The NFL Draft is once again upon us and it’s one of my favorite times of the year. Millions of couch GM’s sit around just hoping that their team picks the guy that they want and that they come away with those late round steals. This year’s draft is going to be hard to predict because I don’ think there are a whole lot of superstars (especially at the skill positions) but here is my attempt at predicting what each team will do.
1. Kansas City- Eric Fisher OT Central Michigan
The Chiefs are looking to trade Brandon Albert so that almost solidifies the fact that they will take an OT with the first pick. Fisher is a solid pick.

2. Jacksonville- Dion Jordan DE Oregon
The Jaguars had the worst pass rush last season so this pick makes sense. Their new head coach said he learned from Pete Carroll that you need speed on your team. Dion Jordan has a lot of potential to be an Aldon Smith type of player. Jacksonville can’t resist taking him here.

3. Oakland- Shariff Floyd DT Florida
If it weren’t for the Jags, the Raiders would have had the worst pass rush in the NFL. Floyd has a ton of upside and will help this team get to the QB.

4. Eagles- Luke Joeckel OT Texas A&M
Eagles offensive line was awful last year and a big reason why Vick struggled. He always seemed to have pressure on him and had to run around to make plays. Joeckelwould be a great pick for the Eagles and fill a huge need.

5. Lions- Dee Milliner CB Alabama
It’s no secret that Detriot’s secondary is terrible and has been for many years. Milliner would come in and help improve that secondary immediately. I know a lot of people have them taking a Defensive lineman but this draft is so deep with offensive and defensive lineman that they can get some quality lineman later in the draft.

6. Cleveland Browns- Tavon Austin WR West Virginia
The Browns still need offensive play makers on their team. Plug in Austin with Richardson, Weeden, Gordon, and now the Browns actually have a scary offense.. if Weeden can figure it out.

7. Arizona Cardinals- Jonathan Cooper OG North Carolina
Cardinals have to make the hard decision to pass up on Lane Johnson but they are satisfied with their tackles. Cooper is probably the best pass blocking guard in this draft. Carson Palmer and Larry Fitzgerald love this pick.

8. Buffalo- Ryan Nassib QB Syracuse
The Bills new head coach, coached him at Syracuse. This is just like Ryan Tannehill last season. The Bills need a QB as Kevin Kolb isn’t the answer. This is a reach but Buffalo will take him whether they move back or not I’m not sure but Nassib is a Buffalo Bill.

9. Jets- Ziggy Ansah DE BYU
The Jets are glad that he fell to them here. A lot of upside but very raw. Rex Ryan should be estatic about getting to work with this kid.

10. Titans- Chance Warmack OG Alabama
This pick makes so much sense for Tennessee. This would solidfy their interior line for many years to come. Warmack along with Levitre would be one of the best combos in all of the NFL.

11. Chargers- Lane Johnson OT Oklahoma
San Diego couldn’t dream of a better scenerio than this one. One of the most athletic tackles ever and this fills a huge need for this team. Phillip Rivers will start sleeping a little better at night.

12. Dolphins- Tyler Eifert TE Notre Dame
The Dolphins have very few offensive weapons so this pick helps out their QB giving him someone to now throw the ball to. Eifert is a tremendous pick for Miami.

13. Jets- Barkevious Mingo DE/OLB LSU
Another pass rusher for the Jets because they only had 30 sacks last season and need some youth at that spot. Mingo is another freak athlete that Rex Ryan should enjoy coaching.

14. Carolina- Star Lotulelei DT Utah
Carolina should be jumping up and down all night that this guy fell to them. He will instantly improve their D line especially up the middle.

15. New Orleans- Sheldon Richardson DT Missouri
This will help their interior pass rush for a team that struggled on defense last year. They got decent production from their DE’s but DT needs to be upgraded and Richardson is a great athlete who will help in the run and pass.

16. St. Louis Rams- Kenny Vaccaro S Texas
Jeff Fisher has selected a Texas safety in the first round before. He did it with Tennessee and Griffin. This pick helps improve a young defense and because St. Louis has 2 first round picks they don’t have to take WR here.

17. Steelers- Jarvis Jones OLB Georgia
The Steelers lose James Harrison but they will draft Jones who at one point was the best prospect in this draft. He is a football player who makes plays. He will fit right in.

