Owen Daniels

NFL Free Agency 2013: Assessing The Texans' Damage

"Wheels up! GM Rick Smith is on his way to pick up free agent S Ed Reed in #Texans chairman & CEO Bob McNair's private jet!" -- @HoustonTexans, Thursday morning The Texans' Twitter proclamation about Rick Smith's early morning travel schedule on Thursday served a dual purpose, providing a symbolic ... More >>

Is Gary Kubiak Going To Be The Next Norv Turner?

Despite what you heard, the Houston Texans will be playing football on Sunday. Not all of them, maybe. But nine of the guys will suit up and take the field for the AFC in the Pro Bowl. Sure it's not the Super Bowl, but who really cares about the Super Bowl, right? The Texans ended the season on a d ... More >>

Grading the Texans Season: The Good, The Bad and The Seriously Ugly

Ultimately, the 2012-13 Houston Texans season will go down as a disappointment. An impressive 11-1 start gave way to a 1-3 finish, loss of home field advantage and second straight one win and out in the playoffs. Still, there were some bright spots for the team and some of the individual players thi ... More >>

Good, Not Great: Why Texans Need A Daryl Morey Approach To QB Position

If good is the enemy of great, the Texans are in a lot of trouble as they map out a plan to break through their second-round ceiling. Owner Bob McNair and head coach Gary Kubiak are publically saying the happy, feel-good things. "We're very close," McNair said after the loss in New England, while K ... More >>

Patriots 41, Texans 28: Offense Turns Offensive On Big Stage. Again.

Ignore the main box score numbers. Forget the 425 total yards for Houston and the 28 points. Same for the 41 placed in the New England column. In the big picture, it's more of the same. Gary Kubiak, Matt Schaub and the Houston offense shoulder the majority of blame in yet another crucial game, this ... More >>

Texans-Patriots, The Rematch: Top 5 Ways For This Outcome To Be Different

We know, we know. The last time these two teams met, the Patriots slaughtered the Texans along the same lines of what Alabama did to Notre Dame earlier this week. That doesn't mean it will automatically happen again. Even in New England. Want evidence? It doesn't take going back very far. In Decem ... More >>

Texans-Patriots: PLAYOFF BATTLE-DRINK Bingo Drinking Game Card, "Schaub's Revenge"

As all of you Battle-Drinkers know, the Battle-Drink Bingo Drinking Game board this season has consisted of several potential in-game events tied to (obviously) the Texans and whoever their opponent is that particular week. The pattern on the board can best be described as "organized randomness," wi ... More >>

8 Texans Named To The Pro Bowl, Most In The AFC

There was a time (largely, 2002 through around 2008) when the night the Pro Bowl rosters were revealed was a complete non-event for Texans fans. Well, times have changed, and Wednesday the Texans AFC best 12-3 record was mirrored by having an AFC best eight players (six offense, two defense) named t ... More >>

Texans 43, Ravens 13: Adjustments Spark Beatdown of Long-Time Nemesis; Five Reasons Why

Check out our slideshow of the Texans beating the Ravens for the first time in franchise history. The final score doesn't come close to showing it, but there were tense moments Sunday. Three early possessions resulted in three Houston punts, with only a single first down to show for it. Receivers ... More >>

Texans 38, Titans 14: After Early Scare, Houston Finally Proves It Can Handle Success

One week after exorcising their Peyton Manning demons, the Texans found themselves squarely in the crosshairs of another familiar enemy: complacency. In 2011, a 3-1 start turned sour with a demoralizing loss to Oakland in Reliant Stadium. Likewise, a home disappointment against Carolina ensued afte ... More >>

Texans 31, Broncos 25: At Long Last, Houston Has Its 3-0 Start (Four Reasons Why)

Borrowing a famous analogy from Wade Phillips's father, Bum, the Texans have knocked and beaten on the door of the NFL's elite for three straight Septembers. In 2010, a 2-0 start came crashing down in an embarrassing home loss to Dallas. In 2011, they nearly improved to 3-0 before the defense unrav ... More >>

The 2012 Season Preview: The Texans Will Be Super If...

Two days are left. After eight long months away, that's all that remains before the most anticipated season in Houston football history finally kicks off. Even the 1993 Oilers, whose brilliant 11-game win streak ended with a home loss to Joe Montana's Chiefs in the divisional round of the playoffs, ... More >>

2012: Year of the Texans

Assessing all their strengths and weaknesses, we could be looking at a repeat or better.

