The Josh Innes Show - Texans Are Hopeless

Episode Date: December 26, 2024

The Texans got pulverized by the Ravens and have given fans zero reason to believe they can compete in the post season. If the Steelers and Texans play at NRG, the Steelers have to feel pretty good. They suck, but NRG is the easiest road stadium to play. There are no positive vibes around the Texans. This is a lost season. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

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So the Christmas football action was extremely boring. First game was at least kind of interesting for a while, but what we're realizing here is that there are two teams that are going to face each other in the playoffs, both of whom are pretty much worthless and have zero chance of winning the Super Bowl. And they're more than likely going to meet up with each other in the first round. Texans, Steelers. Steelers have lost three in a row and have done it pretty impressively, considering that their games are pretty competitive. And then in the second half, they just end up getting walloped. George Pickens was back for Pittsburgh yesterday, but was quitting on plays.

And as a total nutcase again, they've fallen off a cliff. And they're donezo, obviously. They're not going to win that division. It's now going to be the Ravens division. So they're going to be the wild card. More than likely, well, I say more than likely than likely guess they're going to catch a break but they're more than likely going to be the five seed and they're more than likely going to face the Texans I don't know if two teams on two equally shitty paths could run into each other in the postseason but here we are

now as we discussed the other day losing would have been beneficial to the Texans in that losing means that more than likely you'd be in that matchup with the Steelers and you'd rather face the Steelers than face the Ravens. Well, that was revealed yesterday because the Ravens came into NRG and just 100% pecker slapped the Texans. Texans looked JV out there yesterday it was unwatchable garbage and that's the point in the season we're in for the Texans it's amazing how this thing has turned the way it's turned because even early on when they were playing not so great but they were like five and one and like you're like they're still pretty good and this is nice now it's being revealed that they're just not a good football team they stink and they might have their moments and the defense might have a couple of moments

here and there and maybe cj will make a big throw i think cj is still a talented guy but he's broken he's donezo the offense looks shot they look terrible and now you're not even getting those big explosives like i guess early in the season the saving grace was you were still getting those big deep balls to stretch the field a little bit you know and you're like okay this is fine we can live with this uh but now you're not even getting that obviously tank is out obviously the offensive line is abysmal we've talked about that that's been the case they've completely gotten to a point now where they ignore Joe Mixon. It's like he's just a decoy at this point, but no one's biting on it because they never

give it to him enough to even get into that position. So Mixon, who was outstanding early, has been essentially a non-factor for many of these games. CJ looks shook. Just everything about the defense is not strong at this point they're getting their asses worked too I mean look I get that it's two-time MVP Lamar Jackson but he's out there just schooling your asses and that was just dreadful and I have zero hope for them going into the postseason I think most people feel the same way I think the buzz

and the goodwill and the vibes that were created last year when this team came out of nowhere and shocked everybody and won a playoff game. I think all of that has subsided now. I think all of the goodwill, all of the vibes and positivity, Dunzo finished kaput. Now, like, CJ is... No one's saying CJ sucks and no one's saying D'Amico's on the hot seat or anything like that. But if you watch what we watched yesterday, basically, we went into that two-game stretch. We went into Kansas City and Baltimore and said, here's what we want to see. We want to see that you can go toe-to-toe with these guys and give us belief, make us believe that you can go out and actually compete with these guys. And if you face them in the playoffs, you might have a shot to beat them. What actually happened is you got schooled by

these two teams. You got pecker slapped by these two teams, particularly against Baltimore. And Baltimore is not even the best team in the AFC. Kansas City's probably the best team in the NFL. And you just got worked by a team that's not as good as that team. You got embarrassed at your place Christmas Day with still a lot to prove. Now, the argument could be made that the game didn't matter because you already know your destiny anyway. That's true. But if you viewed it that way, then don't play your quarterback. Don't play your stars. Play the scrubs like you did at the end of the game and go about your day.

That would be the play. You obviously went into that game wanting to win. You went into that game hoping to win. You went into that game thinking that this could be a get-right moment for us where it builds some momentum. You go into that. You somehow beat the Ravens you just sit everybody in that game against the Titans and you feel good about yourself instead you may have to play your dudes against the Titans if for no other reason you got to get your boy right because Stroud ain't right that dude misses so

many throws open throws just misses dudes like he looks. He like the last month or so, really, it's been the last couple of months. He just doesn't look like that dude that we were watching last year. Like even when he is doing confident things, when he's doing like his pose after a big play, like, like it feels forced. It almost feels like he's doing that because he thinks he needs to do it. It doesn't feel natural and organic like he knows he's the shit everything about it is just like it's unwatchable and i have no belief in them whatsoever i don't think anybody has any belief in the texans right now nor should you and there's nothing they can do to change that these two weeks we're going to change that and These two weeks, we're going to change that. And all it's done, instead of boosting the belief that they have a shot,

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Bonus award. It is non-withdrawable Pick 6 credits that expire in 14 days. Limited time offer. See terms at pick6.draftkings.com slash promos. Yeah, I mean, this two weeks was going to be kind of a barometer. You're facing the two best teams in the AFC. By the way, you've beaten Buffalo already. So, again, that seems like ages ago, but you've done that.

