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The National Football League always consists of great parity within all 32 teams. Every year a franchise, whether good scouting or free agent signings, finds a way to rise to the top of the NFL's elite.
In 2008, the Miami Dolphins, Atlanta Falcons, and the Baltimore Ravens went from the bottom of the league to having success that led them to the playoffs.
The NFL is filled with the sleeper teams, who have decent success but are a piece or two away from becoming with the cream of the crop.
Is there one team that fits this mold in 2009?
I, for one, am thinking about the Houston Texans.
Houston is currently the youngest franchise after joining the league in 2002.
Of course since it was an expansion team, they were going to face a rough start to the franchise, which is what the Texans faced.
With their first draft pick in franchise history, the Texans selected quarterback David Carr.
In his rookie campaign, when the Texans finished 4-12, he was sacked an NFL single-season record 76 times.
The Texans could not find any improvement the first three seasons of existence, especially after the report of the team "tanking" games to receive the No. 1 pick in 2006, which they later did receive after finishing 2-14.
In early 2006, the Texans booted the entire staff of head coach Dom Capers, and introduced Broncos offensive coordinator Gary Kubiak to run the show.
Speculation of whom the Texans would select began with the heated argument of Reggie Bush or Vince Young.
In a shocking selection, the Houston Texans drafted Mario Williams, a defensive end from N.C. State.
From that moment the reign of Gary Kubiak began, which in result was for the better.
In his first season as head coach, Kubiak led the young Texans squad to an 8-8 record, their best in their short history.
Mario Williams didn't have the great campaign that was hoped for, however, his counterpart DeMarco Ryans won Defensive Rookie Of The Year.
As the aftermath of that 2006 draft is looked back upon, it is obvious Williams has had the better start to his career, already having 30.5 career sacks and making two Pro Bowl appearances, one as a starter.
In 2007, the David Carr era was over after trading for backup quarterback Matt Schaub from the Falcons.
The Texans finished that year with a record of 8-8 once again, still putting a competitive team on the field.
Finally, in the 2008 season, the Texans began showing their mark as a team to be reckoned with in the future. The Houston Texans were one of the more surprising teams in the league.
Even though they finished 8-8, they had crucial wins over the Tennessee Titans and other division foes.
The highlight of their season was Andre Johnson, the Texans' top wide receiver.
Johnson positioned himself as a top five receiver, fighting for the top spot with Larry Fitzgerald.
This past season he set his career highs in receptions (115), yards (1,575), and tied his career high in TDs (8).
Matt Schaub was the reason for Johnson's best season, passing for 3,043 yards and 15 TD passes in another season that he caught the injury bug.
Steve Slaton, the rookie running back out of West Virginia, had a solid rookie season, rushing for 1,282 yards and 9 TDs.
Surely, the Houston Texans are going in the right direction.
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