Quick lunchtime entry, which I will try to make a semi-regular thing when I’m able to make time during my lunch break at work.
I’ve asked this question before, though it may have only been done via Twitter. Anyway, the concept is this – you can magically protect one and only one Houston Texan from injury in 2012. After what happened last year, I feel pretty confident in saying the overwhelming favorite would be Matt Schaub, so I’m going to go ahead and throw his name out the window. After that, I figure the top candidates are:
CB Johnathan Joseph
For me this question is a no-brainer, and Joseph is my easy answer. What the Texans think they have in Kareem Jackson and what Texans fans think they have in Kareem Jackson are two different things. A clear cut dependable number one corner is something that only Kareem’s mom thinks he is. Before you answer with any other name, ask yourself this – how will you feel about the Texans’ chances in 2012 with starting cornerbacks Kareem Jackson and Brice McCain, or Brandon Harris, a free agent guy, or… um… Alan Ball.
LB Brian Cushing
The Texans are SO thin at ILB and the others in the group have been so underwhelming that yes, Cushing is worth a mention here.
DE J.J. Watt
The Texans would suffer greatly up front without Watt and it would be a devastating blow, no doubt, but the blow would not be a fatal one.
WR Andre Johnson
This has already been an issue in the past and it will be an issue going forward. The Texans certainly aren’t in fantastic shape at the WR position should Andre go down, but as they showed last year there are other weapons that can pick up the slack (as long as Schaub is still in at QB).
RB Arian Foster
I doubt many will name Arian due to the excellent depth behind him, but Foster’s blitz pickup and pass-catching are still superior to Ben Tate’s.
LT Duane Brown
You may disagree but after Joseph, Brown is my number two on this list now that the Texans have issues with depth at tackle. Their swing tackle is Ryan Harris, a guy who has had multiple back surgeries. After that you have Andrew Gardner who “can” play tackle but is thought of much more as a guard.
So for the three of you still reading this blog, give me your thoughts.
Sep 4, 2012 at 16:01:08
You couldn’t be more right about J-Jo. If he goes down, I fear what could happen on defense.
The only one I disagree with is AJ. Obviously he makes the offense great, but I think Jean or Martin will establish themselves as a legitimate threat on the outside, making AJ’s loss (god forbid) easier to withstand.
Sep 5, 2012 at 06:27:42
I think the front seven would somewhat mitigate the loss of Joseph (I said somewhat.) So I’m gonna go with DB. With Newton on the right still trying this whole NFL thing out and then putting Harris or Gardner on the left spells no running game and then DE’s pinning their ears back when all Texans have to rely on is the passing game.
Now we’ll wait for the third guy’s comments.
Sep 5, 2012 at 08:16:04
lets pray we dont have to deal with any of these guys going down. i dont like the thought of any of it.