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[Mailman]

Dr. Z's predicted order of finish:

AFC South

Colts 11-5
Jags 10-6
Titans 10-6
Texans 6-10

Go thread go.

[Brando]

Originally Posted by Mailman

Dr. Z's predicted order of finish:

AFC South

Colts 11-5
Jags 10-6
Titans 10-6
Texans 6-10

Go thread go.

It's going to be like that in almost all predictions. That's fine with me. It's going to be like that until we produce on the field. When we do, it's going to be a great feeling.

[aj.]

Queue the 'we don't get no respect,' and 'east coast bias' comments countered by 'you have to earn respect to get respect' in 3...2...1...

[YoungTexanFan]

I see Young having a regression and the Colts starting slowly. I think the Jags win the division this year. I think Texans miss the playoffs again but win 8-9 games. We have a tough start. The Titans just don't have the team to do it again IMO, and I don't think Vince has the ability as a QB to step up and win with such obvious flaws.

[YoungTexanFan]

Originally Posted by aj.

Cue the 'we don't get no respect,' and 'east coast bias' comments countered by the 'you have to earn respect' comments in 3...2...1...

I don't care about that stuff too much, but I do like to hear why each professional gives out a certain prediction.

[Errant Hothy]

And SI has a good record of prediciting these things?

[gwallaia]

I always keep my copies of the magazine predictions until after the Super Bowl. They are rarely accurate.

[jaayteetx]

Not too impressed with Dr Z`s predictions, although he did pick the Giants to upset the Pats.

[HOU-TEX]

I haven't read or cared for anything SI related since a particular Championship.

Eh, who gives a hoot about SI

[gtexan02]

In all honesty, given our schedule, and the amount of injuries we usually sustain, 6-10 is within the realm of possibility for sure.

I could easily see us going 5-11 or 11-5. Thats the beauty of the NFL

Some have predicted us to go to the playoffs. Others are giving us a 6-10 mark. We get plenty of respect from some, and none from others. So is the life of an 8-8 team

[aj.]

fwiw, they predicted the Texans to finish 6-10 last year too. They could predict 10-6 and I would care as much.

Speaking of.... I've used up my ration of care on this dead horse. Carry on.

[Texecutioner]

Originally Posted by YoungTexanFan

I see Young having a regression and the Colts starting slowly. I think the Jags win the division this year. I think Texans miss the playoffs again but win 8-9 games. We have a tough start. The Titans just don't have the team to do it again IMO, and I don't think Vince has the ability as a QB to step up and win with such obvious flaws.

Interesting theories you have there.

The Jags could certainly drop off as well. They have no WR's at all. What if Fred Taylor's old ass finally gets hurt for a while and Jones Drew is forced to pound the ball the whole time? Things won't be as easy.

Plus, they lost that huge guy on their D line. Spears I believe, and that is a BIG loss. Then they're rookie DE Harvey just signed, so he'll have no impact at all this year. If they were to win the division, it won't be because they were a top AFC team. Plus, many people aren't aware of how tough their schedule is this year.

Now the Colts should be fine if Peydon is healthy and can do the same stuff. Even if MH is not the same, Gonzo played really well at the end of the season for them.

Then the Titans are looking great outside of their passing game. VY looks awful as a passer again this year, and they have even worse WR's than the Jags. They will have a good running game again though, and a really good defense.

Then that brings the Texans, who are the BIG Question mark. If the Texans D can over achieve, then I really like our chances. After the Dallas game though, I'm really worried about the D. And our RB's need to stay healthy which is unlikely as well. The thing that most people aren't accounting for though is that the Texans have no depth at all. If the Texans were to lose any one of out KEY players, they're done. If AJ, Demeco, or Mario Williams goes down then the Texans will have no shot at all. That is a big worry of mine, is if one of those 3 key players were to miss a lot of time. Those 3 guys are to important to this team's success this year, and they have to stay healthy to make a run at the wild card.

Now that brings the Texans who

[Mailman]

Lombardi's team analysis focuses entirely on the addition of Rosevelt Colvin and the team's lack of a consistent pass rush.

"The Texans only chance for their first postseason birth depends on a fearsome pass rush. And for that to happen, Colvin has to bring the house."

[TD]

Looking at the predictions for the rest of division, he must be predicting 0-6 or 1-5 in the division and about .500 outside. Says more about the division than the Texans IMO.

[Ole Miss Texan]

Don't see anything wrong with the Texans record prediction. Agree that Jacksonville is really going to push Indy this year for the division- Peyton's injury seems to be more serious than first thought and that spells disaster. Tennessee is a scrappy team- they've got a great running game and good defense.

Texans... we're a much improved team, but we're still a .500 team +/- 2 games. No telling how it swings but I'm looking forward to the season. Few injuries and being positive in the turnover category will be huge for us.

[Hardcore Texan]

Originally Posted by Mailman

Dr. Z's predicted order of finish:

AFC South

Colts 11-5
Jags 10-6
Titans 10-6
Texans 6-10

Go thread go.

Hardcore's predicted order of finish:

Colts 11-5
Jags 10-6
Texans 9-7
Titans 5-11

Go Texans Go!

What? Mine means just a much as theirs, especially to me.

[Ghetto D]

It may just be me, but I'm thrilled to see SI post a 6-10 prediction for us. They always seem to be so far off in these predictions that I feel like 10-6 is even MORE of a reality now.

[Qman]

I don't know that this will carry over, but the Texans have not been turning the ball over in the Preseason. That is a really good habit-one that leads to overachieving.

Personally I see the Texans at 8-8 again or maybe 9-7.

[swtbound07]

maybe he watched our preseason game against dallas and noticed our defense sucks?

Thats kinda the elephant in the room that none of us are talking about. How are we an above .500 team with this defense?

If I had to bet, i'd go 6-10 or 7-9

[ChampionTexan]

Originally Posted by Qman

I don't know that this will carry over, but the Texans have not been turning the ball over in the Preseason. That is a really good habit-one that leads to overachieving.

Personally I see the Texans at 8-8 again or maybe 9-7.

Thru three games last preseason, we were plus 4 on turnovers, although I don't know what the breakdown of that number was. So I completely agree that it may or may not mean anything (how's that for going out on a limb?). It is a positive that the offense hasn't turned the ball over at all to this point - just special teams. (And yes, I know there were a couple of balls that should have been intercepted, and fumbles that could have been recovered, but they weren't).

One difference between this year and last is the passing yards given up by the D. Believe it or not, we're actually giving up about 40 yards less per game than thru the third preseason game in '07. We're giving up about 20 more rushing per game. Compared to the regular season last year, we're giving up about 15 yards a game less in total. Meaningless I realize - especially when you consider that it doesn't break down our starters vs. their starters, but at least it kind of refutes the sky is falling mentality. It may not be rising a whole lot, but our level of mediocrity seems to be stable at worst.