18. Dallas- Sylvester Williams DT North Carolina
Dallas needs help stopping the run and Williams can do just that. This isn’t a sexy pick but its a smart one and one that will help them out instantly.

19. Giants- DJ Fluker OT Alabama
This guy has been on the rise as of late and some even think he might make it into the top 10 so the Giants getting him at 19 is a steal. Solid pick for New York.

20. Chicago- Alec Ogletree ILB Georgia
Bears need to replace Urlacher and Ogletree is the man to do it. This pick is one of the more obvious picks in this years draft… I think. There is an outside shot that Manti Te’o could go here but I think Olgetree goes before him.

21.Bengals- Cordarrelle Patterson WR Tennessee
Man, Green and Patterson on the same team would be quite the combo. I don’t think Patterson can be a number one reciever on a team but he is a great playmaker who can do special things with the ball in his hands. This helps out the Bengals offense in a big way.

22. St. Louis Rams- DeAndre Hopkins WR Clemson
For some reason Jeff Fisher always seem to miss on WR’s. Just look back on his draft history in Tennessee. Rams’ fans hope that trend doesn’t continue here. The Rams really don’t have any other choice but to take a WR in this years draft. Hopkins is a big play guy that Sam Bradford needs.

23. Vikings- Manti Te’o LB Notre Dame
The Vikings need some LB’s and while I’m not big on Te’o at all I think Minnesota will take him. This will not only fill a need but it will bring media attention to their team so people will be talking about he VIkings again. KInda like when they went out and got Farve.

24. Colts- Xavier Rhodes CB Florida State
I think every mock draft I have seen has Indy taking a CB, so I would say that it is a need. Rhodes is one of the top 3 in this draft and will help Indy’s terrible secondary.

25. Vikings- Justin Huner WR Tennessee
Many people feel he is a more complete WR than Patterson is. Hunter will help out Peterson and hopefully improve one of the worst passing attacks in the NFL.

26. Packers- Matt Elam S Florida
The Packers have to flirt with the idea of Lacy here but losing Woodson means they need to replace him. Elam is a hard hitter and someone who Packers fans will enjoy watching.

27. Houston- Robert Woods WR USC
If you are Houston you are frustrated at this draft because all the WR you wanted are gone. So you have to reach for a WR. Houston has shown that they are investing everything in the next 2 years and not so much 4 or 5 years down the road (they let go of S Quinn to sign Ed Reed). That’s why I think they reach for a WR here because they are in win now mode and sometimes that can cause you to make some questionable decisions.

28. Denver- Bjoern Werner DE Florida State
Werner will have to replace Dumervil who moved onto Baltimore after being released by the Broncos. He is a guy who doesn’t really do one thing great but he does everything well.

29. Patriots- Desmond Trufant CB Washington
New England had one of the worst secondaries last season and Trufant will help that. He has good recovery speed and is pretty good in man to man. He will improve a very weak secondary for New England.

30. Atlanta- DJ Hayden CB Houston
An amazing story as Hayden almost died on the field, but he has made a comeback and might be a first round pick in the NFL draft. Wow. He will help the Falcons defense and really is a steal as he couldl go a lot higher than this.

31. 49ers- Zack Ertz TE Stanford
He was recruited by Harbaugh at Stanford and may be reunited with him once again. Think about the two TE set of Davis and Ertz.. talk about matchup nightmare!

32. Ravens- Datone Jones DE UCLA
This guy will help replace Paul Kruger as he lead the Ravens in sacks last season. It will be big shoes to fill but the Ravens have a lot of holes on defense to fill and Jones will be a step in the right direction.

Hope you guys enjoy the draft!

Houston, just like last year, beat the Bengals in the Wild Card round of the playoffs. This year the game was much closer and instead of playing the Ravens; Houston gets to play New England. Everyone remembers what happened last time these teams met up and it wasn’t pretty. The Patriots won by 4 touchdowns and left all of Houston stunned. Many people expect this game to be the same result. I mean the game is in New England, and Tom Brady is tough to beat in the playoffs. All the signs are pointing to an ugly game in Foxboro on Sunday.

