This past weekend, a buddy of mine completed the Florida Ironman Triathlon. For those unfamiliar with an ironman, it's a 2.4 mile swim, 112 mile bike, and then a full 26.2 mile marathon. All in one day. Without breaks.
Personally, I struggle to understand the internal discussion that one must have with one's self in order to decide to partake in such an event, though I figure it must go something like this:
"You know, it would be cool to do an ironman."
"By cool, do you mean 'stupid'?"
"No, think about it. Imagine being able to say that we completed an ironman. Regardless of whatever happens in life, we will always be able to call ourselves an ironman."
"Ozzy Osbourne calls himself an ironman too, but that doesn't mean we should eat a bat."
"Come on, it'll be fun!"
"No, it won't."
"But we could subject ourselves to months of intense, painful training in order to spend a day exploring all nine levels of hell. Plus, we'll get a t-shirt."
"Ok, I'm in."
Still, I have to give my man superb credit for completing something so difficult. It really is an accomplishment that can never be taken away from him, and he should be forever proud.
None of this has anything to do with football (except that he is a Bucs fan, so his pain will actually extend another weekend), but I felt it was worth hijacking my own post to give him props.
So let's take a look at where the Texans rank in various statistics.
When Bill Cowher referred to the Texans as the most complete team in football, many of us experienced such foreign emotions as "pride" and "happiness." Yet, when looking at the statistics a little deeper, it seems that perhaps that comment wasn't just mindless blabber, but actually rooted in fact.Take a quick look as to where the Texans rank in Football Outsiders statistics:
- Overall DVOA - 3rd
- Offensive DVOA - 5th (6th in weighted)
- Passing DVOA - 7th
- Rushing DVOA - 7th
- Defensive DVOA - 7th
- Pass Defense - 5th
- Rush Defense - 10th
- Quarterback - 6th in DVOA, 7th in DYAR
- Running Backs, Arian Foster edition - 12th in DVOA, 5th in DYAR
- Running Backs, Ben Tate edition - 4th, and 4th
- Tight Ends, Owen Daniels edition - 8th and 5th
- Tight Ends, Joel Dreessen edition - 1st and 10th -- Dreesen is 1st in DVOA!!
- Tight Ends, James Casey edition- 5th and 19th
- Offensive Line - 3rd in Adjusted Line Yards, 9th in Power Rank, 3rd in Stuffed Rank, 4th in Second Level Rank, 18th in Open Field Rank, 9th in Pass Protection
- Defensive Line - 12th in Adjusted Line Yards, 9th in Power Rank, 17th in Stuffed Rank, 15th in Second Level Rank, 17th in Open Field Rank, 4th in Pass Protection (i.e. pressuring the QB)
- Special Teams DVOA - 9th
Let that all sink in for a second. The only position I didn't include up there was wide receiver, where Kevin Walter is the highest ranked Texan at 17th in DVOA and 31st in DYAR. But considering the team is about to return a guy who is arguably the best wide receiver in football from injury, I don't think many of us would consider this an area of concern.
Outside of that, the only area where the Texans don't rank in the top ten is in the majority of the defensive line rankings.
Sure, there are other areas that cannot be measured, but that's a pretty nice nugget there.
Want more?
How about this? According to Football Outsiders' playoff odds, the Texans have the highest probability of any AFC team to win the Super Bowl. Not just to make the playoffs, mind you, but, as Jake Taylor so eloquently put it to "win the whole <efffing> thing."
Yes my friends, after nine mostly miserable seasons, it's finally good to be a Texans fan.