(old news, but a nice overview for fans who haven't kept up)

BT

Stevie Ray Vaughn - GAYEST Guitar Player EVER!

New-look Texans seeking new-look results

Posted 7/22/2006 3:39 PM ET

HOUSTON (AP) - A year after watching hopes for their first playoff
season dissolve into a two-win nightmare, the Houston Texans prepare for
training camp with new coach Gary Kubiak and much-debated top draft pick
Mario Williams.
They also have a new defensive scheme and a bevy of new faces. Despite
all the changes and apparent upgrades, questions abound about what to expect
when camp opens July 28 in Houston.

Kubiak, Denver's longtime offensive coordinator in his first season as
a head coach, faces the unenviable task of turning around a team that sunk
to the NFL's worst record and the poorest mark in the team's four-year
history last season.

He isn't the type to make predictions, but he does have a specific
goal for Houston.

"I don't put a number on anything. Our No. 1 goal is to become a
winner," Kubiak said. "It's been in existence for four years, it's never had
a winning season, and the first step is for this team to become competitive
week-in and week-out."

The Texans took what was widely considered a big gamble by passing on
Heisman Trophy winner Reggie Bush with the No. 1 pick in the draft in favor
of Williams, a hulking defensive end.

While risky, the choice does make sense. Houston has Domanick Davis,
who has 3,195 yards rushing in his three-year career and a new spring in his
step since he wasn't ousted from his job by Bush.

What they haven't had is a legitimate pass rush or a run defense.
Houston allowed 364 yards per game last season, including a league-worst
143.9 rushing.

Gone along with fired coach Dom Capers is his 3-4 defense as Houston
moves to the 4-3 this season, creating a need for true defensive ends. The
Texans hope the answer comes in the form of the 6-foot-7, 291-pound
Williams, who has been described as a disruptive pass rusher.

Houston also added Anthony Weaver, a defensive end who moved to tackle
with the arrival of Williams.

The Texans also targeted their linebacking corps by picking DeMeco
Ryans, the 2005 SEC defensive player of the year, with the first pick in the
second round.

The outside pressure for Williams to excel immediately doesn't bother
Kubiak.

"I know there's a lot of pressure coming from the fact that he's the
No. 1 pick, a lot of expectations, but the bottom line is we want Mario to
do his job," Kubiak said. "We want him to play his spot well, and if Mario
does that, he's going to make everybody better on our defense."

Kubiak thinks the attention defenses pay to Williams will make threats
out of players such as Antwan Peek, Jason Babin and Weaver.

While all eyes will be on Williams on defense, the pressure on offense
will fall squarely on the shoulders of last year's most-sacked man, David
Carr. A former No. 1 pick himself, Carr has yet to live up to lofty
expectations.

He had his best season in 2004, with 3,531 yards passing with 16
touchdowns, but regressed last season and often looked shell-shocked.

Yet the Texans expressed their faith in him by exercising an $8
million contract option that will keep him in Houston for three more
seasons. The decision likely had a lot to do with Kubiak, a former
quarterback who liked Carr from the start.

"He has all the physical tools that it takes to be successful in this
league," Kubiak said. "Does David have to play better than he played last
year? Of course he does. We all have to. But we expect a lot of him, and
we're going to try to build this football team around him and help him be
successful."

Kubiak, who backed up John Elway in Denver and later coached him, said
quarterbacks often "play their best football from year 5 to 11 or 12" -
exactly the phase of his career Carr is entering.

"I'm hoping his best is in front of him, and the sooner the better,"
Kubiak said.

Carr has already at work learning Kubiak's new offense, and top
receiver Andre Johnson will be joined by Eric Moulds, who was traded from
Buffalo.

After struggling through his worst season in 2005, Johnson has been
rejuvenated by the mere presence of Moulds. He is giddy over having a mentor
as well as another receiving threat, and hopes are high that their chemistry
will translate to on-field success.

Of course the key to all this will be Houston's ability to assemble an
effective offensive line.

It's unclear what combination of players the Texans will line up to
protect Carr, but the unit will be anchored by veteran Steve McKinney at
left guard. They added tackle Ephraim Salaam in free agency and gargantuan
tackles Eric Winston of Miami and Charles Spencer from Pittsburgh in the
third round of the draft. Winston is 6-7, 307, and Spencer is 6-5, 352.

The group could get a boost from the hiring of Mike Sherman, a
longtime offensive line coach who was fired as Green Bay's head coach after
last season. Sherman will be Kubiak's assistant head coach for offense.

"I think we'll be very good up front," Kubiak said. "The question is:
Which five guys is it going to be? Our competition in that position at
training camp will probably be about as fierce as any position that we
have."

The Texans won't have kick returner Jerome Mathis for camp or the
early part of the season as he recovers from a fracture in his foot. He is
tentatively scheduled to return in time for Week 6 at Dallas.

Copyright 2006 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This
material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.







Find this article at:

http://www.usatoday.com/sports/football/nfl/texans/2006-07-22-preview_x.htm

Archived from group: alt>sports>football>pro>houston-texans