Many football fans have been asking this question since Week 2 when they fell to 0-2, but what in the hell happened to the Jacksonville Jaguars this season? This was a team that not only was supposed to push the Indianapolis Colts in the AFC South once again, but possibly compete for a Super Bowl, too.
For three quarters Monday night in Houston (a 30-17 Texans’ victory), they were absolutely unbearable to watch. They couldn’t run the ball (their staple over the years), their defense couldn’t stop Sage Rosenfels and rookie Steve Slaton, and David Garrard couldn’t even drop back to pass without having his center step on his feet and falling down.
The Jags are a perfect example of what happens when a good team (or any team for that matter) doesn’t have an offensive line. Their line has been riddled with injuries this season and everything has fallen apart. Last year the o-line was opening up MAC-truck-sized holes for Maurice Jones-Drew and Fred Taylor. This year you couldn’t fit mail between those slots.
Another piece of the puzzle missing this year is Mike Smith – the Jags’ former defensive coordinator who is now the head coach of the Atlanta Falcons. Many people noted that Smith essentially just ran Jack Del Rio’s defense over the years, but maybe “Smitty” had a bigger impact than people think because Jacksonville’s defense just isn’t the same nasty unit this year as they were in year’s past.
With all that, it’s still amazing how far they’ve fallen. Again, they were rough to watch last night and that was easily the worst Monday Night Football Game of the year. (Although Slaton was fun to watch and I think the Texans’ found a solid running back in last April’s draft.)
Sage Rosenfels needs to warm up that arm. According to Fox Sports’ Jay Glazer, Matt Schaub will miss at least a month with an injured knee.
Texans quarterback Matt Schaub has a torn MCL and will likely miss at least a month if the team decides not to place him on injured reserve, multiple sources told FOXSports.com.
Schaub had an MRI Monday morning that confirmed the severity of the injury. The injury was sustained on a hit by Vikings Pro Bowl defensive end Jared Allen in the Texans’ 28-21 loss to Minnesota.
Sage Rosenfels will take over as Houston’s starting QB.
Schaub was having a pretty decent season. In the four games prior to the team’s loss to the Vikings, Schaub threw for an average of 308 yards and 2.3 TD. He missed five games last season due to a shoulder injury, so now one has to wonder if he’s simply an injury-prone player.
Fantasy owners should make a move for Sage Rosenfels. Despite a horrid fourth quarter against the Colts in Week 5, Rosenfels has played pretty well over the past couple of seasons in Schaub’s absence. In the eight games over the last two seasons that he has attempted 20+ passes, Rosenfels has thrown for an average of 220 yards and 1.9 TD. Not bad for a waiver wire pickup.
Matt Schaub has had a rough two weeks. Not only did the Houston Texans’ starting quarterback miss last week’s loss to the Colts due to sickness, but he also had to endure watching his replacement, Sage Rosenfels, cough up a 17-point fourth quarter lead in the process.
Schaub returned to the starting lineup on Sunday against the Dolphins, but after throwing two interceptions on Houston’s first two possessions, Texans fans started shouting for the man who essentially cost their team the game last week.
Texans fans booed heartily after the first interception and some chanted “We want Sage” for backup Sage Rosenfels after the second. The few fans that were left for the winning score replaced those chants with roars of approval for Schaub.
Schaub eventually redeemed himself and got a measure of revenge when he scored the game-winning touchdown on a three-yard run with just three seconds remaining. The play gave the Texans a 29-28 win over the Dolphins, which is their first victory of the year.
Here are a few of my favorite photos from Week 5 action. You can see a full slideshow of larger versions on NFL.com.
I’m not a fan of Randy Moss, but the league is better off when he’s playing his best ball. After Matt Cassel’s first couple of starts, many were wondering if he had the arm strength to hit Moss with the deep ball. I like photos that capture more than just a single play. This one also answers a question that was plaguing the Patriots and their fans.
Houston head coach Gary Kubiak had to go with Sage Rosenfels Sunday against Indianapolis because his starter, Matt Schaub, was sick. And things didn’t look to bad for ol’ Sage and Texans as they amassed a 27-10 fourth quarter lead.
That is, until Rosenfels decided that the Houston fan base hasn’t suffered enough this year and started handing out turnovers like they were candy on Halloween.
Many football fans have been asking this question since Week 2 when they fell to 0-2, but what in the hell happened to the Jacksonville Jaguars this season? This was a team that not only was supposed to push the Indianapolis Colts in the AFC South once again, but possibly compete for a Super Bowl, too.
