NFL and Houston Texans Superthread: Are we ready for some football?

[boardman]

Posey should fill the slot position. This has to be his year or he's probably done. He has shown flashes but that Achilles injury really hurt him.

I wondered about the demise of the running back as well. There are still good backs but, yeah, they don't seem to last as long. I think it's mostly due to the size and speed of defensive players. When I think of durable running backs I think Tony Dorsett, Earl Campbell, Walter Payton, Emmit Smith. Those guys would put a lick on someone but it was usually a defensive back. I might be wrong but I just don't remember those guys getting run down a lot from behind by defensive ends and linebackers that were bigger than them by at least 50#.

With players getting bigger and quicker on defense it really makes the field smaller which in turn puts an emphasis on getting the ball downfield with accurate passing.

The game is always evolving but I don't see the cycle going back to 3 yards and a cloud of dust.

[fragtasticator]

Originally Posted by boardman

1. Posey should fill the slot position. This has to be his year or he's probably done. He has shown flashes but that Achilles injury really hurt him.

2. I wondered about the demise of the running back as well. There are still good backs but, yeah, they don't seem to last as long. I think it's mostly due to the size and speed of defensive players.

3. When I think of durable running backs I think Tony Dorsett, Earl Campbell, Walter Payton, Emmit Smith. Those guys would put a lick on someone but it was usually a defensive back.

3. With players getting bigger and quicker on defense it really makes the field smaller which in turn puts an emphasis on getting the ball downfield with accurate passing.

4. The game is always evolving but I don't see the cycle going back to 3 yards and a cloud of dust.

1. I concur. The guy still has the jets, but seems to be leery of cutting. He could be fully healed and never get injured again, but the memory of that injury has a lasting impact.

When I first saw him, I thought we'd finally gotten someone good enough to keep up with Andre, but alas, so far, no joy.

2. I don't think so. You remember a fella they used to call 'The Fridge'? They grew 'em big back then, too - and it was a little more wild west on PEDs and the like.

I'm still hung up on the idea that it was the FBs who ended up taking the brutal hits while the RBs got to skate away like water bugs....I don't know, maybe my memory is playing tricks on me.

3. Smith I recall very well. He was good, but don't be fooled - the defenses had to pick their poison and either get chewed up piece by piece by Emmitt, or give up massive chunks to Aikman et al through the air. Quality QBs make life easier for RBs, and quality RBs make life easier for QBs - like hobbyist and provider, it's a mutually beneficial relationship.

4. Hey, with the NFL, as long as they don't up game day roster sizes, you are always going to be forced to specialize. In general, you can be average everywhere, or good in two things, or excellent at one thing; you simply don't have the cap room and the roster spots to be excellent at everything.

If everyone is paying money to be excellent at covering the pass, that means they almost have to be cutting corners somewhere else, right?

Additional food for thought: Peterson, Charles and Lynch seem to be consistently excellent - what are they doing differently? Do they run single back sets, or are they going with two in the backfield?

[Daddio]

Baby Daddy sure looked like a bitch in his interview today. I would make him run his ass off with wind sprints until "he is the best teammate he can be". Seems he was mocking the coach a little to me. I am not sure about his contract but we will need some money to re sign Watt soon, I would certainly consider cutting the Baby Daddy to clear up some $$$ after this season. He better play his ass off and learn to shut the fuck up in my opinion!!! After all he had 1 whole touchdown last year, ONE!! The same number of lawsuits for Baby Daddy child support, ONE!!! Philosofoster needs to fucking zip it and clip it(vasectomy)!!!

[Satin]

^^^^^^^^
Now that's fucking funny!!!

[jstone420]

Yeah right he will be gone after this season

[boardman]

Foster's hamstring problems don't seem to be going away.
Doc First was really concerned about him on In the Loop this morning. He doesn't think he will finish the season if he is already having problems in camp.
His running style requires an explosive first step after he makes his cut. That's really hard on the hammys.

Alfred Blue should get significant time. His style is a lot like Foster's and he has good vision. He might even be a little faster than Foster. Could be the steal of the draft. Blue was just one of many in a stacked backfield at LSU so his carries were limited. If he's fresh and determined to win a spot he could put some pressure on Foster.

[fragtasticator]

^^^^^^^^^^^^^This, so much this.

The boys down on Kirby are definitely planning on running Blue in tandem with Foster so as to reduce Foster's overall workload.

They tried it with Tate, but tate's style was so different, more of a ground and pound, that anytime the switched 'em out, they basically had to change their whole run game to be successful. That's tough on your O-line.

Being able to plug and play the two of them should go a long way towards making this season's run game that much better.

[oilfieldscum]

Yeah it was a good draft for the Texans....

The Houston Texans have now released three of their first five picks in the 2013 NFL draft, with all three players getting cut before ever playing a down for the team.

http://profootballtalk.nbcsports.com...artner=ya5nbcs

[jstone420]

That what happens when you have a rich owner that dont know football

[BigLouie]

Originally Posted by oilfieldscum

Yeah it was a good draft for the Texans....



http://profootballtalk.nbcsports.com...artner=ya5nbcs

Good teams are built with good mid-round picks, almost none of Rick Smith's picks have stuck which is why it is no surprise that the team has no depth.

[jstone420]

You right about depth they don't have enough at certain positions like OL, LB, CB

[boardman]

Now Nix is likely to go on the PUP list.

Clowney left practice early Saturday for an undisclosed injury. He did block a Shane Lechler punt though.

Foster and AJ both are having hamstring issues.

Can't these Hamstring issues be prevented with better warm ups and stretching?

BoB is using The Belichick model for talking about the injuries. We won't know anything real until Wed. before the first game when he has to give an official report. Even then it probably won't be that accurate.

[jstone420]

Damn man all these injuries they need to come to camp in better shape

[fragtasticator]

I must admit, I'm a little concerned about Nix and Clowney and Foster.

Foster, Clowney and Nix are all coming off surgeries and each one is playing at a position of need for this team.

Any time someone cuts you open with a knife to try and fix something, it counts as something to be concerned about, at least in my book.

Johnson? Not so much concern over him.

Hamstring issues happen every year, and on every team.

It seems that it's the nature of the beast: the average NFL player has to find 'explosion' off the line in order to be effective, and, as such, it means that the legs and lower back especially are going to be under stress. The older you get, the harder it is to find that 'explosion'.

It would be natural to focus on improving specific muscles to try and find more acceleration. However, some say that training those muscles in the wrong way (e.g weightlifting machines) can actually increase your chances of getting an injury because it isolates 1 or 2 muscle groups and strengthens them, without strengthening the supporting muscle groups around them.

The idea being that, when putting your body under high-intensity repetitive stresses, the muscles that end up giving out are the ones that were only peripherally strengthened, or were not strengthened at all, preventing them from performing up to the level of those muscles you did strengthen.

The Saints this year are incorporating some crossfit moves into their regime, and players are complaining because they find the regimen difficult - mind you, these are highly paid physical specimens saying this - which just goes to show, in my mind, that overspecialization in one area of fitness can leave you weak in others.

I can't help but wonder if cross fit is not the future for NFL players who wish to avoid injury - supposedly it works muscle groups by type of activity, and leads to less differentiation of muscle strength and more uniformity....something that should theoretically lead to less injuries.

Thoughts?

[jstone420]

Some of them guys are not in good shape. Foster been doing this shit since he got paid.