Enjoying your Monday morning coffee IV? Good! Let’s get you some NFL news to peruse!

The Madden Curse … errr… Cover

Those interested still have a couple of days to vote in the semi-final round of the Madden Cover vote. This year has an old school vs. new school vibe to it. In the semi-final round it’s Barry Sanders vs. Jerry Rice and Arian Foster vs. Adrian Peterson.

The semi-final round lasts until April 17. The cover will be chose after the final round vote which takes place from April 17-24.

If you are wanting to vote, go to this website and vote away!

Harrison to the Bengals? 

The Cincinnati Bengals have desired a veteran outside linebacker and it appears they are trying to get that as they hashing out a deal with former Pittsburgh Steelers linebacker James Harrison.

Both sides will reportedly return to the table today to get the deal complete.

You’re Going To Do What With Sanchez?

According to NFL.com, reports state the New York Jets are in talks to move Mark Sanchez along with Darrelle Revis.

Oh little kitty. I agree.

Per NFL.com, ProFootballTalk.com reported Friday that discussions between the Jets and the Tampa Bay Bucs have included chatter of the Bucs “assuming the contract” of quarterback Mark Sanchez, who’s set to make a guaranteed $8.25 million in 2013.

Two sources told NFL.com’s Ian Rapoport on Friday that it’s highly unlikely to happen. USA Today’s Mike Garafolo doesn’t dispute the Jets inquired, but he reported there’s “no shot” the Bucs would take on Sanchez.

I agree that is highly unlikely. While it would be an excellent way for the Jets to get some cap space room, the Bucs have a pretty decent little quarterback in Josh Freeman. They don’t need this young man, who has a good head on his shoulders, getting around the drama that is Mark Sanchez… then again, maybe getting away from New York will allow Mark to be less dramatic?

Who knows… but this is more than likely one of those rumored deals that meant to get the fans and media types talking and scratching their heads. Nothing serious. Had they said Tim Tebow rather than Sanchez, I may have believed it and so would you fair reader!

Webb to become receiver for Vikes

The Minnesota Vikings will move Joe Webb to receiver and better utilize his athleticism. ”(Webb) is such a talented athlete that we want to make sure that we’re doing the right thing by him and our team, as well,” coach Leslie Frazier told The Star Tribune.

The move became necessary after the Vikings acquired Matt Cassell to back-up quarterback Christian Ponder.

Now for some Fun! 

You must check out my friend, @gr33nazn‘s , newest project …   sportsballsreplacedwithtebow at Tumblr! It’s amazing. Here’s one of my favorites from the site! Remember Tecmo Bowl?

Enjoy your Monday!!

Okay, it wasn’t really a complete flouncing. I just like that word.

It certainly wasn’t the 42-12 loss the Texans suffered at Gillette Stadium last month, but still, the 41-28 loss this Sunday was more than enough to knock the Texans out of the playoffs.

Quarterback-wise however, Patriots QB Tom Brady definitely flounced Texans QB Matt Schaub. Brady was 25 of 40 for 344 yards and three touchdowns. This was Brady’s 17th postseason win, making him the NFL’s winningest quarterback in postseason play. Schaub was 34 of 51 for 343 yards, 2 touchdowns, an interception, and a fumble.

While Schaub may not have been ready for primetime, Arian Foster dominated on offense for the Texans, carrying  for 90 yards, receiving for 63 more, and scoring two touchdowns. The Texans also shined on the return game and held the Patriots to just a four-point lead at halftime. But the Patriots dominated coming back out of the locker room, scoring a touchdown on the opening possession of the third quarter. It was all the Texans could do after that just to keep up with Brady.

The Patriots did suffer a loss when TE Rob Gronkowski re-broke his arm in the first quarter. But the team that has Tom Brady also has depth, and seldom-used runningback Shane Vereen rushed for 41 yards and scored thrice. Yep, that’s three times! Wes Welker also came up big for the Patriots with 131 yards receiving.

New England goes on to face the Baltimore Ravens in the AFC Championship game. These two teams squared off in the same championship last year, with the Ravens losing 23-20. Baltimore is fresh off a double-OT win against the Broncos this week, so we can expect minimal flouncing and maximum competition in the game next Sunday.

The Houston Texans got their game to overtime and once again, won. The Texans won their first ever Thanksgiving Day game over the Detroit Lions 34-31.

Shayne Graham makes a 32-yard field goal. (Screen Cap)

Texans Kicker Shayne Graham knocked down a 32-yard field goal to win the game with 2:21 left in OT.

