Yee Hah!
1. HOUSTON TEXANS 2-0
WK 1 W v. Indianapolis 34-24, WK 2 W at Washington 30-27
Offense Rank 1st, Defense Rank 31st
It's been a very successful two weeks for the darlings of the Fantasy Football Era. The Texans are an interesting test case of a team that all the Fantasy guys, which is pretty much anyone who is a football fan these days, already knows about, because their strength is their offensive skill position players. The catch is that anything that's not an offensive skill position hasn't really been up to snuff, as evidenced by their 31st ranked defense. Both the Colts and Redskins torched them for 400+ passing yards, and it's hard to really take them seriously as a Super Bowl contender until they fix that. One thing they have fixed is their running game. Arian Foster has been a revelation, averaging over 5 yards per carry. A good running game can eat time off the clock and make a shaky defense better, as can getting Brian Cushing back from suspension soon. I'm not saying the Texans aren't a very good team, because they are, but they've got get better on defense or else it will be a quick exit from their first postseason tournament.
Big Brother Is Watching You
2. INDIANAPOLIS COLTS 1-1
WK 1 L at Houston 24-34, WK W v. NY Giants 38-14
Offense Rank 2nd, Defense Rank 14th
After the Colts did the unthinkable and lost to the Houston Texans in Week 1, there predictably was lots of "Is this the end of the Colts dynasty dur dee dur dee dur", then, just as predictably, the next week they went out and blew the doors off of what should be a pretty decent Giants team, emphatically answering the question of whether this is the end of the Colts dynasty. This Colts team is no different than any of the Colts teams we've seen since Jim Mora left after bleating "PLAYOFFS!!?!?!". They still have a spectacular passing offense, two top shelf pass rushers coming off each end, and an Achilles heel of a bad run defense (257 rushing yards surrendered against Houston) made worse by the fact Bob Sanders is hurt (like always). This is the same Colts team we all know, and will probably be until Peyton Manning retires. Now, is that still good enough to win a division where it looks like the Houston Texans have made a leap forward? We'll see.
At Least I'm Not Matt Leinart, or Reggie Bush..
3. TENNESSEE TITANS 1-1
WK 1 W v. Oakland 38-13, WK 2 L v. Pittsburgh 11-19
Offense Rank 22nd, Defense Rank 1st
Conversely to the Colts, you have the Titans. The Colts have ruled this division for centuries, in large part because they have achieved a level of consistency unlike any other in the league. The Titans, on the other hand, in Week 1 they blow out a Raiders team that supposedly is better this year than usual, then the next week they lose at home to a Steeler team playing a shopping cart at quarterback, and bench Vince Young in the process. Now we're back to annual benching and unbenching of Vince Young that usually ends in him either attempting suicide or leading the Titans on a nine game winning streak.
Maybe two years ago benching Vince was a viable option, but it isn't anymore. Kerry Collins is not going to be the Titans QB the next time they reach the Super Bowl, so unless Jeff Fisher thinks this is for Vince's own good to have him ride the bench, I don't see the point in doing this anymore. They've either got to resign themselves with taking the good with the bad with Vince Young (much like the Eagles did for a looong time with Donovan McNabb), or cut bait with him Matt Leinart style and move on. This jerking him in and out of the lineup has to stop.
Here Comes an Interception!
4. JACKSONVILLE JAGUARS
WK 1 W v. Denver 24-17, WK 2 L at San Diego 13-38
Offense Rank 14th, Defense Rank 29th
In an opening day win against a respectable Broncos team, Dave Garrard threw 3 TDs and no picks, then last week in a blowout loss to the Chargers, he threw 1 TD and 4 picks. So it would appear that there is some sort of correlation between the Jaguars chances of winning and their quarterback's not throwing interceptions all over the place. On the other hand, Maurice Jones Drew looks like he's running with his eyes closed again, as he sometimes done. He's averaging under 4 yards a carry an hasn't scored a TD yet, and I know nobody measures this but he has to be approaching an NFL record for carries of 2 yards or less in a career. I dunno, the Jaguars are just this funny little team with two toned helmets the color my old 1995 Dodge Avenger, who play in front of Major League Soccer sized crowds on the dark side of the moon, and have 1 player anyone cares about. They are as close to invisible as any NFL team has been in a long time.
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