What has gone wrong since Celeveland, 2004?

[Runner]

Here is an article in the Chronicle about our woes over the past couple of years. Many things in it have been discussed here, but it is worth reading. I think he misses a couple of reasons for our swirl down the tubes, but still worth the time.

http://www.chron.com/disp/story.mpl/sports/fb/texansfront/4227194.html

 

[Tailgate]

Everything.

 

[gtexan02]

Veteran turnover also hurt. The Texans could afford to pass on a step-slower Jamie Sharper and Aaron Glenn and the frequently hurt Gary Walker as players, but those guys' DNA was a big part of the locker room chemistry. Their departures left a leadership void.

I've been saying this for the past year now...

 

[HomeBred_Texan]

Everything.

My thoughts exactly, except for this the fact that Carr is getting better...

 

[Scottyboy]

Phillip Bu-Terrible had alot to do with the Terrible Secondary!!

 

[Malloy]

Phillip Bu-Terrible had alot to do with the Terrible Secondary!!

Apart from the fact that he's not really on the field due to injury ?

 

[Vinny]

The slide started about 6 games before Cleveland. The early production of the offense was aided by playing some really rotten defenses too, so it's not like the Browns triggered the decline of this team.

"Some of the guys who had played so well for us in 2002, 2003 and 2004 had gotten a little older and a step slower," McNair said. "In Aaron's case, we made some changes and tried to strengthen our secondary by bringing in Buchanon, who we thought would be a starting cornerback. Then you've got Dunta (Robinson) at one corner, Buchanon at the other and Faggins, who's a promising young player.

"Where's Aaron Glenn going to play? For the amount of money you're paying him, how do you justify that? It's one of those things where if we'd offered Aaron what Dallas offered him he wouldn't have accepted it. That's just the way players are. But what really hurt was (losing) his presence ... It hurt our young secondary not having him there.

"And Jamie was a step slower. He's out of football now. (Jay) Foreman is out of football. So is Gary. Some of those guys got to the point where they couldn't contribute enough (to justify their large salaries)."

I said pretty much the same thing here a few days ago...

Sharper, Walker, Payne, Glenn and Colemen were the defensive core. Those guys weren't bad, but careers are short in the NFL and we have made poor decision after poor decision grading talent leading us to a team that couldn't keep replacing above average players with more equal or dominant players.

http://forums.houstontexans.com/showpost.php?p=452341&postcount=22

 

[Goldeagle]

Nobody can catch.

AJ drops passes
Gaffney and Bradford dropped passes
Putzier drops passes
our DEFENSIVE BACKS drop passes

 

[nunusguy]

Looking back, we really did get some very good defensive players in the
2002 X Draft: Aaron Glenn, Gary Walker, Jamie Sharper, Marcus Coleman,
& Seth Payne. That's 2/3 of your DLine (in Capers 3-4), both CBs, and an
outstanding LB. And thiose guys, while not cheap, were in their prime as I
think they were all < 30, but each with several years NFL experience as starters. The only guy we may have today in any of those players category is D-Rob ?
Oh for the good ole days !

 

[beerlover]

still with the talent on the field the Texans should be at least competitive. I like the direction the offense is headed with Kubiak, but defensively I have no idea what Richard Smiths 4-3 is supposed to look like. I always liked the 3-4 scheme better, we just did not have the players to run it.....now with Mario & Weaver we do, yet Texans remain trying to make the 4-3 work. For one game I would like to see them run some 3-4 sets (key players from last year certainly have not forgot how to play it) just like they ran some 4-3 last year, mix it up a little. Don't just move Mario around change the sets to keep the offense unsettled, I don't care if they even call it a hybrid 4-3

 

[Vinny]

I always liked the 3-4 scheme better, we just did not have the players to run it.....now with Mario & Weaver we do, yet Texans remain trying to make the 4-3 work.

I think the same thing. Incredible irony or yet again trying to stuff a system down the players throat instead? This is why I don't like "system guys" sometimes. They were hell bent on making this team a 4-3 team and nothing could stop them. Mario doesn't look like an elite 4-3 edge rusher at all but does look like the prototype tweener DE/DT that the 3-4 uses.

 

[nunusguy]

Mario doesn't look like an elite 4-3 edge rusher at all but does look like the prototype tweener DE/DT that the 3-4 uses.

Excellent point V, and if Mario's natural position in the NFL is as a DE in the
3-4, that makes Kubiak's pick even more ill advised than it does already look.
Can you imagine, a Draft with Vince Young, Matt Leinert, Reggie Bush, etc. and the HC uses the #1 overall on a downlineman for a 3-4 !