Houston Texans: Matt Schaub Unable To Rebound This Time Vs Cowboys
Sunday afternoon at Reliant Stadium the 2-0 Houston Texans hosted the 0-2 Dallas Cowboys for a good old fashioned check in humility.
For the first time since the opening game of the 2009 season against the New York Jets the Texans were truly outplayed and were never really in the game. The Cowboys came to town with a chip on their shoulder, and it showed.
The Texans came into the game as a feel good Cinderella story; however that glass slipper just never really felt like it fit right. The Cowboys rode into Houston and proved that after all it was just a glass slipper, and shattered it.
Here is a look at some of the glaring internal issues with the Texans that contributed to the Texans carriage turning into a pumpkin.
Negative Turnovers Hurt Every Time
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So far this season the Texans have been lucky with game wins while losing in the turnover department.
Texans quarterback Matt Schaub had thrown one interception in each of the previous game this season, and both interception lead to points against the Texans. Against the Cowboys this Sunday Schaub threw two more interceptions, and both were devastating.
Scahub has only thrown one more touchdown then interceptions at this point in the season.
This week not only did the Texans hand over the ball to the Cowboys by interceptions but running back Arian Foster coughed up a fumble during a promising drive.
This was Fosters first fumble of the regular season, and should have been challenged by head coach Gary Kubiak in the odd chance the back was down before the ball came out. It was not challenged, and led to still more Cowboys points.
Positive Turnovers Needed
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So far this season the Texans are on the bottom of the league in the positive turnover column.
The only fumble by the Cowboys in the game was recovered ten yards back by the quarterback Tony Romo. It seems odd that Romo’s blinding speed was able to beat the four Texans defenders in the vicinity to the ball.
The Texans defense has only been able to capture the ball from an opposing team once during the regular season, when they were able to recover a fumble in the week one victory over the Colts.
During the game against Dallas Sunday the Texans secondary missed at least three easy opportunities for interceptions that could have greatly affected the outcome of this game.
Preseason hopeful corner Glover Quin seems to think a loose ball that drops near him is some kind of mystery, standing there with a look of bewilderment as the ball bounces off his open hands.
Both corner Brice McCain and free safety Eugene Wilson had balls easily within reach hit the turf or land in the hands of the want it more Cowboys receivers.
If the Texans are going to make it to the playoffs turnovers are going to have to start stacking up for this young secondary.
Second Worst Pass Defense Ever?
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The Houston Texans are on the verge of acquiring a very unwanted record, the worst passing defense ever.
So, far they have allowed 1106 passing yards against them in only three games. This is enough for an entire season, and is an average of about 369 yards a game. There is no way to expect any offence to counter that kind of opposing productivity for 16 games.
Against the Cowboys this ratio finally caught up to the Texans and it would not be a surprise if this continues to be the Texans downfall if the issue is not adequately addressed now.
Rookie corner Kareem Jackson started out the game strong, and all in all looked much stronger then in previous games this season. However, Jackson’s first stumble of the game lead to a Roy Williams touchdown.
Did someone say tackling drills? The most seasoned player on the unit Eugene Wilson misses more tackles then he makes.
Remember the Texans were last in the league against the run going into their fourth game last season, and then adjusted by acquiring strong safety Bernard Pollard to rectify the problem. Afterward they rapidly rose from 32nd against the run to 13th by the end of the season.
The Texans are going to have to get this secondary some help either by way of increased pass rush, or a more mature coverage corner.
How about the retired pass rush specialist Aaron Shcobel, and what is the retired corner Aaron Glenn up to these days?
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Stopping the Run
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The Texans came into the game against Dallas with a total of 83 rushing yards against their defense. During the game the Cowboys unleashed a solid rushing attack and added 101 yards in that column.
The Texans front seven seemed unable to defend the Cowboys who came out to establish a running game against the Houston defense. Running the ball for five of the first seven plays from scrimmage, the Cowboys did just that.
So far this season week side linebacker Zac Diles is leading the team in tackles, and had seven against the Cowboys. The entire defensive lines tackles combined for the game is only six including assists.
Mario Williams was completely taken out of the game, and does not even show up on the stat sheets. Williams did not accumulate a single tackle in the game.
Game five and linebacker Brian Cushing’s return could not come any sooner.
Penalties a Factor
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On Sunday the Houston Texans had five penalties for 32 yards, while the Cowboys racked up eight penalties for 49 yards.
Since the Cowboys had more penalties then the Texans why is this listed as a reason for the 17-27 loss?
Because of the timing of the penalties, and the affect they had on the game. The Texans looked like the Texans of old who seemed to shoot themselves in the foot with sloppy play in the clinch.
Right tackle and usually infallible Eric Winston had a personal high of two holding penalties, and both cost the Texans points. One moved the Texans back out of field goal range, and the other offset a pass interference call in the end zone.
In head coach Gary Kubiak’s post game conference he stated that it felt like every step forward was followed by a quick step back due to penalties.
The Cowboys may have had more penalties, but the Texans were more meaningful.
Tip Toe Jones
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Last season punt returner Jacoby Jones averaged about 22 yards a return. On Sunday he returned two punts for a total of 12 yards averaging six yards a return.
Jones who is dangerous with the ball in his hands needs a shot of confidence in the arm. Jones is capable of breaking any return or catch for that matter seems to be a bit timid in return situations. Each return he covers more ground laterally then vertically once the ball is in his hand.
For this team to really stay in the race to the playoffs this season Jacoby Jones is going to have to run north and south once he gets the ball in his hands on punt returns.
Andre Injured
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Texans Pro-Bowl wide receiver Andre Johnson came into the game determined to play with a sprained ankle. As usual he came out and gave it everything he had, and it was hard to remember that he was even injured. Until he went down and stayed down on an ankle tackle by Cowboys corner Terrance Newman.
At that moment the air was sucked out of the stadium, even though everyone knew there was no way Johnson was done for the day.
Johnson only had four catches for 64 yards and no touchdowns. The injury to his ankle may have been a factor to his uncharacteristically low productivity, and may be linked to the deep interception from Matt Schaub on first down.
Andre needs to be made to sit out until he is 100%, his contribution when healthy is more valuable than a valiant effort when injured.
Emotionally Flat
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During the first two games of the 2010 regular season the Texans were emotionally up for the contest. For the opening game against the Colts the Texans were bouncing all over the place celebrating each other’s victories.
During the game against the Cowboys on Sunday afternoon, the Texans seemed to be just out there. They made plays, and no one seemed fired up about them. They blew plays, and no one seemed upset about them.
This team is soft when they are not fired up. It takes an emotional uprising for the Texans to become physically dominant.
The Texans are going to need to find a way to get up for every game no matter who and where they are playing if they intend to be serious about the playoffs.
Positives To Build On
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On a positive note there were some aspects of the game that can be built upon moving forward for the Houston Texans.
First, for his first start in the NFL at left tackle Rashad Butler looked very strong at the position. He played well, and was for the most part able to protect against a very tough defensive pass rush.
Second, once again Arian Foster was smooth as butter running the ball. Foster ran the ball 17 times for 106 yards. Even with the one fumble that Foster wanted challenged, he should be the Texans player of the game.
Third, rookie defensive tackle Earl Mitchell form Arizona showed up on the stat sheet tying tackle Amobi Okoye with two tackles. Look for this number to increase on a game by game basis.
This has been a look at the reasons why the Houston Texans are now tied for first in there division with both the Colts and the Titans. As of now it is any ones guess who will come out on top of the division, and make it to the playoffs for the 2010 season.
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