Last week we saw what this offense was missing the past few weeks, Arian Foster. He ran the ball 32 times for 140 yards and also scored the only offensive touchdown of the game. While everyone has been calling for Schaub to be benched, I was calling for Foster to step up and show that he is an elite running back. When he runs the ball well the Texans are very hard to beat. Schaub isn’t Tom Brady or Peyton Manning and he won’t be able to single handedly be able to beat teams. Foster has to have a big day on the ground for Houston to have a chance. The key to beating the Patriots is keeping Tom Brady off the field. You don’t keep him off the field by throwing the ball. Run the ball, control the clock, and make that Patriots offense watch most of the game. That is the key.

Now of course it will be easier said than done because New England is a top 10 defense against the run this season. Foster just had 15 carries for 46 yards last time he needs to do much better than that this go round. I expect Houston to come out and run early and often.

Another key to the game will be getting pressure on Brady. Last time they only sacked him once and he was able to sit in the pocket and just pick apart the defense. Andy Dalton missed a lot of throws last week and had he made them Houston would be watching this game. Brady won’t miss those throws so you have to make him uncomfortable back there.

So if Houston can do these things they have a real shot in this game, if not it will get ugly again. This game will be the biggest hurdle for Houston in the playoffs and this is indeed the “biggest game in franchise history”. With all of that being said here are my predictions.

Houston:
Schaub: 21-34 243 yards TD
Foster 28 carries 125 yards TD
Johnson 6 catches 90 yards
Defense 3 sacks 2 turnovers

Patriots:
Brady: 24-40 275 yards 3 TD
Ridley 18 carries 75 yards
Defense 2 sacks 2 turnovers

Houston 23 New England 21

At the beginning of the year if I had told you that the Houston Texans would finish the season 12-4 and would be the 3rd seed in the playoffs, Texans fans’ would have been ecstatic. Headed into this week’s match-up vs the Bengals though everyone is not feeling that way. Now don’t get me wrong there is plenty of reason to feel disappointed with how the season ended for Houston. Any fan would be upset with losing 3 of your last 4 games, and in fact they should be upset. Don’t let this bad taste in your mouth spoil the whole season though. A 12-4 record is very hard to come by in the NFL and its not something that is guaranteed to happen every year. Only 4 teams this year eclipsed 12-4 or better and in the NFL that is one heck of a season.

Houston just had their best season in franchise history! They started the year off 5-0 and at one point in the year were 11-1. That’s unbelievable. JJ Watt had 20.5 sacks this year, and Andre Johnson finished 2nd in the NFL in receiving yards. Arian Foster lead all running backs in TD’s and finished 6th in yards. Don’t forget this year Texans’ fans, but not only that, cherish this season. Enjoy every second you get to see this team play. This has been a special season for the Texans regardless of whether it ends with a Super Bowl or not.  Remember the season that ended in the number one overall pick? Remember how bad it was and where they are now.

I had a good conversation with two of my buddies about the Texans season this year. I asked them “Who won the Super Bowl in 2006?” My guess was the Steelers although I wasn’t completely sure and one of them said the Patriots and the other didn’t know. Well we had to look up the answer to be sure and it was indeed the Steelers. I thought it was the Steelers against the Cardinals but it was the Seahawks who they beat. Anyways my point was, no one really remembers previous champions unless it was your favorite team who won or lost. If you asked a Seahawks or Steelers fan they would have been able to tell you the answer to my question without hesitation. The point is Texans’ fans will always have this season. No one can take away 12-4 or JJ Watt’s 20.5 sack season or any of the incredible memories that you have made as a fan along the way. Cherish these moments because they don’t happen every year.

Now with all of that being said its’ time to focus on the big game Saturday. The Houston Texans will host the Cincinnati Bengals on Saturday at 3:30 central. This is a rematch of last year’s AFC Wild-card game and both teams are much better than last season.