Saints 34, Texans 27: Five Things We Learned

In name, Saturday did represent the clichéd dress rehearsal for the Texans. In practicality, it was only the case on one side of the ball. With the defense missing Shaun Cody, J.J. Watt and Brian Cushing, there isn't that much use to reading fortunes on that side of the ball. The Saints are an eli ... More >>

Houston Texans Knock Out 2013 Shopping Early, Lock Up Duane Brown (6 Yrs, $53.4M)

"Wanna again thank the @HoustonTexans front office and staff for believing in my ability and extending this contract." -- Texans left tackle Duane Brown (@DuaneBrown76 on Twitter), 8/16/12 Left tackle, pass rusher, quarterback. Not only are they the most pivotal positions on the football field (al ... More >>

Texans Draft Recap: Six Things We Learned

Few things are sillier in sports analysis than "draft grades" given before players have taken their first steps onto a professional field. Texan fans know this quite well, considering the abundance of Fs given to them by analysts in 2006 for having the gall to choose Mario Williams over the anointe ... More >>

A Look Ahead To Texan Free Agency, And Why It Won't Involve Peyton Manning

It was less than a month ago when I believed the Texans would consider making a play for quarterback Peyton Manning. But on the verge of the NFL's free-agent signing bonanza on Tuesday, it looks as though any Texans' changes will be on a smaller scale -- and rightfully so. It seems clear the Texan ... More >>

Justice Served, Arian Foster Gets Paid (5 Years, $43.5 million)

The details have not yet surfaced on everything the Texans have done behind the scenes in the way of reworking other players' deals in order to get Arian Foster signed to a new contract extension. We don't know what the Texans' next moves entail and just how much, if at all, the magnitude of Foster' ... More >>

Texans 20, Bengals 19: Historic Season Doesn't Have To Stop With Division Title

Photo by Marco TorresSign of the times​The popular opinion of the 2011 Houston Texans has been that while they were an inspiring story, injuries would prevent them from being a true Super Bowl contender. After Sunday, consider the latest in a long line of Texan myths officially debunked. Whe ... More >>

Texans/Falcons -- 5 Things to Watch

The NFL playoffs, hopefully brought to you by T.J. Yates.​Over the last two seasons, Texan fans have been conditioned to spend the first half of the season basking in a decent start (5-3 and 4-2 the last two years, respectively) and then spend the remainder of the season waiting for a safe to ... More >>

Texans/Titans -- 4 Winners, 4 Losers (Including Tim Tebow)

Arian Foster's not dead yet.​It's amazing how quickly things can change. Sometimes, it takes a matter of a few weeks, like with the Kansas City Chiefs. After being outscored 89-10 the first two weeks of the season, the Chiefs were left for dead, Todd Haley was the chalk for every "first coac ... More >>

Raiders 25, Texans 20: One Step Forward, One Step Back

Be sure to check out the rest of our pics from Sunday's game. When one step forward is immediately followed by one step back, perpetual mediocrity is the usual result. It has defined the Gary Kubiak era of Houston Texans football, and it reared its ugly head again on Sunday. Yes, the Texans (3-2) ... More >>

Houston Texans Game 5 -- 4 Winners, 4 Losers (This Doesn't Go Well For Jacoby Jones)

Be sure to check out the rest of our pics from Sunday's game. As we were driving slowly down Murworth to park in the Teal Lot before the Texans game on Sunday, my girlfriend Amy and I noticed a father with two boys (presumably his sons) around the ages of nine or ten stopped on the sidewalk having ... More >>

My Trump Card To The Texans' NFL Draft Propaganda

With first pick of draft, Texans choose...David Carr!!! Da!!!​Let me first say that I really like the Houston Texans' public relations staff. The group that we, the media, interact with on a frequent basis (and during the season, on practically a daily basis) are some of the best at what they ... More >>

Texans 35, Chiefs 31: Johnson Returns To Form, And So Does The Offense. But...

