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The Houston Texans raised some eyebrows when they let Mario Williams leave in free agency, but believe it or not, it made sense.
Surely the Jets aren’t thrilled with the Texans’ decision. Now that he’s with Buffalo, they will have to face the talented defensive end twice a year.
But Houston needed to move on. He’s just not a great fit for Wade Phillips’ 3-4 defense. He’s too big to play outside linebacker, and he would be miserable at 3-4 end, doing the dirty work.
And honestly, after Williams tore his pectoral muscle In Week Five last year and was put on IR, the Texans defense didn’t miss a beat.
One outside linebacker, Connor Barwin, finished with 11.5 sacks. Rookie second-round pick Brooks Reed had six sacks on the other side.
These two guys both have great motors, and to borrow a favorite expression of Rex, “they play with their hair on fire.”
And in the 2012 draft, they added college football’s leader sacker, Illinois’ Whitney Mercilus, who had 16 sacks last season. This Barwin, Reed, Mercilus troika at outside linebacker should make the Texans a pass-rushing force.
And helping these guys get single-blocks is a heck of a defensive line, led by 2011 first round pick J.J. Watt, another cat with an amazing motor. Watt, nose tackle Shaun Cody and end Antonio Smith, form one of the better 3-4 lines in football.
A potential fourth round steal, Nebraska’s Jared Crick, is another guy with a phenomenal motor, who already has excellent technique.
Inside they have a solid pair with Bergen County’s Brian Cushing and Darryl Sharpton (yes, he is related to Al).
When the Jets played the Texans in 2010, they took advantage of a very bad secondary.
Well, times have changed.
The signing of former Cincinnati Bengals first round pick, cornerback Jonathan Joseph, last summer, was a great move for the Texans. Joseph lived up to his $8 million a year contract, and gave the Texans the #1 corner they had been lacking for several years.
It also allowed Houston to move Kareem Jackson to the #2 corner spot, a position he’s better suited for. He’s not a #1 corner.
Another key free agent signing last year for the secondary was safety Danieal Manning. That isn’t a spelling error. That is how he spells his first name. A 2006 second round pick of the Bears, Manning is a safety that runs like a corner. He ran 4.46 coming out of Abilene Christian.
This defense is loaded, and let’s not forget the most important addition in 2011, defensive coordinator Phillips. He might not be a great head coach, but he’s a heck of a defensive coach. He did a wonderful job last year, even with no off-season to install his playbook. So the Texans’ defense should be even better in 2012, with an whole off-season of work with Phillips.
Mark Sanchez is going to face quite a defensive challenge in this game.
GM Rick Smith has done a nice job of stacking this team with talent, and received a much-deserved contract extension this off-season.
The Texans should be a very good team this year, and could run away with the AFC South.
It wouldn’t be shocking if the Jets are underdogs, at home, in Week Five.
July 12, 2012
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