The Bengals are lead by their relentless team pass rushing that ranked 3rd in the NFL with 51 sacks this year. Cincinnati does a really good job of getting after the QB with just 4 guys, Carlos Dunlap, Domata Peko, Geno Atkins, and Michael Johnson.  This means they don’t have to blitz to get a sack on the QB, which also means they have more guys in coverage down field. This could be a big problem for Houston on Saturday. The Bengals defense is very good this year and very underrated. They didn’t get a lot of publicity as a team throughout the season but they are ranked 7th against the pass and 12th against the run this year. They also have a balanced offense, 17th in passing and 18th in the run. The main points on offense however, will be stopping AJ Green and Andy Dalton. AJ Green has become of the games best receivers and a match-up nightmare for opposing teams. Johnathan Joseph will have his hands full for sure this weekend. The knock on Dalton has been his inconsistency, but that can be said for any young QB. Last season was his rookie year when he played Houston in the playoffs and he didn’t fair too well in that game as he threw 3 interceptions. I think this year will be a different story for the Bengals on offense.

Houston’s keys to the game will be what they have been for the past 4 weeks. Start fast, score early, and open up the playbook. Houston needs to have Arian Foster and Schaub feed off of each other. Foster needs to run well to open up the play action for Schaub. Schaub needs to throw well to open up running lanes for Foster. The run and pass game need to work together and these last couple of weeks it seems like they have been arch enemies. Scoring early will go a long way in helping Houston’s confidence as well. The Texans just seem to play better when they score early in the game and put the other team in and early deficit. This is the playoffs now and you don’t want ot give these teams the opportunity to take the lead late and win the game because chances are they will take advantage.

Now I have gone back and forth on this game all week long and could really see it going either way.  The Bengals are a scary team and in many ways remind me of the Seahawks.  I think they could be a sleeper team this year in the playoffs, but I’m not a big fan of Dalton and how inconsistent he has been or their running game isn’t all that great either.  Nevertheless, here are my predictions!

Predictions:
Schaub- 21-32 225 yards TD
Foster 25 carries 110 yards TD
Johnson 5 catches 80 yards
Defense 3 sacks 2 turnovers
Bengals:
Dalton 25-34 265 yards 2 TD’s
Green-Ellis 18 carries 65 yards
Green 7 catches 100 yards TD
Defense 3 sacks 2 turnovers

Houston 20 Cincinnati 17

The Houston Texans had a big oppurtunity last week to go and clinch home field advantage and not have to worry about the game this week. They could have rested some of their starters and given them a chance to heal any nagging injuries so they will be primed and ready for the playoffs. The Vikings showed up last week and stunned the city of Houston and many outsiders as well. The Texans have another chance to clinch home field this week, but this time if they let it slip by they just might lose the prize.  If Houston loses and Denver wins then the Broncos clinch home field.  The Broncos have the tough task of playing the NFL worst team in the Kansas City Chiefs.  So really this is a must win game for Houston if they want home field throughout the playoffs.

All Houston has to do is win but as we learned last week; often times that is easier said than done. The Colts have been a surprise story all year long and the players have rallied around head coach and recent cancer survivor Chuck Pagano. It really is an amazing story and one that I’m sure has inspired many people. Pagano has gone through some very trying times and battling for his life and he has defeated the disease. Not only that but he will be on the sidelines with the team this weekend. The game takes place on the field though and the players will have one thing on their mind this week, winning. Houston has to run the ball better this week against the Colts and stop being so conservative with Schaub. This is the week to let it all hang out. Throw the ball down field, take chances, and to trust your team. Don’t play in the fear of making a mistake because that will only lead to mistakes (or terrible executed/called plays). I wouldn’t hold anything back this week if I was Houston.

Last week against the Chiefs the Colts let up 352 yards rushing! Arian Foster needs to have a big week this week, and not only for my fantasy team’s sake. It will help take pressure of Schaub as well as Kubiak. Houston played Indy just two weeks ago, and the Colts hung around all game but were never able to capitalize on the chances they had. Houston needs to just control the line of scrimmage and score early. You don’t want Indianapolis to hang around all game again because they have been so good in close games this year. You just want to get out and score early and put the game away.

Don’t think I was going to forget about it! Yes, JJ Watt is just 2 sacks away from making NFL history. He has been a monster all year long and should without a doubt win defensive player of the year. All of that aside JJ Watt had 3 sacks when Houston played the Colts just two weeks ago. He has a real shot at this and that would be another NFL record that goes down this year. On top of all that Adrian Peterson has an outside chance at Eric Dickerson’s record. If all of these were to fall it would be one NFL season to remember. We are truly blessed to be watching some of the best to ever play the game in their primes. If JJ Watt doesn’t get the record then Aldon Smith needs 3 sacks to break it. I do expect the single season sack record to be broken tomorrow, and I do expect the man in red, white, and blue to do it.