The Texans were also the beneficiaries of a controversial action by Detroit Lions Head Coach Jim Schwartz. According to NFL.com:

Schwartz threw a challenge flag when Houston’s Justin Forsett scored on an 81-yard touchdown run in the third quarter. Replays showed Forsett was down near midfield, but Schwartz negated the automatic review by challenging the play and was called for unsportsmanlike conduct.

Something tells me a call like this won’t happen again!

Matthew Schaub was 29 of 48 passing for 315 yards and a touchdown. The TD pass was caught by Owen Daniels. Daniels had four receptions for 20 yards. Arian Foster carried the ball 20 times for 102 yards and two touchdowns. Forsett had the one controversial TD run, and also had five carries for 87 yards.

Shayne Graham made a 45 yard field goal during the third quarter.

The win moved the Texans to 10-1. Next up will be the Tennessee Titans in Nashville on Dec. 2.

Follow Miranda on Twitter, @missmiranda. 

Houston Texans thumping of the Baltimore Ravens was such a laugher that even first-round draft pick Whitney Mercilus made a play.

Johnanthan Joseph celebrates after his interception and 52-yard return for a touchdown gave the Houston Texans a 16-3 lead over the Baltimore Ravens. (yahoo.sports.com)

The 43-13 wrecking ball to the already crumbling Ravens was the perfect response for a Texans team coming off two consecutive subpar showings in prime time and returned them to the deep and dominant group they had displayed through the season’s first five games.

Depth and dominance was definitely on display throughout this one as the Texans improved to an AFC-best 6-1.

• Matt Schaub passed for 256 yards and two touchdowns leading an offense that compiled 420 yards, 27 first downs and had more than 38 minutes of possession time.
• Arian Foster rushed for 98 yards and two touchdowns and led a ground game that gained 181 yards and averaged 4.9 yards over 37 carries.
• Andre Johnson, Owen Daniels and Kevin Walter combined for 20 catches, 219 yards and two touchdowns for an offense that averaged 5.5 yards per play.
• Johnathan Joseph returned an interception for a first quarter touchdown, one of two Houston picks of Ravens quarterback Joe Flacco.
• Connor Barwin sacked Flacco for a safety in the first quarter, one of four Texans sacks.
• The Houston defense smothered the Baltimore offense, holding the Ravens to a season-low 176 yards, 3.0 yards per play, 12 first downs and 21.:44 of possession time.
• Versatile and dangerous Ray Rice was held to an impact-less 42 yards on nine carries and 12 yards on five receptions.
• Antonio Smith had two sacks and Mercilus, the project pass rusher from Illinois, recorded just his third tackle and first sack despite being active in all seven games.

This one got out of hand early.

Justin Tucker kicked a 51-yard field goal to give the Ra » Continue reading “Texans Take Wrecking Ball to Crumbling Ravens”

In four games rolling under the public radar, the Houston Texans looked like the most complete team in the NFL. In two games under the lights of prime time, the Houston Texans have looked like, well, the Houston Texans.

An injured Brain Cushing (in cap) and members of the Houston Texans defense look on during the Green Bay Packers 42-24 rout Sunday night at Reliant Stadum. (beaumontenterprise.com)

Following a Monday Night Football struggle to beat the New York Jets, the Texans on NBC’s Sunday Night Football were thoroughly whooped by the depleted but desperate Green Bay Packers, 42-24, before the largest regular season crowd ever at Houston’s Reliant Stadium.

“We got our tails kicked,” is how Texans head coach Gary Kubiak put it.

While history will tell us that Aaron Rodgers threw six touchdown passes in knocking Houston from the unbeaten, it is quickly becoming obvious that it is not the 2011 NFL MVP who will be remembered as the player who knocked the Texans from superior to mediocre.

That infamous distinction belongs to Jets guard Matt Slausen, whose controversial second quarter cut block of Texans linebacker Brian Cushing cost Houston more than its 2011 defensive MVP and leader. Slausen’s blindside helmet to Cushing’s left knee cost the Texans their swag.

None of the Texans appeared to address the absence of Cushing after this one. Packers head coach Mike McCarthy, in saying it did not affect his game planing, summed up the impact those in the Houston locker room could not or would not bring themselves to admit:

“He’s an outstanding player,” McCarthy said. “I mean, clearly he’s probably the most productive player on a very good defense coming into the game.”

The most productive player on Sunday night was Rodgers, who started fast, throwing scoring passes to James Jones and Jordy Nelson for a 14-0 first-quarter lead that knocked Houston off balance and began the process of forcing the Texans away from the ball-control attack that serves them best. » Continue reading “Packers Hand Houston Texas-sized Whoopin’”

Three weeks before Halloween but that didn’t stop Gary Kubiak and Rex Ryan from pulling from their respective bags of tricks.

