Great expectations in Houston realized: Part 1/16

So much to write about in the world and I think — football. Houston Texans football to be exact.

My behavior can hardly be called “ritualistic” but it leans that way during pro football season. I like to get up, late, on Sundays and watch a little Howard Kurtz Reliable Sources before watching the Fox NFL Sunday. I know, it’s hard to believe but I do watch Fox products even though I loathe Fox News. The CBS pre-game show just doesn’t have the “talent” of its opposite. Of course, I watch the CBS game itself when Houston plays as they did yesterday.

I hate, in a sense, when expectations are high for my team and there are a Dickens of great expectations for the Texans for the season. What do you think? Trite? Trite on a stick? Some think Houston will be in the Super Bowl this year. They pounded Miami yesterday like a 90-pound sh*t hammer for the last three quarters. But the Texans won’t go anywhere if they played like they did in the first quarter. It is trite on a bucket truck, but Houston needs to play four quarters of football to get anywhere.

The Houston offense still needs — something, I don’t know what it is, whether it’s a line issue or bad mojo. The Texans still needs to make touchdowns when they are in the red zone. When they get down the road they will need more than a however good foot that they have in kicker Shayne Graham. He missed his first field goal attempt, a 52-yard boot that fell short. I don’t know what his longest is but I know such an attempt is not out of his range. I couldn’t kick the ball through the posts from the goal line but guys can these days and about fifty-five yard farther. Eventually, the 63-yard field goal records will be broken. Sunday San Francisco kicker David Akers became the fourth player to reach the 63-yard FG mark set first by Tom Dempsey more than 40 years ago. The record was tied in 1998 and last year.

Once the Texans offense got rolling it looked pretty good. It was great to see the magnificent receiver Andre Johnson make long plays and a touchdown where it looked afterwards as if he might be congratulated to death by the fans when he jumped up in the end zone stands. Arian Foster has turned Vegan but that cat can still run as can Ben Tate. Shaub looked good at QB.

If Houston makes it past the first rounds in the playoffs, which they failed to do last year, it will be in no small part due to offensive defensive coordinator Wade Phillips. The smartest move head coach Gary Kubiak ever made was hiring Phillips. Wade — I don’t know him but he’s from my part of the state so I feel I can call him by his first name — wants to have a championship team of his own as head coach. It eluded him in Dallas, badly. Methinks Kubiak needs to have him restrained so he won’t get away. No, of course I am not being serious. But Phillips is a brilliant defensive mind.

The Texans came away with a 30-10 win over the Dolphins this first game of the season. Now they only have the rest of the season to live up to what others expect of them. It isn’t enviable but its nice to be recognized as long as the team doesn’t live up to others’ expectations.