most drives.

Schaub was shaky at times in the passing game, but he still put the ball where it needed to go more often than not.  The "not" hurt with 3 interceptions and a few critical incompletes, but he's doing his job.  With more practice, he'll do it better. 

Also, there were numerous deep passes called.  Kubiak had Schaub throwing to the flats, to the middle of the field, and deep down the side lines.  As the game progressed, the Titans pass rush picked up in intensity.  Kubiak had Schaub switch to 3 step drops as well as throw 2 great screens to slow down the pass rush.

The things that excited me most about the passing game were the play actions and bootlegs that were called.  The Titans' defense was stacking 8-9 men in the box, and Kubiak started calling play actions and bootlegs against it.  The Titans' defense backed up real quick.  I'm excited because Kubiak made extensive use of some of his favorite tools in the passing game.

The running game itself was very even.  With the exception of when it went directly behind the combination of Chris Myers and Mike Brisiel (RG) the running plays were called in every direction.  I suspect that not as many running plays were called to go off right guard both because of a lack of power in that offensive line combination and as most runs off RG are straight at Albert Haynesworth.

Which brings me to a point I made in earlier posts: The Texans' offense played a very physical game.  They moved all over the place in zone blocking for rushes and in pass protection.  I reiterate that it was a great achievement to make Fat Albert run until he had to come off the field for a part of the game after having such a bad game against another fatty, Casey Hampton.  This time Kubiak made the fat men run, and it had an effect.  This will only improve with each game.

Most importantly, and I stress most importantly, Kubiak played the whole game from start to finish to win.  He wasn't trying to keep it close.  This game was a dog fight, and Kubiak had the Texans fighting the whole game.  Rather than hope the Titans were going to slip up somewhere and have the Texans steal a win, Kubiak took it to them.  He called 11 plays that were designed specifically to put the ball in the end zone.  He took shots at the end zone from the 16 all the way out to the 35.  They didn't pan out this game, but he took his shots.  He went down in a blaze of glory.  We know we have a coach who is playing to win.  After years of a coach who played not to lose, I'm excited that we have a coach that knows how to win.

The scoring in this game was not as lopsided as the final score makes it appear.  Examine the graph above and you'll see actual scoring on each drive, as well as the 11 attempts at the end zone.  Despite all the mistakes along the way, it wasn't until midway through the 4th quarter that the game was out of reach.  For the whole second half, a touchdown would have drastically changed the makeup of the game and Kubiak went for the TD over and over.

This game was a tale of 2 teams going all out.  Take a look at the game book.  First Downs: TEX 18 / TIT 19, 3rd Down Eff: TEX 20% / TIT 38%, Total Net Yds: TEX 317 / TIT 343, Total Off Plays: TEX 68 TIT 62, Average Gain: TEX 4.7 / TIT 5.5, Net Pass Yds: TEX 171 / TIT 189, Gross Pass Yds: TEX 188 / TIT 189.  Even Net Punt Avg: TEX 38.8 / TIT 37.2. 

There is only one stat that killed the Texans.  Red Zone: TEX 1-6 17% / TIT 4-4 100%

That said, there are 3 things the Texans need to work on and games like this could turn into a 40+ point rout of the opponent. 

Red Zone - The Texans are driving the ball down the field and not finishing.  This has been a problem all along for the Texans, but now they're so close.  Kubiak called 11 plays that were designed to specifiaclly put the ball in the endzone. That's a possible 77 points.  Coming away with 1 TD and 12 total points says that when the Texans improve in the red zone, and when they do, they'll be hanging 30+ on opponents regularly. 

Matt Schaub to Andre Johnson - Something is broken here.  They are not in sync.  I would make them stay after ever practice and throw every route imaginable until they are scoring TDs.  Kubiak called AJ's number 12 times in the game.  Of those 12 times, 5 of those plays had AJ in the endzone and he had 0 TD receptions.  Of those 12 targets, he only had 2 receptions for 29 yards. 