We saw end-arounds, throw-back screens, misdirection, runs from punt formation, onside kicks and, of all things, Tim Tebow behind center.

But when it came to deciding Monday night’s meeting between Kubiak’s Houston Texans and Ryan’s New York Jets, old fashion football ultimately prevailed.

Arian Foster rushed for 152 yards and a touchdown as the Houston Texans beat the New York Jets and improved to 5-0. (rantsports.com)

Arian Foster rushed for 152 yards, Shayne Graham kicked three field goals and the Texans defense held off Mark Sanchez and the Jets, 23-17, Monday Night in East Rutherford, N.J.

Texans’ defensive lineman J.J. Watt deflected three passes, one that led to an interception that killed a first-half Jets scoring opportunity, and he had a sack that took them out of another chance in the second half. Kareem Jackson had a fourth-quarter interception that all but ended the Jets’ hopes of an upset.

Foster, who carried 29 times and averaged 5.2 yards per rush, scored on a 13-yard run with 11:11 left in the first half giving the Texans a 14-7 lead they struggled to pad but would not relinquish in joining Atlanta as the league’s only 5-0 teams.

Matt Schaub completed 14 of 28 passes for 209 yards and one touchdown for Houston, which was hardly the dominant team it had been in winning its first four games convincingly.

In addition, the Texans may have lost star linebacker Brian Cushing, who is scheduled to undergo an MRI on Tuesday, according to reports. Cushing was cut by Jets guard Matt Slauson and injured his left knee early in the second quarter. He would walk off the field but he did not return to the game.

For the Jets (2-3), Tebow rushed 5 times for 19 yards, converted a first down on a 3-yard run out of punt formation, and threw one pass, which appeared to be dropped. » Continue reading “Texans still perfect after surviving Jets”

The awesome show that is the Houston Texans went to 4-0 after beating the Tennessee Titans 38-14 on Sunday in an AFC South Division clash at Houston’s Reliant Stadium.

And they did it with a half a dozen of their usual supporting players taking center stage.

Danieal Manning returned an interceptions 55 yards for a touchdown in the Houston Texans’ 38-14 victory over the Tennessee Titans. (blog.chron.com)

Safety Danieal Manning and cornerback Kareem Jackson returned interceptions for touchdowns, fullback James Casey and tight end Owen Daniels caught scoring passes, and defensive lineman Antonio Smith and safety Glover Quin had key sacks as the Texans continued to be one of only three remaining undefeated teams.

Of course, Houston’s marquee stars had their usual impact while sharing the stage.

• Quarterback Matt Schaub completed 20 of 28 passes for 202 yards with TD passes of 11 yards to Casey and 28 yards to Daniels.
• Arian Foster carried 24 times for 86 yards and a touchdown on a 4-yard run for a 14-0 lead in the first quarter.
• Defensive end J.J. Watt created his usual chaos with four solo tackles, two sacks, three tackles for loss and a fumble recovery.

Titans starting quarterback Jake Locker had only attempted two passes when Quin blitzed, sacking the Titans’ second-year quarterback out of the game with a left shoulder injury. Veteran Matt Hasselbeck took over and completed 17 of 25 passes for 193 yards with 2 TDs and the two passes that Manning and Jackson took back.

It was a 14-7 game after Hasselbeck connected with Craig Stevens on a 19-yard scoring play midway through the second quarter. It stayed that way into the third quarter until Manning changed the game.

He picked off a Hasselbeck pass and wound his way around Titans 55 yards for a 21-7 lead with 9:21 left in the quarter.

The Texans forced a punt and Schaub engineered a 7-play, 75-yard drive culminating in his scoring pass to Daniels and a 28-7 lead.

Smith then sacked Hasselbeck, forcing a fumble that Watt recovered. That led to a 33-yard Shayne Graham field goal and a 31-7 lead with 5:42 left in the quarter.

Five plays later, it was Jackson’s turn, snatching a pass intended for Damian Williams and racing 63 yards for a 38-7 lead.

Tennessee (1-3) actually outgained the Houston, 325-297, and had one more first down. But those are very hollow statistics considering that 79 yards and five first downs came after Jackson’s touchdown as Hasselbeck put together a meaningless 10-play drive for a Kendall Wright TD catch with less than a minute on the clock.

Oh, and not to be forgotten, there was a Chris Johnson sighting. The one-time 2,000-yard rusher, who had more or less disappeared after signing a big contract, more than tripled his season output with 141 yards on 25 carries for the Titans.

