2007 Houston Texans Preview

2007 Houston Texans preview from Maddux Sports. Don't miss out on a winning campaign. Purchase Expert NFL picks from our handicappers. Our information will help you beat the oddsmakers NFL odds this season.

Houston, Andre Johnson has a Problem
By Adam Barone

Andre Johnson had one of the best seasons in the entire NFL in 2006, somehow doing it facing a double team almost constantly. Unfortunately for Johnson, nothing has been done as of yet to make his job any easier. The leading candidate for the #2 receiver job is Kevin Walter, who averaged only 9.4 yards per reception on 17 catches for 0 TDs in '06. Needless to say, he'll not be double teamed.

Another possible problem for Johnson is who will be throwing him the ball. The Texans gave up on former #1 overall pick, QB David Carr this offseason and made a deal to get QB Matt Schaub from Atlanta. Schaub seemed to look like a quality quarterback whenever the Falcons would give him playing time. The problem is, most of his significant playing time has been in the preseason. Nevertheless, Schaub will be the starter, backed up by Sage Rosenfels and Bradlee Van Pelt, a pair of lifetime clipboard-holders.

Fortunately for Johnson and Schaub, the Texans have put together at least a serviceable backfield with depth to take some of the pressure off them. They added RB Ahman Green as a free agent from the Packers to go along with RB's Ron Dayne, Samkon Gado and Wally Lundy. These four will likely be leaned on as the basis for Houston's offense. All four are capable of catching the ball out of the backfield, especially the speedier pair of Green and Lundy, who caught 46 and 33 balls respectively out of the backfield a year ago. Dayne and Gado are downhill runners and will be a nice change of pace. Gado played in 8 games with the Packers in 2006 as a relatively unknown and was picked up in a trade with the intent that he would compliment Lundy's speed. He had what could be considered a successful first NFL season and, with so little experience in the pros, he could only be scratching the surface of his ability. Ron Dayne powered his way to 5 TD's in '06 and will likely see most of the short yardage opportunities. Green will be the “every down” back, but don't be surprised to see multiple halfback sets with more than one of these four in on a play at once. Also, even though there is only one football to go around, expect the Texans to spread the ball to their four runners to draw attention away from Andre Johnson and make Matt Schaub's transition to a starter as smooth as possible.

On defense the Texans used their first round pick to select 19 year old DT Amobi Okoye out of Louisville. At only 19 years old, Okoye still has some developing to do, but the Texans are all but praying that he draws double teams away from DE Mario Williams so that Williams can become the superstar they hoped he'd be when they selected him #1 overall in the 2006 draft. With only 4.5 sacks last year, Williams was a disappointment to say the least, but he still has plenty of time to develop. The Texans are weak at safety, though they selected some young, raw talent to help their defensive backfield in the draft. The one bright spot on a defense that ranked 24th overall in yards per game allowed last season, 22nd against the pass and 20th against the run, was MLB DeMeco Ryans. The Texans' second round pick in 2006, Ryans showed his potential faster than anyone could have predicted. He racked up 155 tackles with almost no one drawing any attention or any blockers away from him at all. Be on the lookout for Ryans to have another fantastic season in 2007.

2007 Houston Texans Predictions

Sports handicapping can be a tough job, especially with the NFL being so unpredictable and with divisions like the AFC South being so mediocre aside from the Colts. The inconsistencies of the Texans, Titans and Jaguars as well as the Colts' defense will make the common sports betting junkie crazy. Watch for signs of Matt Schaub getting the hang of being a starter, as well as for someone to emerge to take attention from Andre Johnson. This may not be another receiver, as TE Owen Daniels is extremely athletic and talented and could become a very dependable option for Schaub now that he'll have the full time job.

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