Maybe the Texans should go into publishing.
It's only Week Four, but the team can already speak volumes about its rollercoaster of a season. They could write volumes too.
Head coach Dom Capers just hopes his team can continue to build on the first back-to-back wins in team history. The 30-17 victory over Oakland was sweet, but a three-game winning streak would be sweeter.
"I think it's a real positive step for our football team because I think as we've gone through the first quarter of the season, we've seen both sides of things," Capers said. "I think our team has shown what they're all about these last two weeks. I think the thing we understand now is what formula it takes to win. Every game is a little bit different, each and every week, but there are certain constants you have to do to win football games in this league and I think its part of the maturing as a team and I think we've done a much better job of that over the last two weeks."
The Texans forced only two turnovers in the first three games, but forced five turnovers against the Raiders. Bt that wasn't the only bright spot Sunday.
The Texans had only four penalties, carried the ball a team-record 40 times for 162 yards and grinded out a win while holding the Raiders scoreless in the second half.
Jonathan Wells rushed for 105 yards for the first time since 2002 filling in for starting running back Domanick Davis.
"I thought our defense was the most disruptive yesterday as it has been," Capers said. "Anytime you can force five turnovers in a game, that's hard to beat. For two weeks in a row now we've scored a defensive touchdown. We'll take that every week."
Oh yeah, and the Texans only turned the ball over once.
"We've done a lot better job taking care of the ball the last two games and the results have been two wins," the coach said.
"Offensively, I like our approach. We ran the ball 40 times for 162 yards. That was our best effort in that area of the game. It showed up when we took the drive after (Demarcus) Faggins’ interception and really ran 7:30 off the clock and went down and got a field goal. We did a nice job of brining the ball out. When you get in a game where you're trying to run time off the clock your run game becomes extremely critical."
Of course there is always plenty to work on.
Oakland running back Amos Zereoue rushed for 117 yards, including a 55-yard scamper for a touchdown. The Texans may have succeeded in shutting down the Raiders passing attack, but failed when it came to stopping the big run.
Capers said that will be a focus in the coming week of practice.
INJURY REPORT:Capers was unsure if Davis (ankle) would practice Wednesday, saying he did run well straight-ahead in practice Friday. He described him as "day-to-day."
Quarterback David Carr had a mild foot sprain, which Capers said was "day-to-day."
Wide receiver Corey Bradford benefited from the weekend off and should return to practice on Wednesday.
Safety Glenn Earl had a hip bruise during the game, but returned. He was experiencing soreness on Monday but should be fine for practice.
Safety Eric Brown will probably not practice again on Wednesday. Capers said he is doubtful for Sunday's game against the Minnesota Vikings.
