Results tagged “mariowilliams>”

Two Houston Texans and greater Houston-area athlete Shane Lechler were named to the 2009 Pro Bowl roster this afternoon.

What a way to start the season, a 38-17 beat down by the Pittsburgh Steelers. On the opening drive, Coach Gary Kubiak elected to go for a fourth and one in Steelers territory and after an official review, the Texans were short and the game was never the same for the Houston team.

The Texans 2008 training camp is just around the corner. Saturday, July 26, to be exact. And there is one thing that puzzles Houstonist. Why hold training camp in Houston? What's the benefit of that? Their fan base is here. It's not going anywhere anytime soon. It's time for Bob McNair to pack the Texans and put them on the move.

As the Texans 2007 campaign draws to a close on Sunday against the Jaguars, putting a bow on top of the most improved season in franchise history, we can look back at the highlights and lowlights.

This weekend, there's a movie coming out called Charlie Wilson's War; the eponymous Wilson was a congressman from Lufkin (actual motto: You'll Love Lufkin!) who funneled arms and money to the Afghan rebels fighting against the USSR in the waning years of the Cold War. Wilson took up the fight because the Afghans were underdogs and when they were pissed, they'd hurt the Commies in ways that red-blooded Americans of the time only wished they could. The Texans are underdogs this week against the mighty Colts, and they've got a very large pissed off man who just got snubbed for the Pro Bowl on their side. Evil Empire, meet your mujahideen.

Al-Star games are a funny thing. Just like presidential elections, they're largely popularity contests based on name recognition and TV friendliness rather than real hard data. But that doesn't mean that good decisions aren't made from time to time; that the Texans' DeMeco Ryans will be the starting middle linebacker for the AFC in the 2008 Pro Bowl is one of those good decisions.

It was weird. Sunday rolled around, and there wasn't a Texans game to watch. So we just chilled and ignored the TV for a change; what else were we going to do? Watch the Cowboys' game? What are we, Jessica Simpson? Between the Astros trades, the Texans resurgence, and the Mitchell Report, there was a lot to blog about this week. Everyone grab your number 2 pencil for the review:

For everyone from the suckers who went to the sports bars because they thought the game was only on the NFL Network, to the lucky souls who knew that the game was on Channel 20, the confused folks who mistook the Texans red-on-red uniforms for a horrible laundry error, and to Channel 20 itself (which no doubt got their highest ratings since they ceased to be a UPN affiliate), the Texans thumping of the Broncos was a triumph in whatever context you found it.

The Texans pleasantly surprised us yesterday. Here we were all ready for another defeat, and suddenly Sage "Best Backup QB In The League" Rosenfels makes us feel all better. The picture that accompanies the top link today captures the feelings of many Texans fans today, we'd imagine. But there's more than just football going on this time of year; read on and see! - The lovely and talented Stephanie Stradley at AOL Fanhouse has a...

Somewhere, in the sea of hype surrounding Reggie Bush and Vince Young, Mario Williams has emerged as the strongest impact-player in the first round of the 2006 NFL Draft. Sure, Vince had a Pro Bowl appearance his first year, Reggie has the endorsements, and Joseph Addai and Laurence Moroney are key components of already-strong teams, but Super Mario has delivered on the promise that made Charley Casserly risk his job to pick him first overall....

Not that this performance will get him the kind of endorsement dollars that Reggie Bush has gotten since they both came into the league last year, but Mario Williams just plain clowned Bush yesterday. Super Mario had six tackles including four of The Greatest Running Back Ever himself. Reggie's stat line for the game: 34 yards rushing on 15 carries, and 2 fumbles. Take that, draft pundits. Of course, the real big story from the...

When a bye week is one of the highlights of your team's football season simply because no one got hurt, you know that the rest of the season won't be much to write home about. Given that this is exactly the position that Texans fans find themselves in, it's at least comforting that they're coming out of the bye week to face a team almost as disappointing as the Texans. After an inspiring 2006...

With half of its Opening Day offense totting clipboards on the sidelines, and its defensive leader headed to the hospital with a busted hamstring, the Texans might have been justified in being pessimistic. Fortunately, for a team that's already been through more injuries than a Very Special Episode of ER, Sage Rosenfels and Ron Dayne wouldn't let them lose hope, allowing the Texans to escape Oakland with a 24-17 win. After starting hot in the...

In case you weren't familiar, there's a large university in Austin, with orange and white for their colors, and a big, drugged cow for a mascot. You may have also heard that their football team is usually pretty good, and that a couple years ago, they actually won a national championship in football. Their quarterback that year kinda flew under the radar, so you may not have heard about him, either: regardless, he was...

The Texans travel to Jacksonville this weekend to face the resurgent Jaguars in a battle to see who will stand out as the more improved AFC team. The Texans got the season off to a hot start, but injuries and tough opponents bring them to this weekend with a 3-2 record. However, with the immenent return of Ahman Green and Jacoby Jones, the sporadically brilliant offense will get a much-needed upgradein the offensive options department....

It's time to dredge through the muck and mire of the blogosphere to come out with a few gems of commentary, sass, and sarcasm about our Houston sports teams. And awaaaaaay we go: - If you're a Mario Williams apologist, Sunday was Redemption Day. The good folks at Brahsome are shouting it from the rooftops today. - As noted last week, the miscreants over at Orange Whoopass are all over the Astros search for a...

