Posts about Houston Texans

Recapping an exciting playoff weekend in the NFL

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The first weekend of this year’s playoffs was mediocre but this past weekend the NFL gave fans some of the greatest football I’ve seen in a 48 hour span. The divisional round is thought of by most as the best weekend of the entire season and this weekend’s games certainly backed up that statement. Where do I even begin? We’ll start in chronological order.

Bal-Den: What was Manning thinking with that throw across his body late in the first overtime? I was the back up QB in middle school and even I know not to throw across your body into the middle of the field. But hey, he’s the future hall of fame NFL player so i’ll defer to him. After that interception, the Ravens were able to gain enough yardage to set up the game winning field goal in the second overtime period. Second overtime! How many times do we see “2OT” on the scoreboard in the NFL? It was actually kind of odd. I know Joe Flacco had that great (elite?) pass late in the game to seal the comeback but I gotta give some props to their RB Ray Rice. Rice secretly tore up the Denver defense, rushing for 131 yards and a TD on 30 carries. Incredible game with an incredible finish.

SF-GB: I’ll be the first to admit that I was a bit skeptical about how Colin Kaepernick would perform in his first playoff start but boy did he prove me wrong. Kaepernick bounced back from an early pick-6 in record breaking fashion to lead the 49ers in an impressive victory over the Packers. Kaepernick’s stat line (pass: 263 yds, 2 TDs, 1 INT; rush: 181 yds, 2 TDs) doesn’t even do him justice as he out dueled Aaron Rodgers, a proven SB winner and one of the best QBs in the league. Credit to the 49ers defense who never let Rodgers get in sync, even after the Packers took an early lead from a play made on defense. I also have to give credit to the rest of the Niners rushing attack (Gore and co) who had the Packer defense confused the entire game. Damn, the Niners are a scary team.

Atl-Sea: Another wild finish that I did not see coming. Seattle certainly had a chance to win the game after an incredible comeback but Atlanta’s big plays late in the game were the deciding factor. The Falcons finally broke their streak of recent playoff losses and even though I had the Seahawks winning the game, I actually felt good for the Falcons players. Particularly TE Tony Gonzalez, who broke down in tears after the clock expired. I have to ask about the 4th quarter: was it more Falcons meltdown or a Seahawks comeback? It was incredible to watch Russell Wilson lead the Seahawks to 21 unanswered points in the final period but it still wasn’t enough. Seems like there’s a bright future for Seattle but this season it’s the Falcons that are moving on.

NE-Hou: This game didn’t exactly live to the rest of the weekend’s games in terms of excitement but it was still impressive to see how much the Patriots dominated the Texans. Tom Brady broke the record for career playoff wins as he led the Patriots offense in a dominating victory over the Texans. Houston simply could not keep up with the Patriots offense, particularly in the second half. The Texans kept the game close through the first half but after the Patriots dominated the 3rd quarter it began to shape into a easy W for New England. Despite losing Gronkowski (for the season) during the first quarter, the Patriots offense continued to dominate but it’ll be interesting to see how the injury affects them going forward.

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Is a Brady vs Manning AFC title game inevitable?

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This isn’t a guarantee by any means but i’m sure you can guess which teams i’m leaning towards to advance to the AFC championship. It’s surely what the NFL and it’s money-hungry hands want. I’m not speaking for all NFL fans but i’m positive that most non-Ravens/Texans fans would prefer to see Brady face Manning next weekend. Let’s not get ahead of ourselves because as we know, crazy things happen in the NFL. Particularly this week where teams with the bye week can get caught off guard by being a little too confident. Then again there’s a reason that Vegas has the higher seed favored by more than one score (+9.5) but let’s take a closer look at how the Ravens or Texans can spoil some parties.

Biggest factors: Baltimore faced Denver not too long ago (week 15) and it was a lopsided affair in favor of Manning and co. Baltimore is a different looking team this time around with previously injured players not named Ray Lewis being much healthier and ready for action this time around. Can that be enough to slow down Manning? The Ravens need a couple of big plays on defense to help their offense keep up with Denver’s firepower. The Ravens must score quickly because being down by a TD against the Broncos in Denver is a death sentence. I know Ray Rice had 2 fumbles last week but look for screens and things of that sort to neutralize Von Miller’s pressure on Joe Flacco.

A big reason the Texans are playing this game in New England is because one month ago today, the Texans played against the Patriots on to road and it wasn’t pretty for Houston. Tom Brady and co laid the smack down. So what can Houston do to slow down the best offense in the league? Remember, this time Gronkowski is playing. For starters the Texans can’t get into such a big hole. The Patriots are susceptible to teams that can pressure Brady and control the clock. The Texans can do that but only if they score early. Playing catch up is not an option. The Texans biggest stars (Foster and Watt) both need big games and need to influence the game or else it’s going to be a long night for Houston.

Prediction: Like I said earlier, there’s a reason the Broncos and Patriots are favored so heavily at this stage of the season. They’re just better teams. It doesn’t take stats or extensive film study to figure that out, just watch the teams from week to week. That doesn’t mean that I don’t give the under dogs a chance this weekend. There’s always a chance for an upset and if I had to chose one, i’d take the Ravens. They’re not intimidated by any means and the Baltimore offense can catch fire at any moment. Also, Denver did have an extremely easy regular season schedule. I wouldn’t put my money on it though. Denver wins closer than expect and the Patriots roll. Get ready for an enitre week of Brady-Manning hype.

NFC tomorrow.

