BleepStorm

Mismanagement, rumors, confusion, or anything else you wanna  add is swirling around the Houston Texans organization. What a bleep storm ! This team and organization has gone from being a team on the rise into a beautiful Hawaiian sunset to a team on a steep decent into the nearest golden corral destroying its versatile buffet and taking down with them everyone awaiting to consume the Timberline Chili and Vanilla Wafer Banana Pudding. It's hard to diagnose what the thinking is behind some of the decisions that have been made, or lack thereof. I myself am confused as to why no outside source of information is being tapped to get this team on the right track. Houston we have a problem !

In my opinion the inexperience of this organization has finally caught up with them. Mr. McNair is a very good owner, however he is still young to the business as far as knowing what type of coaches and players this team needs. You couple that with the inexperience of a GM and Head Coach and you end up with a mediocre or bad football team.  One rumor that has come about ,that I truly find very weird and very surprising, is that you would fire Kubiak and retain Rick Smith. John McClain states that Kubiak signs off on all the players and doesn't have them shoved down his throat nor does he have to play them. That's not entirely correct. Quick lesson here. There are organizations in the NFL where the right hand doesn't talk to the left. There are GM's who bring in whoever they want and the coach is just supposed to make it work. So that takes care of that.

From a practical standpoint it makes no sense and leaves a huge disconnect within the organization. I thought about that when I learned McNair and Kubiak never talk one on one with each other. Word ? I now understand the possibility of why Smith would stay and why Kubiak could be fired. If that happens, the understanding of how Mr. McNair can trust Smith to lead a search to find a new head coach is mind-boggling. Even if Kubiak signed off or was forced to sign off on these players is true, the GM is the talent evaluator. He is the one who brings the players in. And based on the product we have seen on the field this year the talent is not that great. I have an issue with that.

The other rumor has both Kubs and Smith staying with Bush and the other defensive assistants being relieved of their duties. I personally see this as realistic. There are too many built-in excuses and the defensive side of the ball has not been good at all. The offense, for the most part has done what it's suppose to do so who does that leave stuck out in the cold. Adding injury to insult, having your defensive coordinator out till 2 am the night before a game doesn't help either.

Let me touch on that subject for a second. Here's the deal, there are many coaches that go to bars, restaurants, or gentlemen's clubs, or whatever before games. Whether on the road or at home. It's very common in the NFL. The problem isn't that he was out, the problem is his defense is 29th in the NFL, allows the most passing yards in the NFL, and is part of a team that will finish 6-10 at best after having playoff aspirations. Whether he was partying like Lindsay Lohan during one of her Chateau Marmont visits, or praying in the corner with Joel Olsteen, either way it just doesn't look good. From a player's view, I've been busting my butt all week preparing for a game, trying to help salvage a season in some way and finish strong and he's out kicking it ! After all the bull I was fed during the week about not giving up, staying together, and not letting go of the rope ! Meanwhile, coach is out getting his swerve on !  Surely he's not  asking me if I want any party favors sent to my room, because I need to stay the course. And he still wants me to listen and respect what he says. Has this been an ongoing thing and contributed to why the defense is so bad ?  So yea, it looks like he let go of the rope. And since his name, and his head, are slowly being lowered into La guillotine de Bob McNair, one would think he would be more careful.

I await the decision and future of the present staff here after Sunday's game. I am sure Mr. McNair has much to think about. Not really, but  if my assumptions are correct, based off how the organization has been run to this present time, I expect to see both Kubiak and Smith back for at least another year and the hiring of a new defensive coordinator. There will be a press conference filled with reasons both fiction and non, and excuses as to why the season was a failure. There will also be a plan of some sort to try to convince the fan base why they should continue to support the team. Afterwards I'll be thinking what the majority is thinking. Don't tell me about pain, show me the baby !

Recall

Another loss, and lead blown, this has been the story for the Houston Texans all year. I understand that Texan fans wanted to stay optimistic and see their team in a good light. I think sometime fans are blinded by what is really going on with teams. First it was fire Rick Smith and Kubiak, now more and more fans are seeing what I wrote on August 24, (refer to "Blinded" to reread).

I was floored when I continued to hear fans and commentators speak of how talented this team was. Word ? Did people honestly think this team was loaded with talent ? With another poor draft and no free agent acquisitions, there was no way possible I thought the Texans would emerge as a playoff team this year.  And for speaking out about what I saw and basing it off of my playing experience, myself along with others that said the same were heckled  for even mentioning it. Maybe I'm just too much of a realist, or maybe I know a little something about football. Maybe ? Sorta Kinda ?

No denying that Kubiak has placed himself in the situation to be fired after the season. On the other hand, there is another person up top that needs to be held accountable also. Not talking about Rick Smith, although he is a culprit in this whole debacle as well. Bob McNair really needs to step up and evaluate this team for what it is. What his "peers" say means nothing, what Smith or his son or anyone else in that camp means nothing. Mr. McNair needs to do some soul-searching and really grab a hold of his team before he loses the fans. Regardless of how much we love football here in Texas, we have been bred and taught not to settle for mediocrity.

On Deaf Ears

Earlier I couldn't decide if this was more of a rant than an actual blog. So I stepped back and tried to think about this in a logical way. If you look at the situation concerning the Houston Texans, what was expected of the team this year, the writing is on the wall. In saying that, I've come to the conclusion there is nothing to say and nothing you can do about it. No stats, no numbers, no hypothetical situations, no suggestions, nothing.