Predictions:
Schaub- 25-38 310 yards 3 TD’s
Foster- 24 carries 135 yards TD
Johnson- 7 catches 85 yards TD
Watt- 2 sacks

Houston 35 Colts 24

Silence. I’m sure that was the immediate response from Texans fans’ after Sunday’s loss to the Minnesota Vikings. Sometimes silence is a good thing though. You can learn a lot from silence and a lot of times silence says more than words themselves. I know growing up when I was in trouble and my parents got silent, that meant they were disappointed in me and that was far worse than the actual punishment I received. The Texans fans’ are disappointed, and much like my parents did out of me, they expected more out of their beloved team. Had Houston won they would have clinched home field advantage throughout the entire playoffs and the road to the Super Bowl would have to go through Houston, but that will have to wait for now.

Good news for Houston is that they do indeed get another chance to “right the ship” and lock up home field. This isn’t the playoffs where second chances don’t exist, where you have to bring your “A” game every day, and where the slightest mistake will leave you thinking on what “could have been”. Maybe this will be Houston’s wake up call, but many said that after the Green Bay and New England game as well. Whether it is or isn’t Houston cannot afford to play like they did on Sunday for any of the remaining games this season, or their playoff run will be short lived.

Many people after Sunday were asking themselves, “How?” “Why?” and “Minnesota, really?”. I will answer all of those questions for you. How? It’s simple really, Houston couldn’t establish the run early and when they can’t do that it throws their whole offense out of sync. Arian Foster is by far the most valuable player on their offense and when he can’t get going everything gets thrown on the right shoulder of Matt Schaub. Now I have never been overly critical of Schaub because I think he has done a good job as QB for Houston. These past few weeks however, he hasn’t looked the same. His throws are off target and he is under-throwing a lot of his deep balls. Matt Schaub must improve his play if Houston has any hopes of making a deep run in the playoffs. Why? Gary Kubiack has been pretty predictable on offense this year as far as play-calling. That’s not even the true issue though because if you execute your plays then being predictable shouldn’t be a problem. The issue is that he has been so conservative at times. Kubiack needs to keep defenses on their toes more and keep them guessing. He doesn’t utilize the offensive weapons this team has very well (at least at certain times in the game). Throw the ball down field and keep the safeties and linebackers honest. That will open things up for Arian then when they start playing the run, throw the ball down field again and throw to one of the best receivers to ever play the game in Andre Johnson. He is a man among boys out there and at times really makes the game look easy and effortless. Let your team play Kubiack! Trust Schaub to get the job done and allow him and Arian to work together. If you keep making it to where all teams have to do is stop Arian Foster and he keeps making Schaub play conservatively; Then Houston will be out of the playoffs early. But if you let Schaub set things up for Foster and vice-versa, then this offense is almost unstoppable. Let Schaub throw down the field more and really open up the offense.  Don’t start the game throw, throw, throw, and then run, run, run.  Change it up and make the other team guess what’s going to happen.  If they are guessing there chances of making a mistake is much greater than if they know what’s coming.

Minnesota, really? Yes really. This just goes to show that any team can beat anyone on any given day. If I read you the box score for the Vikings team you (and I) would have probably thought Houston blew out Minnesota. I mean Adrian Peterson only 86 yards on 25 carries and no TD’s and Christian Ponder only 16-30 174 yards? I would have said it was probably similar to the Tennessee-Green Bay game. Houston was only able to manage 6 points though. It shocked me as well. I thought that Houston would score 30 easily.  Minnesota was able to stop the run and Schaub’s consevative throws didn’t phase the Vikings.  They weren’t giving up the deep ball because Foster wasn’t able to run successfully.  Foster wasn’t able to run successfully because Schaub couldn’t open up the field with the pass.  The run game and pass game need to work together.  Not only that but Arian Foster left the game with an irregular heartbeat and my thoughts and prayers go out to him as that is a scary thing to go through. Anytime you are talking about the heart there is no messing around there. He did tweet today that everything was back to normal so hopefully he can be on the field Sunday against the Colts.