Running Game - The running game showed some life, especially with Steve Slaton going 18/116 1TD and an amazing 6.4 YPC.  Yet, there were several running plays that managed to only pick up 3 or less yards.  As the OL keeps working, I believe that the running game is going to be solid and churn out yards.

I'll look at the individual drives tomorrow and the defense later this week.

When the Texans' original schedule was released, most of us in the fan base were ecstatic with the placement of our bye week (Week 8).  But unfortunately for us,  Hurricane Ike had different ideas...

With Ike wreaking havoc along the Coastal Bend and knocking holes in the roof at Reliant Stadium, it left little chance that the Texans would host a home game any time soon.  And because the game of football doesn't lend itself to playing doubleheaders, the only real solution was to rearrange the schedule and soldier on. 

Now, the participants in Week One live game thread can attest to the fact that I held out until sometime in the third quarter before I lost all hope.  Regardless of the situation, I usually try to remain optimistic.  Much like last year's Carolina game, when the chips were down, the Texans clawed their way back into that game and kicked some ass... while history didn't repeat itself in week one, the lesson still remains.  

So why do I mention it?  Because as fans, we can bitch and moan about having to burn our bye week only one game into the season...or we can try to focus on the positives.  So without further ado, here are five (5) silver linings that came from the clouds of Hurricane Ike.

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In the face of an impending hurricane, the Texans carried on with this week's practices with one thing on their minds - preparing for the Baltimore Ravens.  With last Sunday's debacle in rear view mirror, the Texans have only one goal, prove to everyone that they are better than their week one showing.

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SON OF A .... What can I say? Yesterday, we all witnessed a beating the likes of which we thought we had left in the rearview mirror. Evidently, we were wrong, because the Steelers destroyed your Houston Texans in every way they could be destroyed. If they had been so inclined, Roethlisberger, Parker & Co. could have hung fifty (50) points on the Texans; the only reason that didn't happen was because the Steelers took the proverbial knee in the fourth quarter and threw all of four (4) passes in the third quarter. I haven't seen a team impose its will on the Texans like that, from start to finish, in quite some time. Sure, last season's effort against San Diego was ghastly; maybe this is conveniently revisionist history, but I don't remember it being as categorically pathetic as yesterday's disaster. In short, the Texans played about as poorly as they possibly could, and certainly far worse than any of us ever dreamed. They should be ashamed of themselves. I'm going to swallow my own tongue if I don't stop thinking about the game; let's get this PGB cranked out so we can begin the healing process:

1. Hey, I know it was only limited action, but Ahman Green made it through an entire ga---...what's that? You're kidding me. I did NOT see that one coming. Evidently, neither did Ahman or his agent. Still, there's a good chance Ahman Green made $1,800,000.00 for contributing thirty-one (31) total yards this season. What a country!

2. The statistics don't show it, but I thought Steve Slaton acquitted himself pretty well in his regular season debut. He ran hard and decisively. Truth be told, Ahman looked reasonably good too, right up until he began clutching his Life-Alert pendant.

3. Where was Chris Taylor?

4. The offensive line, on the whole, looked like they should have suited up for a junior high powderpuff game. Although they showed flashes of competence, this certainly wasn't what Alex Gibbs was brought here to do. Look, I know Pittsburgh has one of the, if not the, best front-seven(s) in the NFL. They're fast, they play a unique scheme, and they attack. The Texans might not face a better defense this year. But you know what? I don't care. The Texans were so severely whipped in the trenches (on both sides of the ball, but we'll get to the defense later) that they didn't even look like they were in the same league as the Steelers. They got beat off the edge. They got beat on the interior. They got pushed around. They looked totally overmatched, and that's on the coaches and the players. Specifically...

5. Chris Myers seemed to constantly be giving ground at the point of attack. Granted, that's nearly a given considering Mt. Hampton was the dude doing a lot of the taking, but I was still surprised at how often and how severely Myers looked to be on the wrong end of the battle.

