Now We Remember the Titans

It’s been a while, but now we can start to remember that really good Titans team from last year that went 13-3 and was the #1 seed in the AFC before dropping 7 straight games. That losing all seems like a distant memory now as the Titans have been rejuvenated with maligned quarterback Vince Young reinserted into the starting lineup. It has become obvious to everyone now that coach Jeff Fisher made a mistake by waiting six horrendous losses before deciding (okay, he was forced by bird-flipping owner Bud Adams) to reinstall Young as his quarterback. Ever since the former first-rounder has taken over, the Titans look like their old selves, running the ball extremely effectively and making timely plays in the passing game. For the Texans, this was the second game this year that was billed as the biggest game in franchise history, and in both games they fought hard, but their kicker was unable to convert a game-tying field goal and they were forced to walk away losers. Maybe the next time they have a big game everyone should act like it doesn’t matter and maybe they’ll find a way to pull it out. This was a tough loss for them as it drops them to 5-5 and puts the m behind the eight-ball in the wild card race when they could have took an important step towards their first playoff berth in franchise history. So after a pretty entertaining game, this is what caught my eye.

1. Gary Kubiak needs to be more aggressive. Kubiak has been second-guessed all day for his play calling on the final drive of the game, before setting up what turned out to be a missed field goal by Kris Brown. The game management and play calling was perfectly fine until they crossed midfield. They should have used their second timeout a little bit earlier than they did, but even with that minor misstep, they still had a third down opportunity with :08 seconds to go in the game and instead of trying a short pass or even a legitimate running play to get a little bit closer for Brown, instead Kubiak opted to have Matt Schaub dive to the ground in the middle of the field to give Brown an optimum angle. The question I have is when does angle overrule distance? I’m pretty sure Brown would have preferred a 40-yarder from the hashmark than a 49-yarder from dead-center. I know it would be a death knell to take a sack or throw an interception in that situation, but it’s not like Schaub is a rookie. He’s a veteran who should be able to recognize if a receiver is covered or be able to feel the pressure and avoid the sack. He had a triple-digit rating and no interceptions in the game. TRUST your quarterback.

2. Andre Johnson let me down. And it’s not just because I needed him to have a huge game for me to make the playoffs in one of my fantasy leagues (even though that did play a part). Everyone knows that he is one of the best receivers in the game, but he came up very small last night. He put up some decent numbers, 4/78/1, but he dropped at least four ball that skipped right off his hands, and at least three of them would have been for first downs, keeping drives alive. He dropped a crucial pass on the final drive that would have put the Texans in a little better field goal position. Johnson has been doing his thing in obscurity for years now, but if he wants to become a household name he has to perform when the lights are the brightest and in one of the rare prime-time games for the Texans, he let his quarterback, his team, the audience, and especially me, down. It’s a shame too, because the world deserved to see this guy at his best because he is exceptionally phenomenal and in my opinion the hands-down, best receiver in the game.