More good news is that Houston is playing the Colts next week. Indianapolis let up 352 rushing yards to the Kansas City Chiefs.. just imagine what Foster and Tate can do against that defense! I think Houston’s offense gets back on track this week. I don’t want to give away too much about my predictions but look out for Foster and Tate (both on my fantasy team) this week.

So through all the silence this past Sunday, maybe the Houston Texans will be extra loud this Sunday. All they have to do is win and home field is theirs. However, if they do lose that opens the door for Denver who is playing the Kansas City Chiefs. It would be a shocker to the whole world if Kansas City pulled that one out. Remember last year when Kansas City ruined Green Bay’s perfect season though. This is Houston’s last “second chance” because after this it is the playoffs and there is no redo’s in the playoffs. To all of my readers I sincerely thank you for reading every week or maybe this your first time reading. Regardless thank you so much and Merry Christmas to everyone!

The Houston Texans franchise has come a long way since 2002. They have gone from being guaranteed a top 5 pick almost every season to now being a legitimate contender in the NFL. How legitimate? Well if they win on Sunday against the Minnesota Vikings they will clinch home field advantage throughout the playoffs. This will keep them from potentially having to play in the winter conditions of New England and Denver. In town this week though is Adrian Peterson and the Minnesota Vikings and they have a lot to play for. Not only are they battling for a playoff spot but one of their players is battling for a spot in the record books. Adrian Peterson is 294 yards away from setting the NFL record for most rushing yards in a single season. Just to shed more light on the situation, Monday will make the one year anniversary of when he tore his ACL. Normally it takes players two years to feel back to 100%. It is absolutely incredible what Peterson is doing this season.

The key for Houston will be obvious, stop Adrian Peterson. He is there entire offense and everyone knows it but no one has been able to shut him down this year. On the year Houston is 5th in run defense but last week they allowed Vick Ballard to run for 105 yards on 18 carries. The Colts as a team ran for 124 yards in the game. The week before that against New England they gave up 130 yards on the ground. Neither one of those teams has an elite running back like Adrian Peterson so the Texans will definitely need to play better against the run this week. If they can shut AP down then this one gets ugly quick because Christian Ponder poses no threat to the Texans at all. Especially since the Vikings number one receiver, Percy Harvin, is out for the year. But if Houston allows Peterson to get going early and wear down their defense while controlling the clock it could get interesting late in the game.

As for Houston’s offense, they need to do what they have been doing. Run the ball with Arian Foster and set up the play action pass game. The Vikings defense is admirable at best so scoring shouldn’t be a problem at all for Houston. Look for Schaub to have a big day as well as Andre, but of course it will all be set up by Foster. The problem for Houston won’t be scoring it will be can they stop Adrian Peterson. This is a big week for Houston and they need to clinch home field advantage as soon as possible. You don’t want other NFL teams controlling your fate or you don’t want to go into next week having to win. Houston could use next week to rest their players and get ready for a playoff run.

No I didn’t forget about JJ Watt! That’s right Peterson won’t be the only person chasing history on Sunday. Watt is just 3 sacks away from setting the NFL record but he is currently tied with Aldon Smith this season. So both of those guys will be doing all they can the next two weeks to bring the QB down just three more times. If Houston stops Peterson and makes Ponder throw the ball a lot, well JJ Watt could make history on Sunday.

Predictions:
Schaub- 25-34 255 yards 3 TD’s
Foster- 26 carries 115 yards TD
Johnson- 8 catches 100 yards TD
Watt- 1 sack
Defense- 3 sacks 2 turnovers

Vikings:
Ponder 18-26 146 yards TD 2 INT’s
Peterson 28 carries 128 yards 2 TD

Houston 32 Minnesota 21

Despite Peterson’s big day Houston locks up home field advantage throughout the playoffs.

Last week was a chance for the Texans to really put the naysayers to bed. There was a lot of hype around the game, and Andre Johnson even called it the biggest game in franchise history. The game ddin’t go like anyone thought it would; New England came out swinging and they never stopped. It looked a lot like the Green Bay game. The final score was 42-14. Tom Brady was spectacular as he went 21-35 296 yards 4 TD’s. Meanwhile Matt Schaub really struggled in this game going 19-32 232 yards INT.and Arian Foster wasn’t much help on the ground as he only ran for 46 yards on 15 carries. The game got so out of hand that the backups came into the game for both teams. It was not a Monday night to remember for Houston.