6. I know Duane Brown has garnered mixed reviews from his debut, but I thought he performed fairly well in the first half and was then victimized in the second half by a Pro Bowler who's probably as fast or faster than anyone he'll see all season. Brown's a rookie starting at LT, and he's going to take his lumps. No reason to panic yet, especially not after he looked so capable throughout the preseason.

7. Ephraim Salaam looked pretty slow in limited duty, so I wouldn't harbor any illusions about him displacing D. Brown.

8. As I watched the game, I remarked to my buddy that Matt Schaub was doing his best impression of David Carr, circa 2006. Awful pocket presence. Horrible decisions with the ball, including two (2) interceptions that made me recoil in horror. Seemed to lock in on 'Dre and not survey the field. Took some brutal hits early (Vonta Leach in particular almost got Schaub decapitated on one of the five (5) sacks) and then looked rattled for the rest of game. And if you didn't watch the game and just looked at his final numbers, you'd think that he didn't play nearly as badly as he did. The similarities are chilling, aren't they?

9. All that said, Kubes was absolutely right not to bring Sage Rosenfels in. With Pittsburgh running as soft a scheme as you'll ever see in the fourth quarter, the Texans were bound to score a garbage TD or two. And better for Schaub to be the one "leading" those drives, even though we know they meant nothing. Had Sage been the guy under center for those meaningless snaps, we would've been bombarded with incessant yammering about how Sage led the team to TDs in limited action when Schaub couldn't do it. It would have been ludicrous, but it still would've been a distraction the team does not need.

10. Speaking of meaningless snaps, what the hell was Andre Johnson doing in there once the score was 35-3? Does Kubes not remember what happened when he pulled that crap nearly one year ago to the day? I'm all for 'Dre getting his (hell, he's on my fantasy team), but that was a ridiculous risk the team shouldn't be taking with its best offensive player.

11. Kevin Walter and Owen Daniels each had one amazing catch. Would have been nice to see Schaub give them opportunities to go for two, three, four, or even five more receptions, huh?

12. Apostrophe Davis and Jacoby Jones held on to the ball during returns. That's about the nicest thing I can say about their impact on the game.

13. You would not believe how much Steelers fans despise Kris Brown. If you ever want to have some fun with one, tell them how automatic and clutch Brown has been as a Texan.

14. Mario Williams was fantastic. It's clear that he's picked up where he left off at the end of last season. He was superb. As bad as the game was, thinking about how dominant he was is the overriding positive. Praise doesn't do him justice.

15. The rest of the defensive line, however, was putrid. I'm going to stroke out if I write too long about it, so I'll break it down as quickly as I can. Neither Anthony Weaver or Travis Johnson should start another game for the Texans. Weaver is completely impotent at DE, and Tr. Johnson alternates between ineffective and galactically stupid (e.g., his horrible and catastrophic personal foul, one of which he seems to be good for each week). There's no way, and I mean NO WAY, that the alternatives at DE and/or DT could perform any worse. Please, Kubes...make an executive decision here. Weaver and Johnson are simply awful.

16. I thought Amobi Okoye made a play or two, but the stat sheet doesn't show it. If the Texans are going to be anything other than Super Mario & the Three Clowns, Amobi needs to find another gear.

17. I had Willie Parker on my fantasy team last season, and he scored two (2) TDs all year. Yesterday, he scored three (3) in one game. Clearly, Willie knew I was at Heinz Field yesterday and wanted to give me the bird. Message received loud and clear, Mr. Parker. I hate you.

18. DeMeco was all over the field, as usual. But it's not good when he's making 90% of his tackles ten (10) yards downfield.

19. Zac Diles racked up a ton of tackles, but I wasn't overly impressed with him. Still, that's worlds better than Morlon Greenwood. Remember when I called him "the most underrated defensive player in the NFL?" Dumbassery like that is why people don't take blogs seriously. Hey, X-Factor--get healthy already!

20. Fred Bennett looked like Petey Faggins yesterday.

21. Jacques Reeves looked surprisingly decent yesterday.

22. Any time the middle of the field looks like you could land an airplane in it, the safeties are not doing their jobs. Demps and Brown might as well have been on the sidelines for all the good they did. Is that on them, or is it on Richard Smith? I'll reserve judgment for now.

