That's right, I'm officially predicting that the Houston Texans will not win another game this season. That's not because I think the Texans are no good (on the contrary, I've gone on record as saying they're much better this year than I thought they would be) or that Kubiak and Co. are going to falter down the stretch.
The reason I believe they are done for '11 is because they've simply had too many injuries, too many "next man up" situations to overcome. It's as if this team is snake-bitten, and as the injury count continued to mount, they've done everything with smoke and mirrors to win 10 games for the 1st time in franchise history.
Today was the first time this year the injuries really showed on the field of play. The defense, staunch all year, showed signs of cracking, and the offense, anemic since the first and second string QB's went down, couldn't mount enough of a charge to put a scare into an NFL caliber defense. Even IF Andre Johnson makes it back onto the field, the remaining Texans receiving corps are too lightweight to make much of a difference in the playoffs.
Skeptics will point to the weak record of Indianapolis and say that, surely, the Texans will win that one but I argue that it's because of that lowly record, and the fact that the Texans have already clinched, will prove to be their undoing. Indy looked like a world-beater today against the hapless Titans, and I'm predicting their offense will score again against the Texans back-up defensive coordinator. They'll then stumble into the game against Tennessee where they'll barely lose there before being dumped in the playoffs.
The good news is, once Schaub went down, there was never a chance this team was making a deep run. Getting out of the playoffs early will allow this team to focus on NEXT YEAR where, for a change, it will probably be THE year for Houston's pro football team.
Here's hoping they prove me wrong, but I'm suggesting it's more likely the Texans go 0-3 than any other scenario.