The Texans need to have a short memory because this week they play a division rival in the Indianapolis Colts. The Colts have just been finding ways to win games. Last week they were down 20-7 at halftime and they came back to win 27-23. They have won 3 straight games after they also got blown out by the Patriots. This will be the 1st of 2 meetings between the Colts and Texans in a span of 3 weeks.

The strategy for Houston will be the same that it should be every single week. Run the ball, setup the playaction, and control the line of scrimmage. These were all things they failed to do against New England. Arian Foster has been struggling the last lately as he has only ran for 84 yards on 29 carries over the past 2 games. It will be important for him to get off to a good start and have a good game. Arian sets up Hosuton’s entire offense, when he runs the ball well the offense is very hard to stop. Next the Texans must get better pressure on the QB than they did against Brady. Andrew Luck can take off and run it though if you can force him to move aronnd in the pocket and make those split second decisions you could force some turnovers out of it. Over the past 4 weeks Houston has had one of the worst defenses in the NFL. This is something that they need to get straightened out before the playoffs start, and it doesn’t help that Indy has a top 10 passing offense. They key matchup in this one is Andrew Luck vs Texans defense.

Houston will be able to score on the Colts defense but can they stop Indy? Andrew Luck has had mulitiple comeback victories this season and they are very good when the game is close. The Colts are 8-1 this season when the game is within 7 points. Houston needs to get out to an early lead and force Indy to be one dimensional and then Houston can unleash their pass rushers.

Predictions:
Matt Schaub 25-34 274 yards 2 TD’s
Arian Foster 23 carries 115 yards 2 TD’s
Andre Johnson 7 catches 95 yards TD
Defense 3 sacks 2 turnovers

Colts:
Andrew Luck 30-50 314 yards 3 TD’s 2 INT
Reggie Wayne 10 catches 125 yards TD

Houston 35 Colts 24

This might be the game of the year in the NFL this season. The Texans are coming off of a big win against division rival Tennessee. Likewise New England also beat a division rival in Miami. These are the two best teams in the AFC and might be the two best in the NFL. Not to mention its Monday Night Football. This is a chance for the Texans to show the whole world they are ready to prove the doubters wrong and show that they can win the Superbowl this year.

The game-plan for Houston will be obvious. They have to be able to slow down Tom Brady and the Patriots offense. So look for Houston to come out and run the ball earlier. If Houston can control the time of possession and keep Brady on the sidelines that will go along way in helping them win this game. The Texans secondary has been exposed this season especially by elite QB’s. Last week they looked a lot better but they were also playing Tennessee, swatting balls left and right, and had pressure on Jake Locker on almost every snap. It will be interesting to see how Houston fairs tonight against New England and there quick short passes. It does help out Houston the Johnathan Joesph is probable for the game. He is undoubtedly their best corner-back and he has been missed since his absence. You also have to watch out for the Patriots running game as they are 8th in the NFL this season. This team is much more balanced than years past and that is a very scary thought.

This isn’t the same Patriots defense from years past either. They are ranked 8th against the run so it won’t be easy for Arian Foster to get his yards. They are however, 29th against the pass so Schaub might have a big night. Like I said control the time of possession and the line of scrimmage and the Texans have a real good chance of walking our with a W.

However, don’t get discouraged if the Texans lose tonight because you would much rather win this game in the playoffs.  These two teams could be playing for the AFC Championship later on this year.  I do think the Patriots win this game because of their QB and the Texans secondary has been an issue.  It will be a great game to watch though and will come down to one or two plays to decide it.

Predictions:
Matt Schaub 25-34 267 yards 2 TD’s
Arian Foster 28 carries 90 yards TD
Andre Johnson 11 catches 110 yards TD
Defense 3 sacks and 2 turnovers

Patriots:
Tom Brady 35-47 325 yards 3 TD’s
Stevan Ridley 18 carries 80 yards TD
Wes Welker 11 catches 125 yards 2 TD’s
Defense 2 sacks 2 turnovers

Houston 24 Patriots 28

Last time these two teams met up it was close.. at halftime (14-7 at the half). The Texans ran away with it in the 2nd half thanks to the help of Matt Hasselbeck throwing two pick-6′s. However, in the Titans defense Locker went down with an injury in the 1st quarter and Hasselbeck had to take over. He was less than spectacular (that’s being nice). This was Chris Johnson’s first game that he ran for over 100 yards, and he actually somewhat resembled a running back. Arian Foster was held to 86 yards on 24 carries but the Titans had no answer for Schaub who completed 20-28 passes for 202 yards and 2 TD’s.