Well, that was pleasant. The Texans started off the 2007 season with a bang, whipping the Chiefs 20-3 at Reliant Stadium yesterday. The defense in particular was the difference maker, forcing four turnovers, whileholding the strong Chiefs running game to just 72 yards in the game. (Which surely does not bode well if you have Larry Johnson on your fantasy football team) Mario Williams emerged, nay, exploded into the new season as the ferocious face...

Thursday night saw the Texans fall in their final preseason warm up against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, 31-24. The defense was harried, but the much-maligned Mario Williams turned in a good performance, with 3 unassisted tackles and a sack. (Which, for you stat-heads, was one more sack than either Vince Young or Reggie Bush recorded last week. So there.) The first-string only saw limited playing time as head coach Gary Kubiak made evaluations leading up...

Jacoby Jones is still running. The Texans 3rd round draft pick out of of Division 2 Lane College continues to be the highlight maker for the team this preseason. On Saturday against the Arizona Cardinals in Phoenix, Jones ran back a punt return 80 yards and showed off some ankle-shattering moves in the process. Could Jones be this year's Devin Hester? Too soon to tell, but he could be a Sportscenter staple at this rate....

Houston's hometown hero (and shoulda,woulda, coulda been Texan) Vince Young popped up on the NFL wire for being caught in an altercation during yesterday's training camp practice. The build up to the showdown occurred at Baptist Sports Park in Nashville, TN when S Donnie Nickey knocked down WR Joel Filani after the wideout ran the wrong route. Trainers were forced to assist Filani, and on the subsequent play Nickey threw WR Courtney Roby to...

Football is back! Those may be the three sweetest words to every sports fan's ears. NFL teams around the nation are huddling up for training camp this month in preparation for the 2007 season. In our very own backyard the Houston Texans kicked things off by having rookies report to the Methodist Training Center on July 22, quickly followed by veterans on July 29. The Houstonist will be keeping you informed as to the goings-on...

Good morning, Houston. If you spend your days worried that an asteroid will slam into Earth, killing us all, this probably won't do much to ease your mind: NASA says it can identify all the asteroids that could hit the Earth, but it's not sure it has the money to do so. The agency estimates it would cost $1 billion to find at least 90 percent of the 20,000 potentially hazardous asteroids and comets...

NFL Countdown's Michael Irvin and Tom Jackson. Sherlock Holmes and Professor Moriarty. G.I. Joe and Cobra. Terrell Owens and reality. What do the Texans and Cowboys have in common with these famous duos? They're all mortal enemies (though we're not entirely sure if Owens and reality have met) and will do anything to achieve victory. This weekend's game versus the Cowboys is a continuation of the battle for the hearts and minds of Texas fans,...

If we told you that the Texans would win a nail-biter over the Dolphins 17-15, would sack Dolphins QB Daunte Culpepper 5 times, and Mario Williams would get 1.5 of those 5 sacks, would that be something you might be interested in? Well, if the crowd at Reliant Stadium is any indication, Houston Texans fans' interest is at an all-time high. With the win over the Dolphins, the Texans get their first taste of victory...

By waiting an extra day to recap the Texans' 31-15 loss to the Redskins, it was our hope that we could write a thoughtful and vitriolic-free analysis. Unfortunately, after sifting through the wreckage, it appears that our optimism has taken a turn for the worse. The current state of the Texans is not a pretty sight. The once promising stable of running backs has been reduced to a game of musical chairs. Our quarterback, while...

The NFL apparently came to the conclusion that some of us had nothing better to do then watch a glut of preseason games. Well, they were right, at least in our case. So for those of you out and about on Saturday night, perhaps at your favorite watering hole or at the Texans game with the Chiefs, here are completely random thoughts on last weekend’s games. Houston 24, Kansas City 14 At times the Texans...

In less than three days, Texans’ training camp practice begins. If this were just the first look at a total regime change, or the beginning of fan deliberations on the Mario Williams pick, this would be huge news. But with the Astros seemingly counting on their tradition of second-half surges and the Rockets still looking to be a black hole of age and injury, these Texans are the biggest hope in town. And since this...

He may be under as much pressure as any rookie in the history of professional sports, but at least Mario Williams has figured out how to settle in proper in Houston. As previously reported by Houstonist, he first plunged himself into local lore by purchasing Priscilla Slade's mega-house. And now, according to a cover story in the 7/17 issue of ESPN The Magazine, he's already figured out all that this fair city has to offer...

So a couple of weeks ago, when we heard that ex-TSU President Priscilla Slade's Memorial Park-area manse had been sold, there was one thought foremost in our mind: "God, we hope someone famous bought it." And we're not disappointed: The new owner of 203 Terrace Drive is none other than Mario Williams, the Texans' controversial No. 1 draft pick. Williams bought the 6,000-square-foot house for $1.5 million, short of Slade's asking price of $1.8 million....

Anyone wondering how recent NFL draft picks Mario Williams and Reggie Bush have been spending their free time? Well apparently they've been busy slipping into skintight TechFit PowerWeb Apparel as part of Adidas' new Thrill or Destroy campaign. The marketing gurus at Adidas, keeping busy after making the not-so-loved World Cup Ball, have decided that all football players fall into two categories: "Ultimate Thrill Player" or "Consummate Destroy Player" symbolized by Bush and Williams....