MINNEAPOLIS (AP) -October is over. It’s time for the Houston Texans to hit the road.
Their revival last month was fueled by the suddenly unstoppable passing attack of wide receiver Andre Johnson and quarterback Matt Schaub. It was also aided in part by a disruption in the schedule.
The hurricane-related postponement of one September game gave them four straight in the familiar surroundings of Reliant Stadium, where they recovered from an 0-3 start and went 3-1. Their lone October loss was by four points to Indianapolis on the first weekend of the month – a game the Texans handed to the Colts in the final minutes.
The three-game winning streak, and a desire to their overcome those long-running struggles away from Houston, will be tested Sunday with a visit to equally hungry Minnesota. Since the franchise began in 2002, the Texans have never won four in a row in the same season.
“We can’t break our rhythm,” Schaub said.
ming off their bye and desperately need a November spark to protect their playoff aspirations and perhaps save the job of coach Brad Childress.
“I kind of got used to playing at home and having the fans supporting you,” said rookie left tackle Duane Brown, who must maintain his composure and listen as best he can for that snap count in the din of the Metrodome while preparing to block Minnesota defensive end Jared Allen.
“Back on the road against a very raucous crowd, it’s going to be tough for us,” Brown said. “We have great veterans on the team that have been there and done that. Communication is going to be key for us. … Just stick to what we’ve been doing these past few weeks and just try to keep the ball rolling.”
Winless, with an average of 33 points allowed over three games away from home this year, the Texans are 12-39 on the road in their brief history, compared to a 23-29 mark in Houston. Since the start of 2005, they’re just 4-23.
“It’s going to be loud. They’re a heck of a good defense up front. It’ll tell us a lot where we are,” right guard Mike Brisiel said. “We’ve been steadily improving, but we’ve had a little cushion here being at home for the past month.”
or fortuitous bounces – in their last game at Chicago.
Gus Frerotte, however, threw four interceptions. The special teams made two egregious mistakes that led to instant Bears touchdowns. The defense couldn’t make the stops it needed to. And the Vikings lost by seven.
“You’ve got to win,” Allen said. “We only get 16 of these. It’s not like baseball where you get 162 of them.”
After a tough September slate with trips to Green Bay and Tennessee, this was supposed to be the softer part of the schedule for Minnesota, which won five straight games last year in the second half. But with the way the Texans are playing, this doesn’t figure to be an easy way to get the record back to even. The Vikings next host the Packers and travel to Tampa Bay and Jacksonville.
“I would expect them to be better as we go,” Childress said. “As I mentioned before, it’s not stuff that isn’t correctible. You look at your flaws. You share them together. … The good teams get hot and play well as they finish through November and December. There is no reason to believe that we can’t continue on something like last year. But our whole focus has to be the Houston Texans. We can’t look beyond the horizon.”
Forgive Childress if he casts a gaze at the other sideline once or twice on Sunday.
s career, but he’s the fifth quarterback to start a game since Childress took over in 2006.
The Vikings were interested in Sage Rosenfels, Schaub’s backup, but they deemed Houston’s asking price too high. Though he faltered down the stretch in the loss to the Colts while Schaub was out sick, Rosenfels is one of the league’s best second-stringers.
“Sage is a very capable starter in this league, and we are very fortunate to have him,” Texans coach Gary Kubiak said. “It’s very rare that you have two guys in this league that you feel this way about.”
Johnson can become the first receiver in NFL history to get five straight games of 130 or more yards with such a feat on Sunday. The sixth-year player, who leads the league with 56 receptions and 772 yards, would also set an all-time record with his fourth straight performance of 10 or more catches.
Another explosive player of serious concern to Minnesota is punt returner Jacoby Jones, who took one back 73 yards for a touchdown last week. He’s scored twice this season. The Vikings’ punt coverage team has been vulnerable, allowing a pair of touchdowns to Reggie Bush in a win at New Orleans on Oct. 6.
“We’ve got a tough task on our hands,” defensive tackle Kevin Williams said. “We’ve got to get down to the basics and get after ’em.”
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