At the halfway point last year, the Texans had the same record as this year: 3-5. But in 2007 the team had many more legitimate reasons for being two games under .500. Like having an injured Andre Johnson and eventually losing more players to injury than any team in the league.
So what's the problem? Turnovers! If and when the Texans stop being so generous with the hogskin, they will be a tough team to beat. But for now they are performing like a below average unit, and the sad thing is they have become their own worst enemy.
Matt Schaub hurt his knee against Minnesota and would later throw a bad pick in the red zone with his team about to tie the game. Sage Rosenfels would fill in well except for a crucial pick in the end zone in a game tying situation when he rushed an improv snap with the play clock running down.
Sure the pass protection could have been better and the defense got burned a couple of times, but this game was entirely winnable.
Gary Kubiak has built an offense that moves the ball as well as any team in the league. But the train goes off the track way too many times. At minus nine, the turnover margin makes the Dow Jones look like a bull market.
Houston hasn't won on the road in a year and has never won in a dome. Now, it's back home to face Baltimore. The Texans can beat anyone at Reliant Stadium and can get back within a game of .500 to set up a showdown at Indy on Nov. 16.
Kubiak came here to transform the Texans into winners. He's doing the job at home, but the road show is getting poor reviews and needs more work. Until they stop donating the football to the opposition, the Texans will struggle to remain average. Success seems not far away, but the Texans will soon be running out of season to show they belong with the better teams.
