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Colts Face Big Test ... Against Houston?

Posted: Nov 3rd 2009 4:30PM by Matt Snyder (author feed)
Filed under: Colts, AFC South

Much has been made about the Indianapolis Colts and their 7-0 start. As I pointed out in the power rankings, they are actually 82-21 in the regular season since the beginning of 2003. They are an absolute juggernaut. Thus far this season, we've heard lots of talk about how Peyton Manning looks better than ever and the Colts are firing on all cylinders. This week, we're bound to hear a lot about how the Colts are the biggest test yet for a Houston Texans team looking to visit the playoffs for the first time in franchise history.

The funny thing is, in a movement worthy of Bizarro-World status, the Texans are actually the first big test for the Colts.

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Houston Texans Defense No Longer Vanilla Flavored?

Posted: Aug 11th 2009 3:00PM by Stephanie Stradley (author feed)
Filed under: Texans, AFC South, NFL Training Camp

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HOUSTON -- To say that the Texans defense of the last three years was vanilla is an insult to ice cream. Last year, a Football Outsiders game charter marked down "4" before just about every defensive snap, knowing it was very likely the Texans were only rushing four defensive linemen, and that he would have to erase only a couple of marks every quarter.

This year the theme of the defense is "aggressive." Texan fans have heard that before, but maybe this is the year it may actually happen. Watching in training camp, the line as a group looks to be penetrating upfield faster, and when they do blitz, the blitzes look less predictable. How games will be called remains to be seen, though first-time defensive coordinator Frank Bush said Tuesday that Gary Kubiak is going to give him a lot of freedom on that side of the ball.

Continue Reading Houston Texans Defense No Longer Vanilla Flavored?

Summer Scramble: AFC South Burning Questions and Prediction

Posted: Jul 24th 2009 9:05AM by Dan Graziano (author feed)
Filed under: Colts, Jaguars, Texans, Titans, AFC South, FanHouse Previews, NFL Predictions, NFL Analysis

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It's July, the slowest month of the year for the NFL, and it's driving you nuts. You need a fix. A hit. Anything NFL to pull you through the dog days. FanHouse is here to help with an in-depth look at each division that should have you plenty prepared for training camp. We're calling it the Summer Scramble, and today we look at some burning questions in the AFC South and offer a ridiculously early prediction.

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Summer Scramble: AFC South Position Battles to Watch

Posted: Jul 23rd 2009 9:00AM by Dan Graziano (author feed)
Filed under: Colts, Jaguars, Texans, Titans, AFC South, FanHouse Previews, NFL Analysis

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Houston Texans Get A+ in Rick Gosselin's Draft Grades

Posted: May 1st 2009 11:00AM by Stephanie Stradley (author feed)
Filed under: Texans, AFC South, NFL Draft

5 COMMENTS

Who moved to the head of the NFL class during the draft? Find out with FanHouse's team-by-team 2009 Draft Grades.

Longtime NFL reporter Rick Gosselin, like most writers, knows that readers like draft grades. He grades a draft, and then re-grades it after the season. He's a tough grader, and gives most teams average grades.

Surprisingly, this year the only team that received an A+ in his grades were the Houston Texans. He thought the picks made sense for the team, and I agree. I don't know how they will perform on the field, but the selections were good value and fit key needs.

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Jets Introduce Smooth, Savvy Sanchez

Posted: Apr 26th 2009 6:02PM by Dan Graziano (author feed)
Filed under: Jets, NFL Draft

15 COMMENTS

First-round NFL Draft pick Mark Sanchez is looking forward to trading in his suit for his New York Jets uniform.

NEW YORK -- Mark Sanchez wasn't at USC's spring practice Saturday, but when Trojans coach Pete Carroll called that night to congratulate Sanchez on being the No. 5 pick in the NFL draft, he gleefully told his former quarterback the story of what went down.

"He said they had a live feed of the draft on the Megatron video board there at the Coliseum," Sanchez said Sunday at Radio City Music Hall. "And every time an SC guy got picked, they'd stop practice. And he said when they showed that Cleveland had traded the (fifth) pick and that the Jets picked me, he said 25,000 people just went nuts."

Sanchez also admitted that Carroll must have been stopping practice a lot.

Continue Reading Jets Introduce Smooth, Savvy Sanchez

Does the Brian Cushing Pick Signal a Run on (USC) Linebackers?

Posted: Apr 25th 2009 5:50PM by Dan Graziano (author feed)
Filed under: NFL Draft

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NFL Draft Photos

Wide receiver Michael Crabtree of Texas Tech University stands with NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell after being selected by the San Francisco 49ers as the 10th overall pick in the 2009 NFL Draft at Radio City Music Hall in New York April 25, 2009. REUTERS/Lucas Jackson (UNITED STATES SPORT FOOTBALL)

Reuters

New York Jets fans react after the Jets selected quarterback Mark Sanchez from the University of Southern California as the fifth overall pick in the 2009 NFL Draft at Radio City Music Hall in New York April 25, 2009. REUTERS/Ray Stubblebine (UNITED STATES SPORT FOOTBALL)

Reuters

Texas Tech wide receiver Michael Crabtree speaks to the media after he was selected as the 10th overall pick by the San Francisco 49ers during the first round of the NFL Draft at Radio City Music Hall Saturday, April 25, 2009, in New York.(AP Photo/Craig Ruttle)

