Mandatory Credit: Brett Davis-USA TODAY Sports

While fans, players, and coaches are disappointed and upset that the season is over, it is time to move forward to the more exciting parts of the off-season. With free agency and the NFL Draft coming up, teams have a lot to look over. Analysts around the internet are posting their mock drafts, explaining who they feel can make teams better. The Texans have a couple of big free agents who they will need to resign. Conner Barwin, Glover Quin, James Casey, and Brice McCain headline the list of Texans Free agents. Glover Quin should be their top priority as he has been a solid player since switching to the safety position. Although Barwin did not put up the sack numbers he did in 2011, he should be brought back to continue the rotation they have with Whitney Mercilus and Brooks Reed. Casey will likely be brought back as well, his versatile skill set allows the offense to do many things with him, as they can line him up as a fullback, tight end, and receiver. McCain was essentially a starter as a nickel corner for Wade Phillips’ defense. Brandon Harris could compete with him in camp for the job.

With the draft coming up, the Texans are starting to set their draft board with all the young talent coming out of college. The Texans are picking 27^th in the first round of the draft, and at first thoughts you would think “the Texans won’t find a great player picking that late in the first round”. But, when looking at the teams who pick late year in and year out, you realize these teams are able to take the best player available at their pick, and consistently build winning teams. Picking late means the team was able to make a post-season run, which means they already have a good team. So when their pick comes around, they can look at the draft board and select the best available player according to their draft boards, who can immediately help their team get better. I believe the biggest needs for the Texans are nose tackle, wide receiver, and middle linebacker, in no particular order. Usually the Texans pick defense in the first round, believing they can find offensive gems in late rounds. I wouldn’t be surprised if they stick to that strategy again this year. Some names in the early mock drafts that have been linked to Houston are: Kevin Minter LB LSU, Eric Reid S LSU, and Robert Woods WR USC. Woods and Minter would fill needs, while Reid would be a great addition to the secondary.

LSU Tigers safety Eric Reid Mandatory Credit: Nelson Chenault-USA TODAY Sports

Kevin Minter would be a great pick, adding depth to a position where the Texans had injury issues this season. Not only that, but he could compete to be the starter in the Texans 3-4 defense next to Brian Cushing, who is coming back from injury. Minter was voted the LSU 2012 MVP, and he has played in the SEC in college, which consists of the top football programs, and top defenses every year. Minter is great against the run and teaming him up with Cushing could turn one of the weaknesses in 2012 into a strength for Houston next year. Robert woods, from USC, would finally give the Texans the number two receiver they have needed for years. Wide Receiver DeVier Posey had begun to flash his potential towards the end of the season, but he suffered a torn Achilles in the game against New England. With Kevin Walter growing older, he will be 32 this year, the Texans need to find his replacement. Walter is a sure handed receiver, but he is not the fastest guy on the field. Posey’s injury will set him back for some time and Robert woods would be able to come in and provide another receiver for Matt Schaub to throw to. Teams know if they shut down Andre Johnson and Owen Daniels, they basically shut down the passing game. Eric Reid, the safety from LSU, could be seen as taking the best player available. Safety is not necessarily a need, but Reid could come in and push Quin and Daniel Manning for their jobs. Both Quin and Manning are solid safetys, and Quin has excelled wince switching from cornerback to safety. The safety postion could become similar to the Texans OLB postitions, where they rotate Whitney Mercilus in to keep the players fresh. Reid would be a huge upgrade over Quinton Demps and Shiloh Keo.

Though the Texans season is over, it is time for them to look to next season, where they should be considered Super Bowl contenders once again. The Texans will look to make their team better this off-season, while keeping their own players together. It will be exciting to see what additions and subtractions Houston makes this off-season .This year I will be doing my first ever mock draft here on this site, so be sure to check back!

Playoff Predictions:

AFC Championship; Patriots 38 Ravens 34 – This game will likely be a high scoring affair. The Patriots have yet to find an opponent who can slow them down and this game should be no different. The Ravens have shown they deserve to be playing this weekend though. They were able to upset the Broncos in Denver. Joe Flacco and the Ravens offense will not be able to complete a comeback drive. The Patriots will return to the Super Bowl.

NFC Championship; Falcons 31 49ers 28 – This match up could go either way, but I’ll take the Falcons at home. Collin Kaepernick will continue his high level of play, but the Falcons will kick a late feild goal to win this one. Atlanta will get to the Super Bowl and face the unstoppable Patriots offense.

-Ryan Reyna

Mandatory Credit: Troy Taormina-USA TODAY Sports

The Texans finished out the 2012 regular season losing three of their last four games, including the beat down against the Patriots. Last week, in the wild-card game, the Houston defense dominated the game, holding Cincinnati’s offense to just 6 points. The pressure was the key to the game, with Brooks Reed coming back from injury. The pass rush was more balanced. They were able to harass quarterback Andy Dalton all game long, just as they did to other teams all season long. That pass rush will have to show up again if they want to have a chance at slowing down Tom Brady and the Patriots’ high octane offense. The last time these two teams faced off, Brooks Reed did not play and J.J. Watt could not get to Brady before he got rid of the ball. Brady was able to pick apart the Texans defense with ease as the pass rush failed to get to him. With Reed coming back, the Texans should have a better chance at getting to Brady, as Reed has 4.5 sacks in the three playoff games Houston has played. If the defense plays as well as they did against the Bengals, they will have a great shot at beating the Patriots.

