The Texans’ promising 3-1 preseason record and almost-complete offseason overhaul of their roster and coaching staff has failed to show any improvement over last year’s horrid outing. Houston’s record stands at 2-17 over the past two seasons, and they’ve failed to even put up a fight in their three games in the ’06 campaign.
The Texans defense is by far the worst in the league, and their running game is nonexistent. Losing all-time franchise-leading rusher Domanick Davis for the season was certainly a blow, but first-year coach Gary Kubiak‘s running scheme was supposed to be successful regardless of who is starting in the backfield. Wasn’t that one of the reasons Houston chose Mario Williams over Reggie Bush (or Vince Young) as the No. 1 overall pick in this year’s draft?
While it is harder to quantify a defensive lineman’s success in the NFL than a running back, Not-So-Super Mario hasn’t been a factor in any of Houston’s games this season, and his sack total resides at zero. Passing on Bush could play out to be a miscue of monumental proportions.
The Texans defense aided Redskins QB Mark Brunell in setting and NFL single-game record with 22 consecutive completions. Here are some statistical catagories that the Texans hold a strong grip on being the league’s worst in: They are giving up an average of 483.7 yards per game, 320.7 yards per game through the air; opposing teams are converting on third down 68.4% of the time; they’ve surrendered 32.7 points per game; and their opponents are controlling the ball for an average of 35:25 per game (they are actually second-to-last in that category).
As far as the offense is concerned, they are averaging 79.7 yards rushing per game, and their franchise QB David Carr can’t seem to hold onto the ball. Their offensive line is still struggling, even with having finally addressed the issue in the draft and by acquiring free-agent C Mike Flanagan. It doesn’t help that starting rookie lineman Charles Spencer is out for the season with a broken leg.
With the Dolphins, Raiders, Browns, and Titans (twice) remaining on the Texans’ schedule, they’ll win at least a couple of games, but they’re still certain to secure another top draft slot and hopefully Oklahoma RB Adrian Peterson in the ’07 draft.
This article appears in September 22 • 2006.