battered, not broken

Battered, Not Broken
by Ric Sweeney
HoustonProFootball.com

"OK.. so? She's a dog." -- Dr. Peter Venkman, Ghostbusters

Hey, it was fun while it lasted, right? Which is not to say the Texans are dogs after two consecutive kicks to the chin. Far from it. But playoff contenders? I think we can pull the sheet over that dream.

When you lose 31-13 to Denver on a day when Jake Plummer looks more like John Elway than... well, Jake Plummer, you have every right to file that under "Any Given Sunday." But when you deja lose a week later to another playoff-bound team in much the same fashion, which is what the Texans did Sunday against the Colts, then it's time to tap the brakes on any notion of this season lasting beyond January 2.

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http://www.houstonprofootball.com/slant/slant52.html

Sounds about right. Time to throw a few games, and get our draft stock up. We are not playoff bound. Lets make our 6-10, and show progress. Get some nice draft picks and come back next year.

Year 1: Got our Elite to be QB. Record: 4-12
Year 2: Got our Elite to be WR. Record: 5-11
Year 3: Got our Elite Shutdown CB. Record: 6-10?
year 4: Get our 1500 yard RB. Record:8-8?
Year 5: Fill out the team with good backups. Record: Playoffs.

5 year plan. Lets see it happen.

I get so tired of these 5 year posts. By the 5th year, players from year 1 and 2 are already bailing because they don't want to play for a loser. It doesn't take 5 years to have a winning record. There is no reason an expansion team can't go 8-8 by year 3.

bckey said:

I get so tired of these 5 year posts. By the 5th year, players from year 1 and 2 are already bailing because they don't want to play for a loser. It doesn't take 5 years to have a winning record. There is no reason an expansion team can't go 8-8 by year 3.

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For the most part I think this was the attitude of the team this year.

Did anyone watch Texans Wrap Sunday? Jamie Sharper said something real quick that made me say "oh man, please tell me they are not giving up".

When they asked about his brother he mentioned that he hopes his brother does well and give him something to "watch" for the playoffs.

I hope I am reading into this way too much.

bckey said:

I get so tired of these 5 year posts. By the 5th year, players from year 1 and 2 are already bailing because they don't want to play for a loser. It doesn't take 5 years to have a winning record. There is no reason an expansion team can't go 8-8 by year 3.

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By your calculations the Browns should be defending their crown by now. It just isn't that easy. The Browns had a big head start on us but they have all kinds of problems with that roster. You just can't decide you want to start a team and it is going to be good, "just because". You have to bring in talent over the course of a few years. Building a team from scratch then "expecting" them to be in the playoffs after 2-3 years is pushing your expectations pretty hard. After 4 years we should have a roster devoid of holes. That is really what the "5-year plan" thinking is. It takes several years to field 22 starters and 22 front line NFL reserves. After we have a full roster we can rebuild this thing in 2 years if we have trouble. That is because we have a foundation in place. I understand thinking a 5 year plan is absurd for a mature team. You already have a base of talent.