23. Fake Game Balls: Offense--Andre Johnson; Defense--Mario Williams; Special Teams--Matt Turk.

24. Finally, I just want to share a few thoughts on my trip to the Steel City. My buddy had warned me how much the Steelers meant to the city, how dedicated their fans were, how it was a different place than Houston. I'm here to tell you that whatever you've heard about how passionate Steelers fans are, multiply it by ten. You go to a city that boasts an NFL team the day before the game, and maybe you'll see a sign or two in a storefront; maybe you'll see a local wearing some gear. What you won't see is 80% of the population wearing some sort of team paraphernalia on a non-game day. Yet that's exactly what I saw in Pittsburgh, everywhere I went. The city is absolutely devoted to that team. To say I was amazed is an understatement.

And lest you think Steeler Nation is full of over-the-top pricks, let me say this: I could not have been treated any better as an opposing fan during my time in Pittsburgh. Granted, perhaps a Browns fan wouldn't be afforded that same respect. But I was, and it stuck with me. I got some good-natured ribbing (e.g., a dude wearing a Jack Lambert jersey telling me I had "big balls wearing a Texans shirt in this town"), but it was all in fun. The disastrous game aside, I have nothing but good things to say about Pittsburgh and their fans. They're first class, and they should be proud.

In less than a week, the Ravens come to town for the Texans' home opener. It goes without saying that this is a gigantic game for the good guys. Baltimore features an offense, a rookie QB, and a stout defense that should provide plenty of opportunity for redemption. Time to answer the bell, boys.

The sick feeling of getting pulverized will pass.  Until then, just 3 more things to think about from the game against the Steelers.

First, a story.  When I was 13, I played in one of those great Thanksgiving pick-up tackle football games you have with your friends.  One of the guys playing was a gigantic Samoan.  He played D-line at some college.  He got the ball on a kick off and came charging down the field.  He was running straight ahead and didn't make any attempt to avoid me.  I had the brilliant idea to go head up with him and stop him with pure tenacity.  We were going full tilt at each other and I made a flying leap to tackle him.  What happened next was such a gigantic departure from my expectations that the moment has forever been burned in my memory.  As we collided, I actually bounced off of him and was flung backwards several feet.

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This is only the first game.

Okay, this is the first of many post-game diatribes to come, as I'm sure Tim will have a post-game breakdown that will shed more light on what went wrong today.

I have a couple of things that I need to get off of my chest. 

Offensive Woes

First - we couldn't stop the pass rush.  I understand that Pittsburgh is a monster because of the exotic blitz packages they throw at you, but it looked like no one on our line could stop the onslaught. 

As expected, the rookie looked like a rookie, but the rest of the guys have no real excuse.  For example, when we were threatening in the red zone after Mario's and DeMeco's outstanding defensive play, Myers got knocked off the block so quickly, that Myers himself should have been credited with the tackle on Slaton.  

The play calling was also suspect as we never opened up the passing game.  Sure, you could say that Schaub never had the time, but still, most of the pass plays were to the flat or on a west coast slant route.

Schaub himself looked nervous in the pocket.  I never saw the devil-may-care attitude that a quarterback needs in the face of pressure.  I understand that that is easier said than done, but again, I never got the sense that he rallied the offense to respond.  

The running game was hard to judge at times because the team didn't  stick to it.  While Ahman Green showed that he still has some burst left in those legs, he only had five carries.  BRB favorite Steve Slaton carried the majority of the load with 13 carries for 43 yards.  That's not going to cut it.  And even though I'm slightly inebriated and haven't replayed the game on my DVR, I can't remember Slaton running the ball once to the outside ala Fast Willie Parker.  

Where was Owen Daniels in the first half, never mind the game?  When the blitz came, he should have been there to pick up an easy six or seven yards.   For him to only haul in one pass in the first half (late in the 2nd qtr) and a couple in garbage time in the 4th is not acceptable.  He's a Pro Bowler waiting to blossom.  Use the M'er F'er.