With the first quarter of the 2012 season complete, we know that the Houston Texans are as complete and deep a football team as exists in the NFL.

Follow on Twitter @JD_Parenti.

The schedule falls beautifully for the Arizona Cardinals and Houston Texans to remain undefeated following Sunday’s games.

Both 3-0 teams face home games against less-than-daunting opponents.

Darnell Dockett and the Arizona Cardinals, play host to the Miami Dolphins, are one of three teams looking to start the season 4-0. (revengeofthebirds.com)

The Texans play host to the Tennessee Titans (1-2) at Reliant Stadium as part of the NFL’s seven-game early slate. The Cardinals play host to the Miami Dolphins  (1-2) at University of Phoenix Stadium in Glendale as part of a five-game afternoon/evening slate.

By the time the New York Giants (2-1) and Philadelphia Eagles (2-1) hit the field for Sunday’s night game, there should be three 4-0 teams (figuring the Atlanta Falcons (3-0), also playing at home, beat the Carolina Panthers (1-2) in an early game).

Of course, we all know that what makes perfect sense on paper, more often than not is absolutely meaningless in reality. Like, say, the Vikings dominating the 49ers, or similar craziness.

The Cardinals are certainly vulnerable against a mercurial Miami team that looked weak in losing on the road at Houston, strong in winning at home against a weary Oakland bunch coming off a late Monday night game, and then a little bit of both last week before falling apart in the fourth quarter and overtime in losing to the Jets.

The Dolphins are statistically one of the league’s better offensive teams in yards (369.3), time of possession (31:10) and rushing (175.7). Defensively, they give up 373.7 yards and 22.0 points per game but are stout against the run (66.3).

The Cardinals, while fielding one of the league’s more impressive defenses through the first three weeks (holding opponents to 316.0 yards and 13.3 points), also roll out one of the league’s least productive offenses, ranking near the bottom in yards(262.3), passing (181.0) and rushing (81.3). » Continue reading “Cardinals, Texans Poised To Remain Perfect”

Houston Texans quarterback Matt Schaub unleashes a pass during Sunday’s 31-25 victory over the Denver Broncos. (mail.com)

The Houston Texans are one of three remaining undefeated teams in the NFL after Sunday’s 31-25 victory over Peyton Manning and the Denver Broncos.

The Texans led 31-11 after three quarters and then withstood a 14-point Manning rally to win.

Matt Schaub completed 17 of 30 passes for 290 yards and threw touchdown passes of 60 yards to Andre Johnson, 3 yards to Arian Foster, 52 yards to Kevin Walter, and 14 yards to Owen Daniels. He also withstood a nasty blow from Denver linebacker Joe Mays that ripped off his helmet and a piece of his ear.

“I told Matt five times today, ‘he’s the man.’ ” left tackle Duane Brown told reporters. “I’ve been telling people for a long time that he’s an elite quarterback and we have to put him up there with the best in the league and he showed it today. He stood in the pocket, took some brutal shots and never blinked. He put up big numbers against a pretty good secondary.”

Foster gained 105 yards on 25 carries as the Texans piled up 436 yards of offense.

Schaub’s pass to Daniels made it 31-11 with 1:33 left in the third quarter. The Texans defense snuffed out the Broncos on their next possession and appeared poised to pound Foster and Ben Tate and grind out the clock. But Tate fumbled, Denver recovered and on the first snap, Manning connected with Brandon Stokely running down the middle of the field for 38 yards and a touchdown.  Just like that, the home crowd began sense something special was possible. » Continue reading “Texans Survive Peyton Test, Beat Broncos, 31-25″

Arian Foster

Arian Foster rushed for 110 yards and a touchdown and the Houston Texans’ thoroughly dominated AFC South rival Jacksonville Jaguars in a 27-7 victory on Sunday.

Houston (2-0) ran 83 plays, gained 411 yards, had 28 first downs and had the ball for 43 minutes, 17 seconds. The Texans defense imited Jacksonville (0-2) to franchise-low 117 yards on 38 plays.

Ben Tate added 74 yards and two touchdowns as the Texans compiled 216 yards and 16 first downs on the ground.

Matt Schaub completed 26 of 35 passes for 195 yards and Shayne Graham kicked two field goals for the Texans.

Blaine Gabbert completed 7 of 16 passes for 53 yards and a touchdown. He was sacked three times and left the game with a leg injury early in the fourth quarter. Chad Henne replaced Gabbert and completed both of his pass attempts.

Defensive end J.J. Watt had his second consecutive dominating performance with 1.5 sacks. a fumble recovery and two more batted passes.