The Texans have never been 2-0 in any situation. They have now clinched a .500 preseason. I don't think the '72 Dolphins are sweating it out just yet, but there is no doubt that this franchise is ready to rebound from last season.
Get used to it. The Texans will be a lot better this year. They'll have a solid running game and run play action for big gains. They'll get pressure on the passer, creating sacks and turnovers. They'll win more games.
Beating the Rams felt nothing like winning a regular season game. It didn't even feel as good as last week's home win over Kansas City. This team is starting to expect to play well, which is a big part of building a winning culture. They know they are making progress, yet still have a lot of work to do.
Walking the long hallway to the buses from the locker room, the players were happy to be headed home. Most guys grabbed a personal-size postgame pizza and caught a glimpse of Denzel Washington, who was waiting for his son, John David, a rookie free agent running back with the Rams.
The young Washington was turned away in a goal-to-go situation late in the game, prompting me to say "no Glory for Denzel's son on that play." I know it's a little tacky, but I couldn't resist. The references are limitless: "Washington is Out of Time, What a run for Washington... He Got Game, Washington is a Man on Fire, This is a Training Day for Washington." OK, somebody stop me.
The game was not a work of art, but another step toward regular season respectability. The ground attack looked solid with Vernand Morency coming off the sideline for 95 yards and two touchdowns.
The passing game still needs tuning with the first team. Gary Kubiak can't be happy about the pressure the Rams got on David Carr. St. Louis blitzed, causing some bad flashbacks of last year. Some of Carr's passes were of the mark. At other times, he couldn't escape the rush.
When both the St. Louis and Houston first-stringers were in the game, it was 3-0 Rams. When the Texans' number-one offense faced the Rams' number-two defense, they quickly scored. They even ran a three-play 25-second drive that resulted in a Kris Brown 48-yard field goal.
Sure, the Rams threw for nearly 300 yards, but the first team was kept out of the end zone, and Mario Williams finally has a couple of ESPN highlights with a deflected pass and tackle for a loss.
Both Rams touchdowns were scored after long pass interference penalties on Phillip Buchanon got them in point-blank range. Phillip did have two nice 30 yard punt returns and a fumble recovery, so the night was a mixed bag. The coaches are aching for him to make more plays as a defensive back because he needs to multi-task there and at special teams, where his real strength is right now.
The hotly contested race for the fourth, fifth and possibly sixth wide receiver spots will be a big topic this week. Thirty-year-old Derrick Lewis looks like a lock. Derick Armstrong didn't get on the field, so read into that what you want. David Anderson, Richie Ross and Jake Schifino are all still in the hunt.
Training camp finally ends on Tuesday. It's been fun doing the afternoon show (2-6 p.m. SportsRadio 610) from the bubble, but there's no place to refuel my coffee, and we only have time to talk to maybe one or two players as they come off the field.
Like I mentioned previously, once the first game hits, the preseason flies by. It's over a week from Thursday.
