After the Texans' loss to the Titans on Sunday at Reliant Stadium, frustration is mounting in the public and inside Reliant Stadium. In fact, few games in Texans history have elicited this kind of passionate response from the team's fan base.
As upset and angry as fans are, though, it's hard for me to believe that anyone is as disappointed as the group of players and coaches that huddled inside the Texans' locker room following the six-point overtime defeat. Extremely dejected does not begin to explain the looks on everyone's faces.
The time and effort that players and coaches invest each week into game preparation is considerable, and to fall in such dramatic fashion tests the team's courage and resilience. But one thing head coach Gary Kubiak emphasizes is that his team wins together and loses together.
Keeping that attitude in mind, the Texans ran out of the tunnel as a team Sunday as a sign of solidarity, and to demonstrate that every player - regardless of whether they play on offense, defense or special teams – contributes to the final result.
As many fans have noted, the team introduction done Sunday is different than what has occurred in the past at Reliant Stadium, when the Texans would announce one side of the ball, and players would run out of the tunnel individually. Each week the Texans play at home, the team decides collectively whether to introduce the offense, defense, special teams or the entire team.
The reason for change was simply to further highlight Kubiak's team-first philosophy and to demonstrate that every player is accountable to each other. Kubiak has repeated that self-sacrifice mantra incessantly since he came aboard last January.
The fact that the game against Tennessee was hyped up in many circles as a one-on-one showdown between the two opposing quarterbacks made the team introduction all the more appropriate, in my opinion.
To introduce the entire team instead of separate units is not at all uncommon. Several teams around the NFL only announce their players together. The Titans do that for every road game. The Steelers did that for the Super Bowl last year, and the Patriots also are known to do the same thing.
In the future, the Texans may choose to announce the offense, defense or special teams separately. They also might continue to introduce the entire roster.
In any case, that decision could not be further from the players' and coaches' minds right now.
The team was in Reliant Stadium today to go over Sunday's loss. After a day off Tuesday, everyone's focus will turn to the Patriots, as tough as that might be to do. **
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