In this pool photo provided by the Miami Dolphins, Miami Dolphins head coach Tony Sparano, left, general manager Jeff Ireland and Bill Parcells, executive vice president of football operations, look on during NFL Draft day, Saturday, April 25, 2009 at the team's training facility in Davie Fla. (AP Photo/Miami Dolphins, Pool) ** Pool Photo **

Defensive end Brian Orakpo from the University of Texas stands with his family on stage after being selected by the Washington Redskins as the 13th overall pick in the 2009 NFL Draft at Radio City Music Hall in New York April 25, 2009. REUTERS/Lucas Jackson (UNITED STATES SPORT FOOTBALL)

Reuters

Defensive end Brian Orakpo from the University of Texas reacts on stage after being selected by the Washington Redskins as the 13th overall pick in the 2009 NFL Draft at Radio City Music Hall in New York April 25, 2009. REUTERS/Ray Stubblebine (UNITED STATES SPORT FOOTBALL)

Reuters

Detroit Lions football fans had access to Ford Field while watching the NFL Draft on the big screen on Saturday, April 25, 2009 in Detroit. The Lions chose Georgia quarterback Matthew Stafford with the No. 1 overall pick in the first round of the draft. (AP Photo/Jerry S. Mendoza)

NEW YORK - APRIL 25: Tampa Bay Buccaneers #17 draft pick Josh Freeman poses with his family at Radio City Music Hall for the 2009 NFL Draft on April 25, 2009 in New York City (Photo by Jeff Zelevansky/Getty Images) *** Local Caption *** Josh Freeman

Getty Images

NEW YORK - APRIL 25: NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell poses with Tampa Bay Buccaneers #17 draft pick Josh Freeman at Radio City Music Hall for the 2009 NFL Draft on April 25, 2009 in New York City (Photo by Jeff Zelevansky/Getty Images) *** Local Caption *** Roger Goodell;Josh Freeman

Getty Images

NEW YORK - APRIL 25: Tampa Bay Buccaneers #17 draft pick Josh Freeman poses for photographers at Radio City Music Hall for the 2009 NFL Draft on April 25, 2009 in New York City (Photo by Jeff Zelevansky/Getty Images) *** Local Caption *** Josh Freeman

Getty Images

NEW YORK -- San Diego just took Larry English with the No. 16 pick. They apparently didn't get the memo. English went to Northern Illinois. Which is not USC. Which is, as everybody knows, where the linebackers come from.

When the Texans picked Brian Cushing at No. 15, it felt like there was about to be a run on USC linebackers. Cushing, as you know if you got this week's Sports Illustrated, is one of three Trojan linebackers projected to go in this year's first round. And if you think that sounds unusual, that's because it is.

Continue Reading Does the Brian Cushing Pick Signal a Run on (USC) Linebackers?

Cushing Thinks He's Best of Historic Trio

Posted: Apr 25th 2009 1:00AM by Tom Herrera (author feed)
Filed under: NFL Draft, NFL Interviews, FanHouse Exclusive

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NEW YORK -- It's not everyday you see three players from the same school taken in the first round of the NFL draft. Three linebackers? That's unprecedented territory.

The magnitude of the occasion isn't lost on Brian Cushing, who should be one of three rough-and-ready USC linebackers selected in the first round on Saturday. But that doesn't mean he's ready to concede a higher draft slot to former teammates Rey Maualuga and Clay Matthews.

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Brian Cushing Draft Profile

Posted: Apr 24th 2009 5:26PM by Chris Burke (author feed)

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Brian Cushing, LB

Selected:

College: Southern Cal.
Age: 22
Height: 6-foot-3
Weight: 243 lbs.
2008 Stats: 73 tackles (46 solo), 10.5 tackles for loss, 3 sacks, 1 interception

Scouting Report: Instincts may be best quality, he finds the ball and makes plays quickly. Good size and speed. Works well in the gaps on blitzes. Can play in either 3-4 or 4-3 scheme. Teams will like his motor. Not a great pass rusher. Durability is a concern.

2009 Outlook: Of the three USC linebackers that could go in the first round, Cushing may be the most all-or-nothing candidate. He could develop into a great linebacker that leads his team in tackles, or he could be an average contributor.

HIGHLIGHT REEL:

Handful of Accused 1st-Rounders Clean

Posted: Apr 20th 2009 2:35PM by Matt Snyder (author feed)
Filed under: NFL Draft, NFL Media Watch

1 COMMENT

So, remember those "reports" of players who had failed drug tests at the combine? B.J. Raji (pictured), Vontae Davis, Clay Matthews and Brian Cushing had all allegedly tested positive -- Raji and Davis for marijuana, Matthews and Cushing for steroids -- according to the irresponsibly named NFLDraftBible.com (who I refuse to link to, due to the fact that they are looking increasingly like an absolute farce).

Well, the more distance we get from the faux-report, the more the facts come to the surface, and it doesn't look good for the credibility -- if they even had any in the first place -- of this supposed "bible." Mike Florio of ProFootballTalk is reporting that Raji is clean, as are the other three.

Continue Reading Handful of Accused 1st-Rounders Clean