Brett Favre in Minnesota Vikings Uniform on Sports Illustrated by Flickr user David Erickson used via a creative commons license. Pity the Texans will you? Here they are on Monday Night Football Jr. (Now with 1/2 the clout on ESPN) formerly the 'spotlight game of the week' in the NFL and all the buzz for the game surrounds AARP quarterback Brett Favre.
Some of you might be thinking this is a bad thing. I, however, am prepared to argue the opposite: This is the best thing that could have possibly have happened to the Texans and let me tell you why....
1. THE Adrian Peterson. - Not only the best pure running back in the NFL (sorry LaDanian) but also one of the best in the business at running over D-lineman with poor leverage who are lacking in the strength department. (Which, if you haven't been paying attention, describes just about every person in the Texans front seven.) Normally this would be fodder for the MNF announcers, because of the Favre factor Peterson's 114 yards rushing in the first half will just be a blip on the radar screen.
2. The Texans Defensive Secondary - Look, I like Fred Bennett as much as the next guy. If he's starting for your team however at cornerback you've got some issues on the NFL level. For all of the negative chatter about Dunta Robinson, the fact remains that he is, by a wide margin, the Texans best DB on the roster. Jacque Reeves is a distant second, and he's hurt. At least Favre has a propensity to throw the ball directly to players wearing the opposing team's jersey from time to time. This could be the saving grace for the defense.
3. That whole Red Zone thing - Please don't tell me about how good the Texans are in the Red Zone this year. Not until we see actual evidence of it mmmKay? In the pre-season opener the Texans scored one Touchdown, and three field goals, marking the return of team MVP Kris Brown. Don't confuse Kris with a K with Chris with a CH now. Because Chris with a CH has a less than 50% chance of playing in 14 out of 16 games this year. Yet it's Chris with a CH on whose shoulders the Texans red-zone offensive hopes are riding. For the Texans to win consistently they have to start scoring touchdowns and stop settling for field goals. Minnesota has an above average defense....which means that the Texans had better to be ready to roll out ol #3.....with a K.
4. Coach Kubiak. - First thing, he's not Coach K so let's stop calling him that right here and now. Like him or not there's only one Coach K, and until Kubiak wins at some level he's not taking the name away. He could start however by winning a challenge. Or at least stop losing them. It would also help if he could lean how to call plays in the Red Zone that match his personnel. Last weekend I watched a running back named Darren Sproles find the end zone on a run that started around the 10 yard line. Last I checked he's no road-grater of a running back. Scoring in the Red Zone is about want to, blocking and play calling. It's fair to question the Texans in all three areas.
Local pundits are falling all over themselves telling us that last weekend was an aberration, that the Texans we saw last week aren't as bad as they looked, as a matter of fact, almost every MSM pundit is singing the same tune: A winning record and a playoff berth.
Unfortunately, we all remember what happened the last time Chron pundits were singing the playoff praises of this team. Yikes.
Prediction: - Ah, who cares, it's a pre-season game. The most important thing is to watch how the starters play.