We all know Mr. McNair is a very conservative owner as far as the decision-making process of coach and player transactions. It is also known that even though involved, he puts total trust in the people he hires. I see nothing wrong with that at all, as a business owner you should have the peace of mind knowing the right people are in place to further grow your company. However, In this situation does Mr. McNair have any peace ? Is he truly proud of the product that is put on the field or is he giving us the classic "everything is alright and moving forward" smoke screen most business owners give out. If that be the case, he received a little bit of his own medicine from his "peers" at the league meeting. I pray he is not that naive, I really do.

Here's the deal, and make sure you understand this. We as fans or media will not have as much influence on the decisions being made at 2 Reliant Park as we think. There is the occasional case when this happens, but not in this one. Many people want "Kubs" and Rick Smith to be fired,  that is not our decision, season ticket holder or not. I'm telling you now to expect these two gentlemen back next year. Taking that into consideration, there must be a sacrificial lamb as a sign of good faith to the people  changes are being made. Frank Bush, I say farewell to thee. This is very unfortunate for him, being that the other two gentlemen didn't give him much to work with and that's why I don't fully blame him.

Once that happens, THEY will make the decision of what coaches or players to bring in next. THEY will decide who to resign, who to cut, and how to build the team moving forward. We can gripe and wine as much as we want, we have no say.  The city of Houston deserves to see an organization that wins and plays at a high level, but as Richard Justice said, the city should be thankful that Mr. McNair brought NFL football back to the city.

Continue to support the Texans if that's your choice, totally shun them and burn your tickets if u choose as well. Will it have any major effect on what's going behind closed doors ? Probably not. Of course if no tickets are sold and there are no fans in the stands it may make an impact. As a reminder,the game itself is so big that I would bet for every one person that gives up their season tickets there may be 10-20 people waiting to buy them. The revolving door never stops turning, and the money keeps coming in. To some degree you can say that the entire state of Texas is being taken advantage. Football on every level is enormous in this state, and between Jerry up north, and Mr. McNair here,  even though the approach may be different, they realize what they have in Texas and all in all it's still a business.

There are three games remaining in a season filled with ups and downs. Three games left for criticism, three games left for arm-chair coaches and GM's to have their say on what should have been done, what play should have been called, or what players to sign or cut. During the off-season, these same people will have the opportunity to once again speak, and just as it was during the season they once again  will not be heard.

Staying The Course Is Sometimes Worth It

In the midst of talking about the Texans, Astros, and the
Rockets there is a champion located at 3100 Cleburne Street here in
the city of Houston. Although not a power house or recognized on a
national stage, Texas Southern University completed their final
task by winning the SWAC Conference Title saturday. The Tigers
played the hardest schedule in the country when it comes to black
colleges yet finished with a 9-3 record this year. In doing
so, third year coach Johnnie Cole was named SWAC Coach of the year.
When Cole was hired, the Tigers had come off of their second
straight 0-11 season and Cole himself, although having
success as a head coach and offensive coordinator in the past, has
had past issues. In this red mark society we live in, this is a
prime example of how we as human beings can change and over come
adversity. The full scale of the allegations Cole has faced are not
fully known, so I think it is unfair to judge him based on that. It
is not our place to judge anyone in the first place. It did bring
me a sense of joy seeing him lead these young men not only to a
championship in athletics but set the stage to be champions in
life. A great example of that was displayed during Cole's pre-game
speech,saying to never leave a man behind, removing his shirt
and revealed the jersey normally worn by Avrell Nelson. It's an
example of commitment, team concept, and compassion. An
although I know it was hard for Nelson to sit and not play in
possibly the biggest game of his career, it shows acceptance and
unselfishness. I applaud that. The last time TSU won the SWAC
Title was in 1968. And even though it took forty-two years to reach
the pinnacle of SWAC football, the road although long , was well
worth the journey. Congrats to you TSU ! 2010 SWAC Conference
Champions !

The Big Picture

The Texans go into this weeks game versus the Ravens with the fourth worst record in the AFC. It is pointless to give false hypothetical playoff examples as this needs to be a week by week journey to even make that possible. There are people calling for Kubiak's head, Frank Bush's head, but is that the real problem ? I watch the Texans get beat by the same things every week. Confusing play calling, bad technique by the players, and no awareness. Lets be honest here people, I know everyone is a homer and want to think this team is loaded with talent or talented enough to make the playoffs. It is not. This team is not built to win.

I would like to think I have played on some pretty good teams in my day. Based on my experience, I would also like to think I can recognize a real football player versus an athlete. How long till its realized that this team is not as talented as everyone thinks ? How long till Mr. McNair realizes that from top to bottom this organization does not have what it takes to win ? There are holes everywhere that need to be filled on both sides of the ball. The time to bring in players that either have played, are experienced, or have good young quality is now. An NFL team is like any other organization and a new company brings in a CEO or President that has experience and is able to run and teach the new employees of how the business should be run, and the NFL is no different. This team is very young and doesn't understand the game the way its suppose to be played.

I'll be honest here, there are players on this team that wouldn't have even seen the field on some of the teams I have played on. In my opinion I think that would translate to many of the teams in the NFL now. I am not saying there is no talent, but it's very obvious there is not enough. I don't see the Texans as a mentally tough team. I don't see the Texans as a physically tough team. I don't see them as a mentally sharp or alert team. The coaches are responsible for some of that, but so are the players. Where do these ingredients come from though ? Who helps with the process of learning ? There is no one on the Texans team that plays that role, coaches included. Even with sub par players, a team that has these qualities can still win and be consistent.

In order to evaluate a team it must be looked at as a whole while determining which individual pieces can make it that. These pieces have to have specific qualities and need to be dependable. They also have to function in the correct manner doing exactly what it is called to do. You can not force a square peg into a circular whole. Even if you could it would be broken or cracked trying to do it and thus would not function correctly. In my eyes that is what I see. I see a team that have pieces in specific spots, but they are not quality dependable pieces that are functional.