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MNF Folks, thank you to the Chargers for making us have the late game, I hate sleep anyway
5 key questions
1. Will the Texans start like the team that began 11-1 or the team that finished 1-3 and blew home-field advantage in the playoffs? With the exception of free safety Ed Reed, all the starters are healthy. The Texans have talent and experience on both sides of the ball. They have the same coaching staff and the same systems on both sides of the ball. Those systems have been among the most consistent and productive in the league. They are coming off a successful preseason. And the Chargers don’t appear to be very good again after finishing 7-9 in a season in which they swept Kansas City and Oakland and failed to defeat a team with a winning record.
2. How many new starters do the Texans have for the Chargers game, including special teams? New starters on offense are receiver DeAndre Hopkins, fullback Greg Jones and right guard Brandon Brooks. New starters on defense and special teams are nose tackle Earl Mitchell, right end Jared Crick, outside linebacker Whitney Mercilus, inside linebacker Joe Mays, free safety Shiloh Keo and punter Shane Lechler. Hopkins is the only rookie. Mitchell played more than starter Shaun Cody last season. Crick is replacing Antonio Smith, who is serving a one-game suspension and will be reinstated on Tuesday.
3. Will Matt Schaub get off to a good start? I expect Schaub to have a good game against San Diego and the Texans to win decisively. He can play extremely well on the road, as he did last season at Denver, where he threw four touchdown passes. He needs to be the quarterback who led the Texans to an 11-1 start and not the quarterback who couldn’t keep them from a 1-3 finish. He knows Gary Kubiak’s system. He doesn’t turn the ball over. He knows he has to be consistent from start to finish. There’s pressure on Schaub to help the Texans earn home-field advantage in the playoffs. If that happens, he is capable of taking them to the Super Bowl.
4. Can San Diego quarterback Philip Rivers do to the Texans’ secondary what Aaron Rodgers and Tom Brady did last season when they combined for 10 touchdown passes? That’s unlikely. Rivers isn’t an elite quarterback like Rodgers and Brady. Cornerback Kareem Jackson should be even better this season. Cornerback Johnathan Joseph is healthy, unlike most of last season. Strong safety Daniel Manning does a splendid job. Free safety Shiloh Keo is the unknown factor because this is his first start. Rivers is smart, and will try to find a way to test Keo early. The key, as always, is the pass rush. Rivers was sacked 49 times last season. If new coach Mike McCoy can’t improve the pass protection by having Rivers take shorter drops and get rid of the ball quicker, the quarterback’s going to get pulverized again.
5. What do the coaches expect from running back Arian Foster and outside linebacker Whitney Mercilus, since neither played in the preseason because of injuries? Gary Kubiak said last week that Foster will rotate with Ben Tate and be eased back into his usual heavy workload. Foster is a proven veteran, a perennial Pro Bowl back who on Monday will be playing in the city where he went to high school. I expect him to respond big-time. Mercilus is a two-year veteran starting for the first time. The key is how well he will play against the run considering how much time he missed because of a severe hamstring injury. He’s paid to get the quarterback.
Besides a simple win, I want to see the defense get after Rivers and not give up big plays. I can't stand when the Texans put teams at 3rd and forever, and let them convert. I also wanna see the offense get in gear early, and stay in gear. None of that Conservative Kub mess, where everything is predictable and drives get stalled out early. Let's just get this win and move on.
5 key questions
1. Will the Texans start like the team that began 11-1 or the team that finished 1-3 and blew home-field advantage in the playoffs? With the exception of free safety Ed Reed, all the starters are healthy. The Texans have talent and experience on both sides of the ball. They have the same coaching staff and the same systems on both sides of the ball. Those systems have been among the most consistent and productive in the league. They are coming off a successful preseason. And the Chargers don’t appear to be very good again after finishing 7-9 in a season in which they swept Kansas City and Oakland and failed to defeat a team with a winning record.
2. How many new starters do the Texans have for the Chargers game, including special teams? New starters on offense are receiver DeAndre Hopkins, fullback Greg Jones and right guard Brandon Brooks. New starters on defense and special teams are nose tackle Earl Mitchell, right end Jared Crick, outside linebacker Whitney Mercilus, inside linebacker Joe Mays, free safety Shiloh Keo and punter Shane Lechler. Hopkins is the only rookie. Mitchell played more than starter Shaun Cody last season. Crick is replacing Antonio Smith, who is serving a one-game suspension and will be reinstated on Tuesday.
3. Will Matt Schaub get off to a good start? I expect Schaub to have a good game against San Diego and the Texans to win decisively. He can play extremely well on the road, as he did last season at Denver, where he threw four touchdown passes. He needs to be the quarterback who led the Texans to an 11-1 start and not the quarterback who couldn’t keep them from a 1-3 finish. He knows Gary Kubiak’s system. He doesn’t turn the ball over. He knows he has to be consistent from start to finish. There’s pressure on Schaub to help the Texans earn home-field advantage in the playoffs. If that happens, he is capable of taking them to the Super Bowl.
4. Can San Diego quarterback Philip Rivers do to the Texans’ secondary what Aaron Rodgers and Tom Brady did last season when they combined for 10 touchdown passes? That’s unlikely. Rivers isn’t an elite quarterback like Rodgers and Brady. Cornerback Kareem Jackson should be even better this season. Cornerback Johnathan Joseph is healthy, unlike most of last season. Strong safety Daniel Manning does a splendid job. Free safety Shiloh Keo is the unknown factor because this is his first start. Rivers is smart, and will try to find a way to test Keo early. The key, as always, is the pass rush. Rivers was sacked 49 times last season. If new coach Mike McCoy can’t improve the pass protection by having Rivers take shorter drops and get rid of the ball quicker, the quarterback’s going to get pulverized again.
5. What do the coaches expect from running back Arian Foster and outside linebacker Whitney Mercilus, since neither played in the preseason because of injuries? Gary Kubiak said last week that Foster will rotate with Ben Tate and be eased back into his usual heavy workload. Foster is a proven veteran, a perennial Pro Bowl back who on Monday will be playing in the city where he went to high school. I expect him to respond big-time. Mercilus is a two-year veteran starting for the first time. The key is how well he will play against the run considering how much time he missed because of a severe hamstring injury. He’s paid to get the quarterback.
Besides a simple win, I want to see the defense get after Rivers and not give up big plays. I can't stand when the Texans put teams at 3rd and forever, and let them convert. I also wanna see the offense get in gear early, and stay in gear. None of that Conservative Kub mess, where everything is predictable and drives get stalled out early. Let's just get this win and move on.
but I did see that our team is a lot better since I expected us to get blown out. Ggs gents, we'll be ready next time in tennessee
