Ian Allan
The Houston Texans would like to get their running game going. They’ve ranked outside the top 20 in rushing in each of Gary Kubiak’s two seasons in charge.
They’ve got a hodge-podge collection of guys at tailback – Ahman Green is getting old, Chris Taylor and Darius Walker are youngsters who weren’t even drafted, and Chris Brown didn’t do much in his final years at Tennessee. They drafted Steve Slaton late in the third round, but with his limited size, he’s more of a third-down guy. Hard to get excited about any of those guys.
But there is some potential here. The team has brought in Alex Gibbs, the offensive line guru who helped lay the foundation for Denver’s great running attacks from 1995 to 2003. Nobody knows more about zone-blocking schemes.
And looking at the numbers, Houston’s running game isn’t as bad as you might think. In each of the last two years, the Texans have been a lot better at running the ball late in the year.
HOUSTON TEXANS RUSHING PRODUCTION
2006 First Eight Games
87 yards per game (28th)
3 TDs (3rd-worst, tie)
2006 Last Eight Games
123 yards per game (15th)
10 TDs (5th, tie)
2007 First Eight Games
81 yards per game (29th)
3 TDs (5th-worst, tie)
2007 Last Eight Games
118 yards per game (14th)
9 TDs (4th, tie)
It would seem, in other words, that if the Texans can make the correct revisions and improvements, it’s possible they’ll rank above-average in rushing. Being in a tough division will hurt; nobody in the AFC South had a losing record last year. But it’s at least possible that one of Houston’s running backs will wind up being a nice fantasy value.
—Ian Allan
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