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Houston Texans Have No One to Blame But Themselves…and Kris Brown
Published: January 5, 2010
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Talking with fellow sports fans, some have said how the Jets got into the playoffs only because of playing two teams, one who put their second string unit in while winning, the other clearly not showing their best plays for the re-match they would surely face in the first round.
And while that may be true, when it comes to the Texans missing the playoffs this year, they cannot blame anyone but themselves.
Let’s begin by things that were out of their control.
Owen Daniels getting hurt was definitely an adjustment period and was hard on the Texans passing game. Daniels was emerging as a pro-bowl tight end and was becoming as popular a target for Schaub as Andre Johnson, which is saying something. When he went down, it threw the offense out of whack for enough of a time that cost the Texans a game here or there.
However, everything else is on the Texans
First off, they lost to the Jets in week one, costing them the tie breaker which wouldn’t even have been an issue had they won a game against a team they should have beaten.
No disrespect to the Jets, they are a fine team. But without bias I feel the Texans are slightly better due to their big play capability.
The Texans defense also struggled the first few weeks before really starting to play up to the level they should. A team that has three pro-bowlers defensively, (tied for most from any NFL roster) in Brian Cushing, Demeco Ryans, and Mario Williams, not to mention a very talented safety in Bernard Pollard, is nothing to scoff at. They just didn’t play that way to start the year, letting teams run all over them before they finally figured out how to play. That cost them in the end.
The Texans also were extremely turnover prone, especially in crucial situations.
Statistically speaking, they weren’t terrible with turnovers. 11th in fumbles lost, 15th in interceptions. Not great, not atrocious either. But it was when they turned the ball over that mattered.
Considering how close all the games they lost were, those fumbles and picks were monumental.
The Texans were competitive in most every game they played this year. The final scores of the seven games they lost:
24-7 vs. the Jets
31-24 vs. the Jaguars
28-21 at the Cardinals
20-17 at the Colts
20-17 vs. the Titans
35-27 vs. the Colts
23-18 at the Jaguars
Only one of those games was more than a one score difference. Only one of those games did they not have the chance to tie or win the game late.
But every time, they found a way to lose.
Whether it be a fumble at the goal line against the Jaguars, an interception returned for a touchdown to lose to the Cardinals (followed by getting stuffed three times at the goal line to end the game), missed field goals by Kris Brown against the Colts and Titans, a complete collapse in the second game against the Colts blowing a 20-7 halftime lead, or the good ol’ fashioned interception in the red zone on a half-back toss passing play against the Jaguars.
The Texans found ways to lose.
Now the four-game winning streak at the end of the season to nearly sneak into the playoffs was admirable. And no doubt they also won their fair share of tough games, beating Cincinnati on the road as well as beating the Dolphins in Miami in what was essentially an elimination game for the playoffs, not to mention their amazing comeback against the Patriots down two touchdowns in the 4th quarter.
But the fact remains, they are not in the playoffs.
And the biggest reason to me…is Kris Brown.
Now kickers are always the scapegoat and never the hero. But come on.
He led the league in missed field goals with 11. Many of them coming when the Texans not only needed him most, but trusted him most.
Take the Titans game for instance. With 8 seconds to go, the Texans had one more shot to get the ball closer to the goal posts with a final passing play and a timeout to go.
Instead they move the ball to the middle of the field with a QB keeper that got back to the line of scrimmage, believing Kris Brown could hit that field goal and would be unfazed by his game tying miss two weeks previous.
Instead. Wide left. From dead on.
Now you could also call out Kubiak’s play calling not only in that situation, but in the Cardinals game where he ran the ball straight ahead three times at the goal line only to get denied every time. Or in the Jaguars game calling a trick play on first down when they’d had no trouble moving the ball against the Jaguars in the second half.
That could also be a reason, but that’s not the gripe Texans fans should have with Gary Kubiak.
The biggest gripe they should have with Kubiak, and the final reason the Texans are sitting at home this winter is flat out inconsistency.
The team would sometimes only play a half, whether they won or lost.
For instance, the 49ers game that was 21-0 on it’s way to a blow-out when suddenly back-up Alex Smith was too much to handle and they nearly lost winning by only a field goal.
Or the game against the Dolphins, up 27-3 before the Dolphins reeled off 17 straight points nearly costing the Texans a shot at the playoffs.
Or of course, you can look at the Colts game where they started off hot, then missed opportunities in the 2nd quarter to really put the game away and left at halftime with only a 13 point lead.
Whatever you want to blame it on, just don’t blame it on the Jets having a soft schedule at the end of the year or the Colts resting their starters or the Bengals not playing their best football to prepare for the playoffs.
Because the fact of the matter is, it shouldn’t have come down to that.
The Texans can only blame themselves and their complete inconsistency from game-to-game, half-to-half, bad play-calling, and turnovers and missed field goals in clutch situations.
Next year there’s no reason for them to miss the playoffs with all the talent they have.
Then again, there was no reason for them to miss the playoffs this year with all the talent they had.
The key to 2010 for the Houston Texans: Stop beating themselves. Play a full four quarters every game.
Fix that problem for next year, and they will get their first playoff berth. Without concern for tiebreakers.
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