Texans morning huddle: Watt’s place in history, Foster getting close
By Randy Gurzi
Alright, we are officially passed the 24-hour window to be mad about the loss, right? Ok, so maybe we aren’t completely over it, but that doesn’t mean we can’t keep checking out everything we can find related to our beloved Houston Texans.
Today’s links have some looks ahead to a star returning, a look back to the game last week, and a look even further back in time to compare the team’s best pass rusher to a great from the past. Enjoy;
Tale of the Tape: J.J. Watt vs. Reggie White – by Thomas Neumann, ESPN
"Houston Texans defensive end J.J. Watt put himself in elite company with a childhood hero Sunday.Watt recorded career sack No. 60 when he wrapped up Carolina Panthers quarterback Cam Newton in the third quarter of a game Houston would lose 24-17. Watt reached the 60-sack mark in 66 games, second only to Hall of Famer Reggie White, who got his 60th sack in his 47th NFL game, according to the Elias Sports Bureau.As a youngster in Wisconsin, Watt idolized White and the Green Bay Packers. Watt’s parents even kept a framed photo of White near a collection of Watt’s high school and college awards in the basement of his childhood home.Here’s a collection of stats and notes comparing these two legendary defensive linemen:Scouting reportWhite: 6-foot-5, 300 pounds. Ran 40-yard dash in 4.6 seconds in his prime. Incredibly strong, especially in upper body. Equally dominant against pass or run.Watt: 6-5, 289 pounds. Ran 40-yard dash in 4.81 seconds at 2011 scouting combine. Natural run-stopper who has used his hand-fighting skills to develop into elite pass-rusher.Warm-up actWhite: Territorial draft pick of USFL’s Memphis Showboats in 1984. He recorded 23½ sacks in two USFL seasons.Watt: Played tight end as a freshman at Central Michigan. He caught eight passes for 77 yards before transferring to Wisconsin and emerging as a defensive star.DraftWhite: Selected No. 4 overall by the Philadelphia Eagles in the 1984 supplemental draft — during which NFL teams snapped up rights to USFL players — behind Steve Young, Mike Rozier and Gary Zimmerman.Watt: Selected No. 11 overall in the 2011 draft, behind Newton, Von Miller, Marcell Dareus, A.J. Green, Patrick Peterson, Julio Jones, Aldon Smith, Jake Locker, Tyron Smith and Blaine Gabbert."
Arian Foster, Duane Brown are day-to-day – by Deepi Sidhu, HoustonTexans.com
"Arian Foster and Duane Brown are day-to-day, according to head coach Bill O’Brien.“I would say Duane Brown would be day-to-day,” O’Brien said Monday. “We’ll see how that goes towards the end of the week. Arian Foster same thing, day-to-day, so we’ll kind of see how that goes and try to keep you updated on that throughout the week.”Foster returned to practice last week, but was limited in action after his return from groin surgery. It was the first time the All-Pro back practiced since suffering the Aug. 3 groin injury. Foster is ahead of schedule in his recovery but has not given an official timetable of his return.Brown played in the Texans season opener against Kansas City on Sept. 13, but may have had a setback. He did not practice last week and was inactive for Sunday’s 24-17 loss at Carolina.“Yeah, first game set me back a little bit. That was a game I was really excited to play in and perform, and going against that defense and against those edge rushers, I really wanted to be out there. It set me back a little bit, but it’s not anything that I think will linger too much longer, but like I said, I ‘ve got to be smart about it.”"
29 observations from Texans at Panthers – by John Harris, Texans analyst
"It was a rough day in Carolina, actually an exhausting day in Charlotte, as the Texans went down to defeat at the hands of a physical Carolina Panthers squad 24-17. The Texans, shorthanded throughout the game, moved the ball inside the Panthers 20 yard line at the end, but alas, it wasn’t meant to be on this day. Here are my observations from this one.1. The heat was a significant factor on both sides yesterday. Sure, both teams practice in that Southern-style microwave, but playing in it at 100% full game speed and practicing in it are two entirely different things. Both sides really felt the effects of it as the game wore on.2. I’ll sure be glad to see a more conventional offense on Sunday and I’m not the only one. The read option/QB run packages haven’t been the nail in the Texans defensive coffin, but it hasn’t helped them either the past two weeks.3. Not sure what happened on the first offensive play from scrimmage but two weeks in a row there’s been a communication issue of some sort that just can’t happen.4. The drops. Ugh. I counted four or five of them in the first half. That’s got to change.5. I’ll give props where they’re deserved and you’d be hard pressed to tell me that Carolina CB Josh Norman isn’t or shouldn’t be a Pro Bowler at the end of this season. For some reason, my eyes went to him on the first third down of the game and it was clear he knew the tunnel screen was coming. He signaled his safety to get behind him just in case and to let him know that he was taking the shot. Real good player who followed DeAndre Hopkins for much of the day.6. Oh man, Kareem Jackson was oh so close on the Panthers second drive of the game of a pick six. J.J. Watt tipped a Cam Newton pass that was intended for TE Greg Olsen and Kareem came within inches of catching it and taking a short jog to the house for six. That could’ve been a game changer right out of the chute.7. The Texans had penalties on the first three or four punt/kickoff returns in the game, but finally provided some value with returns later in the game that helped the field position battle. Hopefully, that remains more of a constant going forward.8. QB Ryan Mallett didn’t have a day that’ll be remembered in Texans lore, but he showed some guts and heart in this one. He took a pounding and made some key throws throughout the day. Some of his best throws, though, were unfortunately dropped. The throw he made in the first quarter when he got some heat, rolled right and threw on the run was one of his best throws of the day but it wasn’t caught.9. That said, I don’t know that any QB in this league that throws the out route with as much sauce as Mallett. Wow.10. Short yardage situations have been a bugaboo for the Texans since the first and goal to go against the 49ers in the pre-season, but they picked up one third and one with Jay Prosch’s first ever carry in the first half and then a Chris Polk fourth and one late in the game. If anything else, that was a good sign."
Texans lose Jeff Adams for season – by Josh Alper, Pro Football Talk
"The Texans may not have left tackle Duane Brown back in the lineup this week and they definitely won’t have Jeff Adams at left guard, right tackle or anywhere else.Adams left Sunday’s game on a cart after injuring his knee and it looked like the kind of injury that’s followed by word of an impending trip to injured reserve. That’s just what came on Monday when coach Bill O’Brien met the media in Houston.“Jeff Adams will be out for the year with a knee injury,” O’Brien said, via the team’s website. “I feel for the guy. The guy really put a lot of effort into this season. He was here all offseason, really improved as a player and those things happen. Those injuries happen.”"