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This week is full of old faces in new places. The now infamous Matt Schaub was traded this offseason to Oakland, setting up this revenge game in Week Two. The question was, who would get the revenge? Schaub or Texans fans as the Schaub "Scahub'ed" for another team? The story didn't play out that way, as rookie Derek Carr beat out Schaub for the starting quarterback job before the start of the 2014 season. Derek is the younger brother of David Carr, the Texans first overall pick in 2002. Derek will play the Inigo Montoya role, as David never got a chance to face his former team.
The quarterbacks aren't the only story line. The ninja, Antonio Smith, faces his former team. Will Ryan Fitzpatrick feel the ninja's blade? For the Texans, punter Shane Lechler spent 13 seasons with the Raiders before coming home to Texas last season. Interesting storylines abound, so let's get into it.
Whitney Mercilus and Brooks Reed. If they can get pressure off the edge, Derek Carr will spent the majority of the afternoon throwing checkdowns, with an occasional pick thrown in for good measure. - Tim
Defense: Mercilus will need to keep playing like he did in the opener to help the Texans' defense rattle the rookie QB Derek Carr.
Offense: Arian Foster needs a big day to keep the ball out of Fitzpatrick's hands. - Captain Ron
Offense - interior OL will need to control the LOS better this week. Not feeling so good about what I saw from those three last week. Would love to see the running game hum without so much stuttering this week.
Defense - Not so much an X factor as I am hoping to see Cushing get right quickly rather than in 6 games from now (as long as I'm hoping that he WILL get back). - Chris Watkins
Oddly enough, I'm going with J.J. Watt. There were moments last week where it appeared that he had decided, "I'm just going to go ahead and win this thing, because I can." Against real teams -- a designation that does not include Washington or Oakland -- that might not always be possible. Against Oakland, however, I think Watt can more or less impose his will on their offense whenever he wants. If he does early and often, we win. - MDC
I'm going with Jackson and Joseph's ability to cover the short routes. Carr is always afraid of pressure and even the slightest bit sends chills down his spine.
If y'all want to watch a real college football team, state is playing navy on ESPN news tonight. - Matthew Weston
My X-Factor is Ryan Fitzpatrick. If he plays even marginally okay, this team has enough raw talent to pull out a win. Anything below "meh" production from the quarterback position, however, is an insurmountable obstacle. Just ask the 2013 Texans. - Brett Kollmann
Texans vs Raiders coverage
Silver And Black Pride