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Leftovers after a crazy Thanksgiving day in the NFL

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Depending on how your team performed yesterday, you were either thankful they played or thankful that they were finally off your TV screen. Unfortunately I was part of the latter as my Cowboys decided to participate in their game until after halftime but we’ll get to that. First things first:

What was Jim Schwartz thinking when he threw the challenge flag? I understand that emotions sometimes make you do things that aren’t entirely logical but everyone knows that every scoring play in the NFL is reviewed. Even plays that are clearly TDs are looked at a couple of times over. The Texans took advantage of the break and rallied to tie the game late and take the victory 34-31 in OT against the Lions. The controversial scoring play didn’t doom the Lions, they actually scored another TD after that but it still lingered throughout the rest of the game and was one those obvious “what if?” plays. This loss essentially eliminates any realistic chances of the Lions participating in the postseason and it puts Houston one step closer to securing  the best record in the AFC.

The second game brought forth another classic NFC East rivalry game between the Redskins and Cowboys (isn’t that kind of ironic considering the holiday? Redskins against America’s Team?) but it can only be considered a game if both teams play in the first half. RG3 was spectacular (20-28, 311 yds, 4 TDs, 1 int, 29 rush yds) to lead the Redskins in beating the Cowboys 38-31 and suddenly put them in the running to win the NFC East. The Cowboys looked like a different team in the second half and rallied within one score but once again it was too big a hole that they’d dug themselves into. Both teams are now looking at Sunday night’s game, hoping for a Giants loss.

The final game on Thanksgiving between the Patriots and Jets was one-sided to say the least. How did the night go for the Jets? Well if Mark Sanchez getting tackled and fumbling because of his lineman’s ass (pictured above) doesn’t tell you, I don’t know what can. The game was over by halftime but particularly in the 2nd quarter when the Patriots scored 35 points, including 3 TDs in a span of 53 seconds. Tom Brady was crisp and the Patriots offense didn’t miss a beat even though they’re without Gronkowski, easily the best tight end in the league. As the Patriots finished the 49-19 victory many Tebow chants were heard from the crowd but once again, number 15 was not seen taking a snap.

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Heading into week 12, who are the top 5 teams in the NFL?

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Trying to figure out the top 5 teams in the league it a tough task, especially when trying to reason why Team A belongs but Team B doesn’t, even though Team B has a better record. It’s also great to go back and see what the rankings were like just a month ago and how different the landscape in comparison. When I look at the teams that consist of the top 5, i’m looking for the best bets to win the Super Bowl right now. This is based off recent performances, specifically the last two weeks so it’s more a power rankings or momentum rankings. Also factored in are injuries. Example: the Steelers can’t be considered until Roethlisberger is starting and performing at his usual level.

Even though the two teams with the best records weren’t very convincing this past weekend, the nod for the two leaders in the rankings go to Houston and Atlanta. Right now they’re both sitting at 8-1 and inching towards home field advantage throughout the playoffs but this past Sunday showed it won’t be an easy road. It’s still the NFL (you know, the National. Football. League. NFL) and a underdog always has a shot. Right now i’d put my money on the Texans as the true leader because despite what the Jaguars did to them, they do have an elite defense and one of the best running backs in the league. Also, everyone knows the Falcons have to prove they can do it in the postseason.

These next three were very tricky. I’m most confident about including the 49ers in the third spot. They absolutely destroyed a good Bears team even though both teams were playing without their starting QBs. I’m also going to throw in the Packers because it looks like they’re gaining momentum and a statement win this weekend against the Giants (coming off a bye) would be a huge statement. Yes, that also benefits the Cowboys. My 5th team was the hardest to decide. Last weekend it would’ve been flipped but i’m going with the Patriots as part of my elite top 5. The Gronkowski injury is alarming but they blew out a Colts team that was playing well and the Broncos did good against a Chargers team that looked like they’d given up. Where are the Ravens at 8-2? Discouraging wins as of late. I need to see some actual offense but like I said earlier, these rankings change from week to week.

Friendly reminder: the Thanksgiving games tomorrow (all times eastern) 12:30pm Texans at Lions; 4:15pm Redskins at Cowboys; 8:20pm Patriots at Jets. So even if you don’t celebrate Thanksgiving, go enjoy some football dammit!

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Texans remain undefeated as they take down Jets on MNF

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It didn’t come as easy as the Texans planned but they did get the win against a Jets team in the middle of turbulent times. Texans RB Arian Foster led the way (29 car, 152 yds, 1 TD) as they held of the New York Jets late in the 4th quarter to take the victory 23-17.  By statistical reasoning, this is the best Texans team of all time, being the the first that they have started 5-0 in franchise history. From the eye test, it looks like they’re the Super Bowl slightly over Atlanta because of their elite running game and superior defense. As the season progresses it will be seen whether or not these two undefeated teams can keep the pace. On the other hand, the Jets woes continue at the worst times. Just as the Jets were driving late in the 4th quarter, Mark Sanchez throws another interception to kill all momentum. This time it pretty much gave the Texans the win so the question remains: is it Tebow Time for the Jets?

I wasn’t able to make a post yesterday due to real life getting in the way but I still have some lingering thoughts now that week 5 of this season has settled. What are the chances the Packers aren’t very good? Crazy to think about it after their record last season but a good team doesn’t give away a 21-3 lead to a rookie quarterback. Is this Vikings team a legit contender to make the postseason? One of these surprise teams will free fall, it happens every season. It’s between the Vikings and the Cardinals, let the games begin! The Saints got their first victory of the season late Sunday but it felt more like a choke by the Chargers than a rally by the Saints. After two weeks of absolutely demolishing teams, the 49ers will get a nice test this weekend when the Giants (the ultimate road team) come to town.

My upset pick (Browns keeping it close against the Giants) showed some real life early in the game but even the Giants woke up and the Browns became the Browns. That’s what I get for bragging about the previous week.

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