Respect the Bull

Pinc Gator does it again.  Nice work.

Happy San Jacinto Day

175 Years ago today, in a marshy grassland near Lynchburg the course of world history was changed forever when the ragtag remnants of the Texas army took the seasoned Mexican army by surprise. 17 minutes later, Texas was free, the Alamo and Goliad were avenged and Santa Anna was defeated. The Republic of Texas was born.

God Bless Texas.

Happy Texas Independence Day

On this day 175 years ago, Texas declared independence from Mexico in a small town called Washington on the banks of the Brazos river. It was on this day that the Texas spirit was born - one which exists to this day and lives in the hearts of all true Texans everywhere.

We don't mind being governed, but we refuse to be ruled.

God bless Texas, and Happy Independence Day!

On the Texans Loss to the Cowboys...

It's not that they lost (we Texans fans are pretty used to that). It's who they lost to.

Vindication and Anticipation

From the Houston Chronicle:

After defeating Indianapolis and Washington, the Texans are one of the NFL's most intriguing early-season success stories.

Now they host the winless Dallas Cowboys, who rank as one of the league's biggest disappointments.

I've been waiting nine years to read that sentence.

Open Letter to the Houston Texans

Dear Texans,

Congratulations on your decisive victory over the Oakland Raiders yesterday. But you suck.

What makes me say you suck, you wonder? Coaching, execution, play calling, consistency. You name it.

First, coaching. As I blogged during the game, late in the fourth quarter and up by a 23 point lead, matt Schaub was still in the game. This is the same Matt Schaub who has been somewhat injury-prone during his career. This is the same Matt Schaub who is still nursing a tender ankle. We all wince and pray and watch through our fingers every time he scrambles, praying that somebody doesn't land on his ankle and put him out for the season. Seriously, coach. Pull him in a victory that big. He should have been benched at the end of the third quarter and Grossman sent in. Matt played a decent game, but not great. What would've happened if he had been injured on the final series of a blowout game? Fans would've been demanding heads to roll.

Second, execution. I saw several defensive plays that should have resulted in either a sack or in an interception. Mario is doing well. Cushing is tearing it up. But.that's. about. it. As I was discussing yesterday with my buddy, Johnny, during the game, when the defense shows up to play we usually win. They showed up yesterday. Make that happen every week, will you? And please work with your defensive guys on catching. I can think of at least three occasions yesterday when, if they had been able to catch an easy ball, the play would have been a turnover.

Next, play calling. Why on God's green Earth were we still running passing plays in the fourth quarter with a 23 point lead? Run the ball. Run the clock.

And finally, consistency. If the Texans I saw yesterday would show up every week, we would be a playoff team, no doubts. The problem is that the team only seems to play well every other week. And even then, the offense only seems to play half the game. Their play during the second half of games is almost non-existent. They seem to have simply run out of gas. Some stamina training might be in order. Or ore substitutions. Who knows? That's not my job - it's yours. Do it, already.

Oh, and one more thing... Pink????? Pink gloves? Pink hats? Pink shoes? I know it's October and it's breast cancer awareness month. I get that. But for God's sake, this is a man's sport. Know your audience. Seeing big, burly guys down on the field sporting pink is just wrong. Period. I can't imagine such a thing happening twenty years ago. I can't imagine players submitting to it. A small pink ribbon on the helmet or on the uniform should suffice. Man up. And hocking that gear on your website is shameful.

-Destructo

P.S. - Quit winning on weeks when my buddy Johnny and I don't watch the game together. I need a football buddy, and if our wives start catching on to the pattern that seems to be emerging, they might not let us out to play at each other's houses anymore.

Poor coaching.

Fourth quarter. Texans leading the Raiders 29-6.

Why on earth is Matt Schaub still in the game???

Seen at the Texans Game...

I got the opportunity to go see the Texans lose to the Jacksonville Jaguars last weekend (thanks to Mr. and Mrs. Nabors for the tickets!)
On the ramp on the way in, I saw this:



That's a Carr jersey with the name covered with duct tape and Schaub written in. Awesome.

Why Do Houston Football Teams Suck?

Why?  Why is it that we can't seem to get a decent football team in this city?  First the Oilers sucked, with a few fluke years when they accidentally didn't suck hard enough and made it to the playoffs.  And now the Texans who, eight years into the franchise, have never even gotten anywhere near a playoff game.

And to add insult to injury, the year after the Oilers left Houston for Tennessee, they go to the Superbowl.

Is there something in the water?  In the air?  In the food?

Watching the Texans play is like being stuck in Groundhog Day.  We keep watching the same mistakes being made over and over again.  We've got another grossly overpaid quarterback who hasn't lived up to his hype, another head coach who's too busy trying to be a nice guy to clean house and bring in the players that will truly make a difference (Mario Williams excepted), an offense that can't move the ball on the ground or in the air, or protect the quarterback, wide receivers who can't hang onto the ball, and a defense that can't seem to stop much of anything.

Watching today's game was just painful.  Why does every season have to feel exactly the same way?  Eight years in, you'd think that we would have something to be proud of or show for the time in the league.

I'm just glad I don't own the season tickets I considered a few years ago.  People who keep shelling out money to see the Texans get their ass handed to them year in and year out have a real problem.

Sheesh.  I don't want to have to have to become a Cowboys fan.  Please, Texans, don't make me do it!

Choke!

Good football is emotional, and watching the Texans play the Colts today brought up all kinds of emotions. First, pride in my favorite team as they systematically took apart the Colts and made Peyton Manning look silly.

Then disbelief that beginning the fourth quarter they were up 27-10 and it looked like nothing could go wrong.

Then horror as I watched Sage Rosenfels make more mistakes than a high school quarterback in his first game. Diving over a defender, Sage? Really?!?

Then finally relief when the game was over and I knew that the Texans were the same team they've always been. The same old reliable team that always comes through in a pinch. The team that never lets me down. The team that always comes through at the last minute and manages to throw the entire game.

The Colt won 31-27.

Watching the last four minutes of the game felt exactly like watching the Houston Oilers choke and blow a tremendous lead to the Buffalo Bills back in 1993. I remember being at work at Foot Locker watching the game on TV and just feeling like I was drowning in slow motion, helpless to do anything.

Fast forward 15 years.  So now we have a new team. A better team. A new coach. A better coach. Better players. A new stadium. A fresh start, right? Allegedly...

So why does it just keep happening? Why does it all feel the same, over and over and over? It's like watching the Bad News Bears play every week. Is it the water in Houston? Is it the fans? Is it the weather? What is it that makes our teams constantly choke and just generally suck? I have a theory, but I'll save it for another time.

But a HUGE silver lining to the game... This was the first game that Noble and I got to watch together. Well, I watched it. He snuggled in and fell asleep. And he slept on my arm the whole time. And it was magic.  And there was the best emotion of this game.