Mandatory Credit: Brett Davis-USA TODAY Sports

The other key factor to this game, for the Texans, is getting off to a fast start and establishing the run; as well as scoring touchdowns rather than field goals when they get to the red-zone. Getting off to a fast start is important, as it will allow the Texans to set the pace, which leads to them establishing the run. Feeding Arian Foster the rock gives the Texans the best chance of winning games, not only against New England, but against any team in the National Football League. When the Texans have run the ball 30 or more times, they went 12-0 this season and have gone 45-5, including postseason, with Gary Kubiak as the head coach. The running game sets up play action and bootlegs in the passing game, and it also helps Houston win the time of possession battle. In the game with Cincinnati, Arian Foster had 32 carries for 140 yards and a touchdown, causing them to have the ball for nearly 40 minutes of the game. This kept the defense fresh and the opposing offense off the field. If the Texans can sustain long drives that end with touchdowns rather than field goals, they will be able to keep the Brady bunch off the field. It will still be difficult as Brady can set his offense’s pace to a high tempo attack and lead them to quick scores, but the Texans must stick to this plan.

The Texans are the obvious underdogs in this game, although experts have predicted a much more close game this time around. Neither the Texans nor Patriots are looking at the week 14 blowout as to why they will win or lose this game. That game is in the past and this is a new game, where anything can happen. The Texans will definitely come back this weekend giving it their all.

Prediction: The game remains close, but Arian Foster and the Texans establish the running game, as Foster gets close to 30 carries for 135 yards and two touchdowns. Matt Schaub does enough in this game, throwing a touchdown pass to end his drought. The defense gets two sacks and another interception, but Brady still throws for 3 touchdowns. In the end the defense makes enough stops to help win this one; Texans 27 Patriots 24

Division Round Predictions:

Broncos 28 Ravens 24 – Ray Lewis plays his final game, the Ravens keep it close as Joe Flacco throws two touchdowns and Ray Rice runs for another, but Denver’s Peyton Manning throws four touchdowns with no interceptions as they advance to the AFC Championship game.

Packers 31 49ers 21 – Colin Kaepernick’s inexperience shows in this game, but he throws for a touchdown and rushes for another. Aaron Rodgers throws four touchdowns and leads a drive to a field goal as the Packers win this one.

Falcons 21 Seahawks 17 – Matt Ryan gets his first playoff victory at home, and throws for 3 touchdowns and 2 interceptions. Russel Wilson runs for a touchdown, and Marshawn Lynch runs for another, and although Seattle’s defense keeps it close, the Falcons get the win.

-Ryan Reyna

Dec 30, 2012; Indianapolis, IN, USA; Houston Texans head coach Gary Kubiak (right) talks with quarterback Matt Schaub (8) during the game against the Indianapolis Colts at Lucas Oil Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Thomas J. Russo-USA TODAY Sports

Houston comes into this game losing 3 of their last 4 games, after cruising to an 11-1 start. In the last four games of the regular season, the offense has looked out of sync. Matt Schaub, who is normally a very accurate quarterback, has thrown one touchdown to three interceptions in the last three games, and has only lead two touchdown drives on offense in the last four games. The turnovers, along with a ton of penalties, have killed the offense’s drives. When watching the games, it almost seemed like for every good play the offense had, they also had a turnover or penalty. Even on defense, when the Texans would force a third down, they would commit a foolish penalty. The entire team needs to not dwell on mistakes, and just play the game. On offense, they need to keep feeding the ball to their superstars, Andre Johnson and Arian Foster, but they also need someone other than these two to step up and become a reliable player as well.

Most doubters are pointing to the last four games as their “proof” the Texans will lose to the Bengals this Saturday. However, do not look too much into losing 3 of their last 4. Last season Houston rode a 3 game losing streak into their first playoff appearance, before blowing out the Bengals 31-10 here in Houston. It’s not the same situation, but it is similar. In fact, in the last 10 years, teams that lost 3 of their last 4 games going into the playoffs, went on to win their first game 62% of the time. Momentum is something that can easily change in an instant. For a smaller example, look no further than week 17’s match up with the Indianapolis Colts. The Texans had finally taken a 16-14 lead over the Colts in the third quarter, and it looked as if they had all the momentum. Then, on the ensuing kickoff, the Colts return man Deji Karim returned the kick 101 yards for a touchdown, swinging the momentum in favor of the Colts. The Texans never regained composure and fell 28-16. They were forced to watch Denver and New England steal away the first round bye. In just a span of 12 seconds, the Colts had stolen all momentum from the Texans. Why can’t the Texans do the same?

My Prediction: Houston corrects its mistakes, limiting penalties and turnovers. The return of Brooks Reed will help the defense put pressure on Andy Dalton, forcing Dalton to throw two picks. They will also force a fumble through a strip-sack from none other than J.J. Watt. Matt Schaub puts his December woes behind him and leads his offense to 3 touchdowns. Texans 27 Bengals 13.

Other Wild-Card Predictions:

Packers 28 Vikings 17 – Adrian Peterson rushes for over 150 yards but it is not enough as Aaron Rodgers passes for four touchdowns.

Ravens 24 Colts 14 –Andrew Luck gives the Colts a chance but Ray Lewis leads his team to his last home victory.

Seahawks 20 Redskins 17 – Two rookie quarterbacks square off in this game, but it is the running backs for each respective team who shine in this game.

-Ryan Reyna