Defensive Woes

Why can't we stop the sweep in the red zone?  I understand that the field gets shortened, but really, that should be to the defense's advantage.  Our team got beat each and every time in the red zone.  Nothing was sacred.

Jacques Reeves actually looked decent in coverage.  He had a couple of balls caught on him, but they were of the nearly indefensible varitety (quick in routes).

The Fred on the other hand has some work to do.  He got taken to school by Hines Ward, who again proved that you don't have to be the fleetest of foot to win the race.  Hines used his veteran savvy to keep Bennett off balance all game.

Other than Mario, no one on the D-line stepped up to the plate.  That pretty much falls in line with what we all knew: Mario is a beast, six tackles, two sacks, and a forced fumble. He was phenomenally fantastic.

Our safeties looked slow.  I know we brought Eugene Wilson in to play corner... but can we please look at him at safety?  That would mean moving Demps to strong safety, but I think I like that combo better than Demps and Brown. 

Overall

The team needs to do some serious soul searching as they begin preparing for the home opener next week.  They should have a much easier time with the Ravens, and I fully expect to see us at an even .500 this time next week. 

Until then, I'll be eating my vitamins and saying my prayers in hopes of a better tomorrow.  For Kubiak and Co., it's back to the drawing board.

For years the Texans have been stereotyped as a team that couldn't protect the quarterback, and rightfully so. In 2002, the Texans offensive line surrendered a record 76 sacks. Despite the 2003 turnaround in which the Texans cut the sack total by more than half (36), 2004 and 2005 saw that number balloon once again. In 2004 they gave up 49 sacks and in 2005, the Texans were back to being the league’s worst, giving up 68 sacks.

The spring of 2006 found Gary Kubiak the newly appointed head coach of the Houston Texans. With 2005 being a season to forget, it was obvious he had some work to do. He began by addressing one of the areas that had plagued the Texans since their inaugural season - pass protection.

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Some interesting things are intersecting in the Texans blogosphere...Matt over at DGDB&D has an interesting piece. It's specifically about an argument he's engaged in, but more generally, it's about how the Texans are viewed nationally.

At the same time, Sportsgamer.com just came out with the Madden 09 ratings shown in their graphic to the right.  You can definitely get a sense how the guys at EA Sports feel about the Texans. I bring this up because the Texans are about to enter a watershed season.

Anyone that knows football knows the Texans took a giant leap forward last season. Lots of 2nd and 3rd string players, as well as new starters, established themselves. Guys like Kevin Walter and Fred Bennett put themselves on the map. All but the most hardened man-crushes have let go of the Mario-bashing and decided that Young and Bush are more hype than substance. So with all that, the Texans are poised to make their mark in the national spotlight.

If you read this blog, you're probably a Texans homer.  You know that Mike Brisiel is going to steamroll Albert Haynesworth this year, and that Zac Diles is going to put Goldberg's spear on Maurice Jones-Drew.  So obviously our view of Texans players is probably a little skewed.

That being said, it'll be up to you to set the world right and lead the Texans to conquer the national stage.  Check out the ratings below and see what I mean.

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For those of you all who are avid Battle Red Blog readers, you may have seen me mention my affiliation with the military. For those of you who haven’t, I’ve been a member of the United States Air Force for the past ten years. So when I read Nick Scurfield’s article about Gary Kubiak’s involvement in the Impact A Hero 5K Run, I felt it was something worth mentioning.

Impact A Hero is an outstanding organization that provides emotional and financial support for our troops who have been severely wounded or disabled. This Saturday, May 31, they will be holding their annual Impact A Hero 5K Run/Walk/Wheel event at Mercer Stadium in Sugar Land, Texas. Participation is open to the public. The entry fee for the 5K run can be paid on the day of the event or early by signing up online at their website. The event coordinators are hoping to double last year’s total of 750 participants.

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Sorry about getting this to ya'll a day late, but it's filled with football-y goodness.  OTA: Day 3 has a lot of good stuff.  It's even brought to you by Walgreens .

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