| Texans won't underestimate winless Lions |
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HOUSTON (AP) -The Houston Texans know they can't underestimate the winless Detroit Lions on Sunday. They were in a very similar situation last week sitting at 0-4, but convinced they'd get that elusive first win after losing a game they probably should have won. The Texans followed an embarrassing fourth-quarter collapse in a 31-27 loss to the Colts by beating Miami 29-28 on a last-second touchdown by Matt Schaub. The Lions remain without a win after a questionable pass interference call led to a winning field goal in a 12-10 loss to Minnesota. ``We've been in their position. We understand how they're going to come out and fight to get that first win,'' said Texans linebacker DeMeco Ryans. ``We're not going to take them lightly at all.'' The Lions insist they're still focused on trying to turn things around this year, despite this week's trade of star receiver Roy Williams for first-, third- and sixth-round draft picks in 2009. ons coach Rod Marinelli said. ``There's no doubt about it - and we helped ourselves in the future. I'm really excited about the focus of this team right now and as we prepare to go play this team.'' Detroit will also be without quarterback Jon Kitna for the rest of the year after he was placed on injured reserve with back problems. Dan Orlovsky will likely get his second NFL start against Houston after throwing for 150 yards and one touchdown against the Vikings. ``He's a good, young player,'' Marinelli said. ``He had a solid outing. He didn't turn it over, but we've got to clean some things up with him. He really likes football, and he's around it and he's been preparing now for quite a while, for four years to get this opportunity.'' They still have at least one offensive weapon left in Calvin Johnson, who has 377 yards receiving with three touchdowns. Texans cornerback Dunta Robinson, likely to play Sunday after sitting out almost a year with injuries, figures they'll have their hands full dealing with him. ``I'm so glad to see Roy in a different jersey,'' Robinson said. ``I was like, 'Man, if I play this week, I've got two great receivers to face.' This isn't the type of atmosphere that you want to face coming off of a knee injury. But, we've still got one (great) receiver to deal with. It's going to make our job tough.'' it's job tough on Sunday. The sixth-year player is coming off a career-high 178-yard game, his third straight 100-yard performance. His work helped the Texans gain a franchise-best 485 total yards last week against the Dolphins. The Texans' offense has been potent and Houston's 362.6 yards a game are fifth most in the NFL. Moving the ball hasn't been a problem for Schaub and the Texans; holding on to it is another story. Houston is tied with three other teams for most interceptions in the league with eight and they've fumbled 10 times this season. Schaub said limiting their turnovers is a focus this week, saying it's of the ``utmost importance.'' ``When we give it over and give them extra possessions it increases their opportunity to score,'' he said. ``We just have to be very aware of what we're doing in our game plan and not try to force things. That's the only way we can improve upon it.'' The Texans hope Schaub's confidence got a boost by overcoming two early interceptions to win last week. ``It's always good for any player to make those plays or do something like that,'' coach Gary Kubiak said. ``But that's part of being a quarterback and Matt's going through the hard part of becoming an NFL starter for a long, long time. He's just got to weather the storm, and the way he works and the guys playing behind him like they did last week, he will.'' d running day against the Lions. Rookie Steve Slaton and Ahman Green have been splitting time the last two games to help the Texans up their average to 114 yards a game. The Lions have the NFL's 31st-ranked run defense and are allowing 171 yards a game. Despite that statistic, Marinelli is excited about Detroit's progress in that area. The Lions allowed 318 yards rushing in Week 1, but held the Vikings to 135 last week. ``It is (exciting) because to have a chance to win in this league you have to stop the run,'' he said. ``You have to. And then we need to hang our hat on something. Like I've been saying, we have to do something right and then it adds to your pressure and then it's tackling in the open field. Now we've not been great in open-field tackling and one got away from us last week, but that part's getting better.'' |
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