NFL Team Preview: 2008 Houston Texans

For my first team to review, I chose the Houston Texans, a sleeper team that has not gotten enough respect among bettors, fantasy footballers, or casual fans. I feel that this is an up-and-coming team that has already held it's own in what I would call the toughest division in the NFL. With good personnel decisions in the next couple of years, I think the Texans will be challenging for the division title, even against yearly powerhouses like the Colts, Jaguars, and Titans. The Texans have been quietly building what should be one of the toughest defenses in the league, starting with a defensive line that has the ability to dominate games with Mario Williams and Amobi Okoye, who are both former first round picks and have already shown great potential. The offense is also balanced and improving, and showed some flashes last year of a very dangerous passing game. The Texans wisely used their first round pick this year on Duane Brown, an offensive tackle who should help as the team continues to turn the offensive line from a liability into a strength. With a great deal of youth and emerging talent on the roster, it is also encouraging that the team currently sits well under the salary cap, with roughly $10 million dollars in cap space. This figure is just about average in comparison to other NFL teams, and gives the team a great chance to keep all of their best players under contract for the foreseeable future and could allow them to land any good free agents that might be available at a position of need in the next couple years. Now I'd like to take a quick overview of each position on the Texan's roster, highlighting a few key players and then looking at some possibilities for improvement through next year's draft or free agency.

The Texans have a couple of really solid quarterbacks in my opinion. The best part is that the team invested so little to acquire them but they are looking at some great returns already. The team picked up Matt Schaub in a trade with the Falcons and only gave up a fourth round pick to get him. He looked almost unstoppable to begin last season, but then injuries made things a lot more difficult for him as he lost his best receiver, Andre Johnson, and then had to miss several games himself due to a shoulder injury. Sage Rosenfels was signed as an unrestricted free agent following the 2005 season. I feel that both quarterbacks display good arm strength and accuracy, and perhaps more importantly they have generally made good decisions and showed good leadership last year as they helped the Texans overcome injuries and a difficult schedule to finish 8-8. There may be some controversy as to who should start for the team, but I think that while Rosenfels was arguably better last year statistically, the Texans need to give Schaub another chance to see what he can do in a full season with a healthy team.

The rest of the Texans' backfield is a good mix of veterans and young players that the team should feel pretty good about. Ahman Green and Chris Brown have both been around the league for a while. Ahman Green has been slowed considerably by knee injuries over the past few years, but in the prime of his career with the Packers, he was one of the best all around backs in the league. Chris Brown has also had more than his fair share of injuries, but was a good running back for the Titans early in his career. Green and Brown have a good chance to be the Texans' number one and two halfbacks when the season starts, but the team feels good enough about their young backups that one of them could be starting in the near future. The coaching staff reportedly likes Chris Taylor, who missed all of last season, but was a good prospect for them coming out of college. He seems to have the ideal size and set of skills for the blocking scheme that the Texans use. Darius Walker stepped up when injuries hit the team last year and ran well for them. They used their third round pick in the draft this year to add Steve Slaton to their list of options. Slaton seems perfect for the role of an NFL change of pace or third down back. He is small, fast, and could develop into a good receiving option for the team as well. The Texans use their fullback, Vonta Leach, mainly as a blocker, and to catch the occasional pass, a role he worked well for them in last year.

Andre Johnson has proven himself to be one of the best wide receivers in the league over the past few years, a feat that is more impressive considering that he has yet to play for a winning team in his career. If the Texans are going to build on their success and become a strong contender, a large part of it will be keeping Andre Johnson healthy. Behind Johnson on the depth chart, the Texans haven't had a lot of success developing dependable starters. Jacoby Jones, Kevin Walter, and Andre Davis show the most potential. Jones has been a talented prospect, but injuries have held him back significantly during his short career. If he can stay healthy and continue to develop, he could probably be a very good second receiver for the team. Walter filled in well for Andre Johnson when he was hurt last year, and had a couple big games during his short time as a starter.

The Texans' starting tight end, Owen Daniels, is a very important contributor to the offense. Daniels has good hands, and is athletic and fast enough to make catches all over the field. Until the Texans have another receiver emerge as a consistent option alongside Andre Johnson, Daniels will probably be Matt Schaub's second most important target in the passing game. Daniels is also a dependable blocker in the running game, so I think having him around makes the whole offense a little more balanced and effective.

The teams' offensive line has really improved over the last couple of years. For years, the line regularly gave up among the most sacks in the league, crippling the passing game, and failed to consistently open running lanes. Coach Gary Kubiak has seen this unit improve dramatically since he arrived, which is not that surprising considering that he was a former employee of Mike Shanahan, who has kept the Denver Broncos' offensive line among the league's best for over a decade. Last year, the Texans lost multiple starters across their offensive skill positions, but thanks to the play of the offensive line, the offense remained effective as the Texans tried to stay in the playoff race. The selection of offensive tackle Duane Brown with their first pick in the draft indicates that the team wants to continue this trend and build on the success they've had thanks to a more talented offensive line.

