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Texans report: Inside slant
Nov. 15, 2010
Notes, quotes, anecdotes | Strategy and personnel
The Texans have absorbed some blows during coach Gary Kubiak's five years, and like a punch-drunk fighter who's on the ropes, they continue to swing. This time, though, they may not be able to recover.
Last week, the Texans lost 29-23 to San Diego when Matt Schaub's pass to Andre Johnson at the Chargers' 11 bounced off his thigh pad and was intercepted with 54 seconds left.
On Sunday, the Texans lost 31-24 at Jacksonville, where a miraculous Hail Mary pass with no time left on the clock could be devastating to the Texans.
Cornerback Glover Quin jumped as high as he could and used both hands to knock down a 50-yard pass from quarterback David Garrard. But Quin didn't knock the ball to the ground; he knocked it to receiver Mike Thomas at the 1-yard line. Thomas managed to catch the ball and step across the goal line for the winning touchdown.
The Texans have lost three consecutive games. They are 4-5 and occupy last place in the AFC South going into Sunday's game at the New York Jets. The Texans are one game behind Jacksonville and Tennessee, who are one game behind Indianapolis.
Under Kubiak, the Texans are 2-12 in road games against AFC South teams. They were 1-5 in division games last season. They are 5-13 in November.
"It's hard in this league," Kubiak said. "You battle to win games. Everybody is as down as you can be, including this guy, but that can't last long. You've got to be a man and come back and play."
The Texans' defense continues to be a problem. They're the league's worst. Counting the Hail Mary, the Texans allowed 491 yards to the Jaguars. They surrendered 399~ going in.
The Texans offense can't put two good halves together. They trailed Jacksonville 17-3 and scored three touchdowns after 80-yard drives in the second half. Now they play the Jets.
Rex Ryan's teams have abused the Texans the last two years - 2008 when he was defensive coordinator at Baltimore and 2009 when he was in his first season as the Jets' coach.
The one thing the Texans were doing well was winning on the road, but not anymore. They were 6-3 and 7-4 on the road over the last two seasons. Now they're 2-2 on the road this season and 7-5 the last two seasons.
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