Alright so let’s take a quick look at the wildcard matchups…

New York Jets at Cincinnati Bengals

Everyone is going on and on about this game being tough on the Bengals for the beating they took last week. But the Bengals had nothing to play for and didn’t want to give away any “secrets” so that they could win the playoff game. The Bengals are just like that boxer that is cornered with his gloves up taking punch after punch only to lash out and beat the snot out of the other fighter. The Jets play with a lot of emotion but will probably fall short because of a unproven quarterback and a drop happy wide out. The Bengals are the better team, but this is still going to be a close game.

Philadelphia Eagles at Dallas Cowboys

This is the game that has me scratching my head the most. I think the Eagles are the better team and I hate the Cowboys with every fiber of my being, but I’d be a fool to say that there is any other team that is bringing this much fire into the playoffs. However, these Cowboys are not as good as some of the other Cowboys teams that have been eliminated from the playoffs in years past. As much as I hate to do it, I’m going with the Cowboys on this one. Although I really hope that Tony Romo finds a way to show that he’s still a bonehead. The Eagles have this game in the bag if ghost of playoffs past haunt Romo.

Baltimore Ravens at New England Patriots

This year I feel like all of these matchups are almost too close to call. The Ravens defense has the edge in this game but you can’t count the Pats out (even with a possibly weak Wes Welker). The Pats proved in the Texans game last week that they have a potent backup for Welker should he need to sit out on plays. The Ravens offense is no joke either, Ray Rice is going to be all over this field today. I’m going with the Patriots because they are better coached. I think that the Ravens have more fire, but I have to go with the Pats here.

Green Bay Packers at Arizona Cardinals

This is the only pick that I feel confident about. I think the Packers are going to push around the Cardinals. The Packers are hungry and I feel the Cards are on the decline and a little complacent.

Earlier this afternoon some Texans fans were ecstatic with the possibility of a playoff run. However most knew the reality of the situation, the Texans needed two bad teams to win and the Bengals to play well in a meaningless game. After the Kansas City Chiefs won playoffs looked like they could be on the horizon. But as we all know by now the Jets beat the Bengals and got the much coveted second wild card berth. So let the blaming begin! The scapegoat of the bunch is Kris Brown, a veteran kicker who lost his confidence Brad Lidge style. While he didn’t do his job, Kubiak put him on the hot seat by not using his stellar offense to score touchdowns. Coach Kubiak opted to set up for field goals at the end of the game. (Someone should have told him he had a good offense.) Of course Kubiak is on the list as well. And maybe Steve Slaton losing the magic he had in the first season. (Which might be attributed to the loss of our two starting guards but that seems like a free pass.)

While we could sit here and play the blame game, which I’m sure myself and many other fans will do in the off season, I’d like to look at some positive.

First the defense.  After last seasons miserable excuse for a defense we made a new hire in DC, Mr. Frank Bush. Frank Bush’s defense had a rocky start, but as it started to gel with the hardcore tendencies of Brian Cushing and the acquisition of Bernard Pollard. The linebacking core was amazing and as the year went on the defense only got better.

Second, Matt Schaub started 16 games and silenced all doubters. With a little more leadership and charisma the guy should be a pro bowler next year.

Third Arian Foster. The main reason we even won the game against the Pats was the rushing effort on the new guy. He might not be the answer but he was a Godsend for the closing of our first winning record.

The season shouldn’t have ended like this yes. (Relying on other teams to win games instead of letting our record speak for itself.) We only have to look at the first game of the season and think that if we would have beat the lowly Jets we would be in the playoffs right now.

So week sixteen went well for me, my picks as well as my Texans. I went 12-4, which puts my season total to 151-87 (.634). Who would have thought the Texans would have had a second half breakdown and still manage to win a tough one on the road?

As for playoffs, we in Houston can but dream. But the AFC wildcard chase is more crowded than an elevator holding the Patriots offensive line. This might be the best last week of the season in a while. I can’t wait to watch some hardcore, heartfelt football on Sunday.

For those people hoping Belichick will play a soft game against the Texans on Sunday can keep dreaming. There’s no way Mean Ol’ Belichick is going to let another playoff contender just waltz their way to a win. Maybe he might rest the starters if they’re ahead but probably in the fourth quarter. People claim he did it in Miami a couple years back but Miami wasn’t going to the playoffs and Nick Saban is part of the Belichick mafia. Gary Kubiak won’t be so lucky. Kubiak is going to have to outwit the Pats. He’s going to have to play aggressive. He’s going to have to prove that he’s the coach that can lead this team into the playoffs. This is the defining moment of Kubiak’s coaching career in Houston. Houston fans will remember this game win or lose. If he losses, he might be back next season as head coach but no one will respect him and the whole season would be just waiting for him to mess up to kick him out of town. If he wins, he lives to see another day and he might be a hero if we sneak into that last wildcard spot.