That was all the way back in week 4 though. A lot of things have happened since then, for each team. Jake Locker has since returned to the starting lineup and Chris Palmer, the Titans offensive coordinator, was fired earlier in the week. The Titans defense has been playing much better than in previous weeks. Jerry Grey has dialed up more blitzes and last week for Tennessee they recorded 7 sacks as a team. Houston has had the injury bug this season. Brian Cushing went down earlier in the season with a torn ACL and he is done for the year. Johnathan Joseph, Bradie James, Derek Newton, Antoine Caldwell are all ruled out for Sunday, and Brooks Reed is expected to miss 3-4 weeks with a groin injury. So the Texans are hurting on defense and on the offensive line. Houston’s defense has not been playing up to the standards that they had set for themselves earlier in the season. They given up 68 points in the last 2 games and 983 yards of total offense. That averages out to 34 points per game and 491.5 yards per game. The defense really needs to step it up despite the injuries.  The secondary has really been exposed the past couple of weeks I feel, but everyone knows one of the easiest ways to cover up a bad secondary is a good pass rush.  Make the QB throw the ball before he wants to, but Jake Locker has something that Hasselbeck doesn’t. Mobility.   Tennessee’s offensive line has done a good job of protecting the QB this year too.  So that will be an intriguing match up to watch, Texans D line vs the Titans O line.

Luckily, Houston is playing the Titans who haven’t been able to put it all together offensively. They have often times looked as if they aren’t on the same page out there. Maybe some of that will change with the new offensive coordinator and Tom Moore (who was hired to help out the offense). Houston needs to get some early stops on defense and establish the running game so they can use that deadly play action passing game. They need to get on top of Tennessee quick and make them play from behind.

I do think Tennessee keeps this game pretty close. I don’t trust the Texans defense right now but Houston has just seemed to find different ways to win ball games lately.  Quite frankly that is all that matters. While on the other hand all year long Tennessee has found ways to lose them. Tennessee will hang around but they just don’t have enough.

Predictions:

Texans:

Matt Schaub 25-30 250 yards 2 TD’s

Arian Foster 28 carries 120 yards 2 TD

Andre Johnson 11 catches 115 yards TD

Defense: 2 sacks 2 turnovers

Titans:

Jake Locker: 28-40 267 yards 2 TD

Chris Johnson 21 carries 92 yards TD

Jared Cook 8 catches 88 yards TD

Defense: 3 sacks turnover

Houston 34 Tennessee 27

The Houston Texans survived a scare last week against the 1-0 Jacksonville Jaguars but hey a wins a win right?  Now they have a short week and have to get ready to play the Detriot Lions on Thanksgiving.  Detriot has been one of the NFL’s most inconsistent teams this season.  They have looked like the playoff team from last year at times and then they have looked like the old lions.  Which team will show up on Thursday?

The same can be said for Houston but about their defense.  This isn’t the first time that they have been torched defensively this season.  Detriot has a very explosive offense and can score with any team in the NFL especially now that Calvin Johnson has really been putting up good numbers the last couple of weeks.  He will be a mathcup nightmare for any team including the Texans this week.

Matt Schaub threw for the 2nd most yards ever in an NFL with 527.  That tied him with Warren Moon.  However, Arian Foster didn’t have such a good game.  He carried the ball 28 times and tallied 90 yards.  Look for the Texnas to get him going early against Detriot to setup the play action pass the Houston loves to use.  Foster will have to have a better day along with the defense if they want to beat Detriot.

Predictions:

Schaub: 18-25 230 yards 2 TD’s

Foster: 28 carries 110 yards 2 TD

Johnson: 8 catches 95 yards TD

Defense: 3 sacks 3 turnovers

Houston wins 31-28