The defensive line might be the strongest position on the team. Mario Williams is just starting to hit his prime and might be the best defensive end in the league. He is already well established as a dominating pass rusher. Amobi Okoye has also showed freakish potential at defensive tackle as a disrupting force who can get into the backfield. He was very young when he was drafted and is still one of the youngest players in the league, so he will probably continue to develop and improve this year. The Texans have some depth behind these two, but their other starting tackle, Travis Johnson, has been set back by injuries recently. I still think that the defensive and offensive lines combine to give the Texans one of the best fronts in the league on both sides of the ball.

Starting middle linebacker DeMeco Ryans has already become a leader on the defense at the age of 23. In the past two years, he has been as solid a tackler and play maker that a team could ask for. He has already shown good instincts and reactions that allow him to consistently break up plays. I think that as the rest of the defense continues to improve, Ryans will become more and more effective. The rapidly improving defensive line should take a lot of the pressure off of him and allow him to move more freely around the field. Morlon Greenwood will probably start at outside linebacker for the Texans this year. He has been a tough competitor and good tackler in the NFL for years. The Texans' fourth round draft pick this year, Xavier Adibi, will probably back up Greenwood. Adibi is probably going to be a good backup as he develops, but he may have the talent to become a solid starter at the position eventually. Zach Diles will probably fill out the starting linebacker squad for the Texans. Diles might be a little bit too small to be a consistently great linebacker in the NFL. However, he is a talented player who has worked hard to have a chance at starting after being drafted in the seventh round last year. If the team is able to draft players at the end of the draft who actually have the talent to start in the NFL, it's a good sign that they are doing something right. A large part of the group's potential depends on Diles, but it's safe to say that the Texans should have a pretty impressive defensive front with the ability to be tough against the run and generate a good pass rush.

The cornerback position will probably be an area of concern for the Texans last year. Starter Dunta Robinson is recovering from injuries he sustained last year and will probably miss a large chunk of season before he is ready to play. The Texans' other cornerbacks on the roster are Fred Bennett, Jacques Reeves, Jamar Fletcher, and Antwaun Molden. None of those players have been starters for any great length of time in the league and they don't really project as starters at the position any time soon. The most promising is probably Molden, who was the team's second round draft pick this year. He doesn't seem ready to start in the NFL right away, though. Bennett and Reeves started last year when Robinson was hurt, but they will give up a lot of big plays if they are starting for much of the season.

Free safety Will Demps will probably start this year for the Texans. He is an experienced player who has played well in the past and is probably one of the most reliable players in the defensive backfield. He is not going to make a lot of spectacular plays, but he should help to keep the defense at least respectable against the pass. C.C. Brown is a promising young player who will probably help out at strong safety for the team. In the three years since he was drafted by the Texans, he has started almost every game at the position. He should add to an already strong run defense. The Texans will have trouble stopping the pass until Dunta Robinson returns, but if they can get him back for the second half of the season, Demps and Brown, along with a strong pass rush, will go a long way toward turning that area of the defense around.

Overall, I think the Texans have a good chance to win some of their divisional games and make a serious run at a playoff spot next year. The roster is loaded with quality starters, most of whom are still in their early or mid twenties. I think that Gary Kubiak is one of the best new head coaches in the league, and that he will have a lot of success in Houston before he leaves there. The Texans should probably keep some cap space free because it is going to be very important to keep their current core of young, talented players around for as long as possible. If they were to sign any free agents, I would suggest that they look for either a cornerback or a receiver with some starting experience for depth at those positions. However, I don't think that there will be any worthwhile free agents at those positions this year, so it will probably be best for them to wait until next year and continue to find players in the draft. They have done well in the draft recently, and they don't have any glaring areas of need, so the best strategy might be to continue to build depth at several positions. The team could probably use a true feature running back in the near future, to replace Ahman Green and maybe Chris Brown as well. They may still be able to develop their current talent at wide receiver, but they should also keep their eyes open for a bargain wide receiver in the draft next year as well. The improved offensive and defensive lines will need to be constantly re-stocked with younger players who can develop into eventual starters. The cornerback position, while it is a weak point now, will probably become a strength once Dunta Robinson returns and Antwaun Molden gets some experience in the league. If the Texans can continue to be patient and sensible with their roster decisions, and continue to build the team from the lines out, I think they will be a playoff team for the AFC for many years to come.