The "Reggie Bush Is Clearly a Bust" talk died down last season, but the former No. 2 overall pick still hasn't lived up to expectations. Part of that is because the expectations coming out of USC bordered on the insane, but also because Bush has underchieved for most of his three-plus-year NFL career.
Whatever, he occasionally flashes glimpses of the athleticism that made him one of the best college players ever, and Sunday against the Dolphins he actually flew into the end zone.
The Houston Texans are dead last in total defense. It is no surprise given the big touchdown runs given up by the Texans defense to Thomas Jones, Chris Johnson and Maurice Jones-Drew. Fantasy football players have been feasting on the Texans defense for years, and certain offensive players in the AFC South probably should owe a part of their paychecks to them.
Explanations for the predictable struggles are easier to identify than the solutions:
The Monday Night Football game between the Favres Vikings and Texans is certain to have a ton of Brett Favre talk, even with Tony Kornheiser departing the booth. Post-shoulder surgery Favre playing an entire half of football with his new team is news. Football fans will be watching to see if he can make the throws that he wasn't able to make at the end of last season.
But the Favre story isn't the only one to watch in this game. There's a number of interesting stories to look at for two teams that have been mentioned as playoff teams.
The knock on Vernon Gholston coming out of Ohio St. was that he took plays off, even as the most physically gifted player on the field. His rookie season with the Jets didn't change that perception, especially since he was taken sixth overall in the 2008 NFL draft.
Gholston's final stats: 15 games played, no starts, 13 tackles, no sacks. In January, shortly after getting the Jets head-coaching gig, Rex Ryansaid that "We hope [Gholston] can be a great player ... A lot of us aren't sure, but we're going to find out. If he can't do it for me and for this team, he's never going to do it."
Summer is heating up and so is NFL football, so FanHouse is at Texans training camp to get you the rundown on Texas' other team, as it gets ready for the '09 season.
HOUSTON -- The biggest question mark in the offseason for the Houston Texans is whether they can fix their abysmal defense.
Texans defensive end Tim Bulman has played for new defensive coordinator Frank Bush longer than any other player on the team, as they were together on the Cardinals. Bulman's a good interview, and not just because of his Massachusetts accent, which for some reason entertains me. In this video, he explains his view of the new defensive philosophy and how in particular it effects the play of the defensive tackles.
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.
The Lions have the first overall pick of the 2009 Draft. This is the reward for going 0-16. Perhaps former team president Matt Millen's biggest accomplishment is that never during his misguided eight-year tenure did Detroit have the first selection. It seems almost impossible in retrospect.
On three occasions the Lions chose second (Joey Harrington in 2002; Charles Rogers in '03; Calvin Johnson in '07), but by the time Millen finally got it right with Johnson it was too late, the team was too far gone.
Every year, players from that season's Super Bowl hit free agency. Inevitably, a few are overvalued because of their role on a successful team and signed to contracts that their individual talent can't quite live up to.
Will the Texans be the latest to fall prey to this circumstantial inflation?
Because the NFL season never ends, we present our 2009 Offseason Roadmaps for front offices to navigate through the summer.
How many years were the Arizona Cardinals picked to finally have their breakout year? It seems like they were the dark horse pick to have a playoff run every offseason. But since they went to the Super Bowl last year, they can't be that sneaky hot team any more.
Maybe the Texans take over that spot. Their franchise has never had a winning season, and the last two 8-8 seasons have only resulted in higher expectations. Houston's offense ranks about the same as the Cardinal offense, their special teams is better and their defense worse. The Texans are trying to fix that bad defense by replacing a number of coaches on that side of the ball.
A recent trend in the NFL is teams picking first overall in the draft signing their pick before the actual draft day. Most recently, the Texans did it with Mario Williams, then the Dolphins with Jake Long.
The "Reggie Bush Is Clearly a Bust" talk died down last season, but the former No. 2 overall pick still hasn't lived up to expectations. Part of that is because the expectations coming out of USC bordered on the insane, but also because Bush has underchieved for most of his three-plus-year NFL career. 
The 
The Monday Night Football game between the 
The knock on 
Summer is heating up and so is NFL football, so FanHouse is at Texans training camp to get you the rundown on Texas' other team, as it gets ready for the '09 season.
The Lions have the first overall pick of the 2009 Draft. This is the reward for going 0-16. Perhaps former team president 
Every year, players from that season's Super Bowl hit free agency. Inevitably, a few are overvalued because of their role on a successful team and signed to contracts that their individual talent can't quite live up to. 
Because the NFL season never ends, we present our 
A recent trend in the NFL is teams picking first overall in the draft signing their pick before the actual draft day. Most recently, the Texans did it with 