Indy over Buffalo.

New Orleans over Carolina.

Cleveland over Jacksonville.

Houston over New England.

Minnesota over Giants.

San Fran over St. Louis.

Atlanta over Tampa Bay.

Pittsburgh over Miami.

Chicago over Detroit.

Philly over Dallas.

Kansas City over Denver.

Baltimore over Oakland.

Tennessee over Seattle.

San Diego over Washington.

Green Bay over Arizona.

Cincinnati over Jets.

All right, all right football fans everyone needs to calm down from week one and buckle in for game two. Last week was, to be honest, a crushing blow to the face of every Houston Texans fan. We were all excited, this was going to be the year we get to the playoffs, people have started to pick Houston as a sleeper team. Even Peter King of SI chose the Texans to win the division. Then we get punched in the mouth by a should-not-have-been-a-surprise Jets defense. Our offense looked confused and destroyed, it did not look like a premier NFL offense. On the bright side our defense looked like they wanted to play football. Instead of phoning it in, the defense showed up, but then they got run over. Sigh.

So this week we play the Tennessee Titans. Great. This team is rough but not as rough as they have been in years past. The Texans can win this one But this is what we need to win.

• Steve Slaton and Andre Johnson…they were not allowed to play last week. (Tip my hat to you, Rex Ryan).
• Run stopping defensive line.
• Good play calling by Kubiak.

We need to establish the running game in order for our offense to work. Our offense is not imaginative. It is really simple. 1. Establish the run. 2. Play-action. If Slaton doesn’t run, Johnson won’t have as many opportunities to catch. Either we establish the run so we can playaction or we expect Kubiak to get creative (hint: he won’t).  Next, we need to stop the run. The Titans are going to come out running, right at us. Our defense looked good but it’s no secret that they need to be better. This week will show how effective this new defense will be. And lastly, Gary Kubiak needs to call good plays. If we are getting blitzed, use two tight ends. If our strategy isn’t working, call some different plays! The Texans will win this game and swing everything back in our favor, if these things are used. Texans by three in a close one.

The other game on my radar today is Pats at the Jets. That Jets team is for real and the Pats looked sloppy Monday Night. This could be intense. Now I’m not a guy that hates the Pats just because they win. I personally like the Pats but the Jets could smack ‘em around to show the rest of the league last week wasn’t a fluke. The Jets win this one.

Week One Picks

Atlanta over the Panthers

Minnesota over Detroit

Green Bay over Cincy

Jacksonville beats the Cards

Oakland barely beats KC

Jets shock the Pats

My man Kevin Kolb and the Eagles beat the Saints

Texans over Titans

Washington embarrasses St. Louis

The Bills beat the Bucs

Seattle goes to work against San Fran

Steelers over Bears

No one wins Cleveland and Denver…okay…Denver

Baltimore over Chargers

Giants over Dallas

and Indy shows Miami how to be consistent winners. That’s it Go Texans, peace!

I’ve been sick since Friday. And not just normal sick. The “I haven’t been this sick in a very long time” kind of sick. And because of that I think I’m in a bit of a foul mood. That and the Texans game yesterday.

The first week of the NFL kicks off and already I feel playoff hopes for the Texans slip away. The defense looked pretty good, but then again that is compared to whatever it was that they called a defense last year.

The Patriots almost lost to the Bills…what does that mean? It was almost as confusing as Tom Brady almost running down that female MNF sideline reporter after the game.

Serena Williams is just competitive. Sometimes you get too into a game with those high stakes. It isn’t like she flips off all the time like this. Calm down white people, she’s just angry, she’ll get over it. If this was John McEnroe we’d all be laughing about it.

And Kayne West…you bum rushed a little girl man. Even Mike Tyson will agree that what you did wasn’t cool. When you have beef with other rappers or call politicians racist (see Glenn Beck) at least the playing field is a little even. But this is a new kinda crazy. You’ll never shake this you weirdo.

And people upset at Kayne…he’s crazy. He does crazy things. When he came up to the stage everyone knew crazy was going to happen. Taylor Swift will be ok, don’t worry. Even Crazy Kayne blogged an apology. Yeah I know, it’s a blog, but stop complaining this is the future and blogs are a way of communicating…sometimes. You can’t be upset at crazy people, because they are crazy.

I’m just going to sit here watching the second MNF game wondering if I’m in some sort of crazy world. My head is foggy, I can’t stop sneezing, the Raiders look like they can win a game, The Houston Cougars might be a ranked team, The Pats almost lost to the Bills, Republicans and Democrats want to pass a healthcare bill by the end of the year…I think this is a crazy world.