Winning a squeaker​With Andre Johnson's ankle seemingly healthy again, the Texans' offense on Sunday silenced concerns about its ability to remain among the NFL's elite.That might mean something if head coach Gary Kubiak and defensive coordinator Frank Bush can find a way for their defense to not ... More >>

Giants 34, Texans 10: Another Tough Defense, Another Breakdown For The Houston Offense

Texans: Let's not get physical​We knew the Texans' young defense could have games like this. A second disastrous performance in five outings for the supposedly-elite Houston offense, however, is incredibly concerning.The numbers are baffling. 195 total yards. 1.6 yards per rush with what had been ... More >>

Randy Moss Gets Traded For Magic Beans

Randy Moss trades Brady for Favre​"I'm still in awe that I'm a part of this organization. I think that he's the kind of coach that can motivate me. He has a proven track record." -- Randy Moss on Bill Belichick the day he was acquired by the Patriots in 2007 Randy Moss and the Patriots were the ... More >>

Game Time: Andre Johnson -- Houston Texan For Life

Andre Johnson, demonstrating why he's not a baseball player​Andre Johnson held out for the first three days of organized team activities this past spring, ostensibly to send a message to the Texans that he wanted to be paid in accordance with what he has become -- the best wide receiver in the Nat ... More >>

Houston Texans: Crank Up The Chronicle's Propaganda Machine

Will that "H" be replaced with an "N"?​Training camp opens for the Houston Texans on Friday. And as hard as it is to believe, the Houston Chronicle is high on the team's chances to make the playoffs.NFL "expert" John McClain says the Texans will be a contender for a wild card spot. As McClain ... More >>

Game Time: Sure I'll Grade The Texans' Draft, Just As Soon As I'm Done Tweeting With Peter King

Tweet this: The Texans are stone junkies for tight ends.​I admit I'm a total mark for Twitter. I'm not one of those people who has to tweet every little thing that happens throughout the day (unless there is some semblance of comedic value, and then I become to Twitter what Travis Henry becomes to ... More >>

Game Time: Texans Sign DeMeco Ryans, Their Dwight Shrute

​When a big sports news story breaks, my tendency is to spend about eight seconds internalizing it and wondering what it means to the subject of said news and what it means to me as a fan. From second number nine forward it's time to figure out other angles the news puts into play, what other pe ... More >>

25 Texans Highlights Of The Decade

​As we come up on the end of the decade, I thought I would look back at some of the city's professional sports franchises and throw out some of their highlight moments. I figured I would start with the Houston Texans.1. February 18, 2002: The team's very first draft choice was in the expansion dra ... More >>

Colts 35, Texans 27: At Least You Saw This One Coming

​The most alarming aspect in the latest installment of Texans collapses wasn't the game itself. Rather, what's most frightening is just how customary this has become under the leadership of head coach Gary Kubiak.In this week's edition, the lion's share of blame goes to quarterback Matt Schaub and ... More >>

Game Time: Kick In The Junk...Wide Left

​I woke up Sunday morning thinking that things had to get better. After a week that started off with a right cross from Kobe, a left hook from the Yankees, and a sucker punch in the junk from Notre Dame, I thought surely these events were just karmic balance for what was going to be the biggest w ... More >>

Game Time: Inside The Mind Of The Houston Texans Fan

​Pretty much every social instinct I employ comes from George Costanza of Seinfeld fame.  (... and yes, the fact that it's been 11-plus years since the Seinfeld finale means I officially have to remind people who George Costanza was.)*"Whatever your instincts tell you to do, do the opposite." ... More >>

Remembering Steve McNair, Once An Oiler

Steve McNair was going to be the next savior of the Houston Oilers. Bud Adams decided he didn't want to stick around in Houston, however, and McNair ended up becoming the first savior of the Tennessee Titans. Nicknamed "Air Mcnair," he was the Oilers' number-one pick in the 1995 draft who came f ... More >>

Tuesday Morning Quarterbacking: Texans Settle Into Mediocrity

Okay, so the Texans beat the Chicago Bears on Sunday to finish their second straight season at 8-8. That's two seasons in a row of mediocrity. Can I have a YAY TEAM! Over at the Chron, Richard Justice thinks the team is heading in the right direction and has turned the corner. He likes how G ... More >>

Tuesday Morning Quarterbacking: Texans Settle Into Mediocrity

Okay, so the Texans beat the Chicago Bears on Sunday to finish their second straight season at 8-8. That's two seasons in a row of mediocrity. Can I have a YAY TEAM! Over at the Chron, Richard Justice thinks the team is heading in the right direction and has turned the corner. He likes how G ... More >>

Texans Better Watch Out for Purple Jesus

Texans-Jaguars: The Moral of the Tale