Hey, quick question. Is there a particular thing that happened that made you upset with Alex Gibbs for yelling at his players or Kubiak yelling at his quaterbacks? Generally, the public information that is out suggests that the players love the one on one work that Alex Gibbs does with the line, yelling and all.
See e.g.:
http://nfl.fanhouse.com/2008/06/23/rt-eric-winston-discusses-2008-texans-line-guru-alex-gibbs-he/
I could easily dig up enthusiastic public statements from the quarterbacks talking about Gary Kubiak as well.
Is there stuff going on with Kubiak/Gibbs that we don't know about but you do?
Personally, I've been pretty impressed with the work Alex Gibbs has done with starting a rookie left tackle. I think the biggest issues with the offensive line last game is that Chester Pitts couldn't start, and Kasey Studdard (a try hard guy, but not a true starter) was overmatched.
Really, is there a particular reason why you bring up the yelling as it relates Gibbs/Kubiak? I could pick a number of the defensive coaches that are yellers, and don't have as much of a track record of accomplishment as Gibbs/Kubiak. I'm not trying to be a smartass about this, I am just curious, and I suspect I'm not the only one that wonders about this. Why the Kubiak/Gibbs rant? Why are you suggesting that Gibbs is stupid?
If you are trying to run coaches out of town, Gibbs is about the last guy on the Texans staff that I'd give the bidness to.
I'm not sure what about this season is particularly surprising so far. I think the only people truly disappointed with the season so far are those who believed your point of view that "For the first time, the Texans enter a season without a glaring weakness."
http://www.chron.com/disp/story.mpl/sports/justice/texans/5897344.html
The Texans defense was statistically at the bottom of the league in many important categories. The free agent acquisitions the Texans grabbed last summer plus drafting young players wasn't likely going to make last year's defensive issues suddenly go away. This is the youngest defensive back lineup that the Texans have ever put on the field, which barring miracles, usually is an unfortunate thing.
This Texans team has a lot of try hard guys who likely wouldn't be starters on other squads. With some of this Kubiak doesn't have much of a choice--the defense is being built from scratch from where it was in 2005, and the only defensive playmaker left from that 2005 team is sitting on the bench recovering from a knee/hamstring injury.
As for optimism and pessimism, I think ultimately everybody thinks that they are the realists, and that everybody else is either overly optimistic or pessimistic unless those people agree with them.
As for the running backs, they are what they are. Gibbs is trying to work miracles with a line that has three new players in it, and a running back group that with exception of Slaton, nobody else in the league would want. In the preseason, the running back group is working on some things that they may not be doing in the regular season, so as with a number of things, it is a wait and see:
http://myespn.go.com/blogs/afcsouth...s-the-premier-game-for-Gibbs--run-scheme.html
Personally, I'm fine with a critical analysis of the Texans. I just want to know where it is coming from. There's tons of issues with the Texans, and none of them are surprises either to the fans to follow the team closely or to the coaching staff, I suspect. You can't just buy the players you want in the NFL. Some years you have to make do with bad decisions of the past, salary cap limitations you have, and just plain waiting for players to develop.
I am not sure where you are coming from about the Kubiak/Gibbs criticism about yelling though. If all the coach yellers were booted from the NFL, I think only Tony Dungy would be left, and I've seen him non-cuss yell a time or too as well. Personally, I don't see Kubiak/Gibbs yelling as being even in the top 1,000,000 concerns about the 2008 Texans. Is there something you know about their yelling that you aren't sharing?
[
No player likes being yelled at. That's simply ridiculous. Do you really think those were sincere comments? Are you that gullible? ''Sure, coach, I like the way you try to humliate in front of my teammates. I love it.'' Are you that clueless? Hey, aren't you the person that wrote that I'm unprofessional then admitted you didn't know the standards of professionalism in my business? If it's not you, my apologies. If it is you, in the words of the immortal George Bamberger...--Richard]
He cares more about his videos with Anna Meagan than he does about writing quality stuff.
Oh brother! But we're the ones who are "so emotionally invested" right? Gimme a break. RJ is a joke. His show sucked and his writing does too.