So you've proven you can beat a good team. Now now would they beat Buffalo the way Buffalo is playing right now the way they're playing now hell no they'd probably have a game like this 31 to 2 which by the way isn't it weird that 31 to 2 actually feels worse than 31 nothing like 31 nothing would be like okay fine but maybe it's because 31 to 2 is such a random score it's only happened like three times ever I think the last time was in the 60s or something like that I think 31 to 2 is so kind of random and obscure and it it almost it highlights even more that you sucked offensively like the zero you know you sucked but then you see the two and you're like hell your defense even scored two points and your offense didn't it's pathetic but you had this

opportunity for two weeks to go toe-to-toe with two of the best teams in football and at least show that you belong and at least show that you can uh put on a good show for people and give us reason to believe. Ain't nobody believing in this shit right now. It's Dunzo. And the other interesting factor in all this is you look at where you are record wise. If you don't win this next week, which you should, you could, you can, although you've lost to this team before. And who knows if you're going to play CJ this weekend. I don't know what you're going to do.

It doesn't matter. You can't move up. So you're done. But if you lose, you finish nine and eight, you're worse than you were a year ago in a year with great expectations in an abysmal division where there's a good possibility. You're the only team that finishes over 500 and you've got ugly losses to some of the teams in that division this there is no other way to look at the Texans season other than a failure unless they get into the playoffs and win two games or something which they ain't gonna do like a month ago a week ago I would have even told you 10 days ago I would have said told you. Ten days ago, I would have said, I still believe this team can go into a playoff game and beat somebody they're not supposed to because of CJ. I believe it could happen. I don't feel that way anymore.

Not after 31-2, not after getting worked by Kansas City. I feel zero positive vibes about the Texans right now. And I don't know anybody who does. I don't know anybody who should like Jilly is the biggest Texans fan. She loves getting hyped up for playoff games. We've gone to multiple Texans games this year. We went to Indianapolis. We saw the Colts twice. So I'm in Indianapolis and we saw him in Houston jacked up, ready to go. And it sucks because I remember a year ago when we're getting ready for the first round playoff game, we made a road trip to go buy some shiner light blondes over in Illinois drove like two hours to go buy some Texas beer it's snowing here we're geared up we're ready to go let's go fucking

Texans it was it felt new and great again to have them winning this year it's kind of like I don't even want to watch like it's it's tough. Their games are so bad and the offense is so anemic that I'll just sit there on my phone the whole time looking at other shit. I have no desire to watch. I feel about the Texans the way I feel about other random football games in which I have no rooting interest. Many football games that I don't have any interest in, I'll just sit there and scroll on my phone and kind of pay attention to the game in the background. That's what the Texans games look like to me now. And I hate that. I hate that there's going to be a playoff game and it's going to be in Houston. And I don't give a shit because I don't believe

in the team playing. I hate that. And I know the rest of you hate that too. There's just no good vibe. And the team is the reason. Like I got a message from spank it slap it who I guess was at the game and um and he's a guy that's listened to the pod forever and we love him and I was kind of ripping the crowd at the game early like well I mean they're not even into it and he's like no the crowd's there they're into it the team's just giving them no reason now I don't necessarily believe that totally because I've been to games there and I went to a game there this year and it was a great game and the fans were leaving with five minutes to go in the game, one possession. So look, Texans fans are uninterested in the Texans. Here's reality about the Texans and really about sports in Houston in general.

If you're not really, really fucking good and entertaining, the interest level is very, very low. And that even goes for baseball. Like I understand the baseball team has been so good for damn near a decade that you don't experience this. I think the baseball team is about to hit a point, not where the whole city tunes out and there's 13,000 people at the games. But I think the days of the Astros being this hot shit thing that the whole world's into, let the first round playoff series be an indicator. Those two games they played against Detroit, the vibes were totally dead. The stadium was totally dead. And within 48 hours, 27 hours, the playoff run was over and people were checked out. And I think that's what you're going to be running into now with baseball. And I think the same thing is going to happen here. Obviously it's happening right now

with the Texans. The Texans are just a little distraction they don't possess the passion of the fan base because the passion of the fan base is determined by whether or not they think the team is actually fucking good or not like that's how Houston is whether you like it or not Houston's a city where you have to be really really good to get everybody invested you'll have your diehards no matter what the sport is but to have the whole city locked in invested and interested you got to give them reason to believe that you could actually win the whole fucking thing the astros have given you reason to believe they can win the whole fucking thing because they've done it twice and they've been

there two other times so like you believe they can after last year you believed the texans could be legit what we've seen this year is that last year until proven otherwise last year was a total fucking fluke this year has been a regression there's no other way to spin it this is a total regression from what we saw last year from the quarterback on down to virtually everyone it has been a monster regression for this organization for D'Amico Ryans for for the play callers. It's been just a downturn. That is where we are right now, in downturn. And I don't know how you remedy this. At this point, there is no remedy. There's no way anybody listening to this podcast that roots for

the Texans believes they're going to go into a playoff game against anyone and win. The positive you have is that the Steelers have been dog shit for the last three weeks no offense Ross they've been dog shit for the last three weeks so you believe that you can at least go in at home win a game against them because you don't buy their offense either because Pickens is pouting they're turning the ball over more Rusty's looking like Rusty before so you think you got a shot there but if you said josh who do you think is going to win that game today would it be the steelers or the texans ain't no way in hell i'm picking the texans there's zombies right now there is zero vibes zero good vibes so at this moment fuck no

i don't believe they're winning that game and if you go nine and eight like i guess best case scenario is they go ten and seven which would be kind of a flukish 10-7 at that point because you're winning the last game of the regular season, which means absolutely nothing. But let's say they go 10-7 and you can spin it as, hey, they didn't get worse. They lose this week. They go 9-8, then they lose in the first round of the playoffs. Fuck, dude.

And then you watch around the league. You look at the Chiefss and the whole world wants to tell you that the Chiefs ain't good but then here they are 15 and 1 having the best season the Chiefs have ever had it's funny to me how we talk about teams that are involved in one loss games it's almost like we give more credit to the team that loses the big number of one loss games or one I say one possession games not one loss games one possession games or one, I say one possession games, not one loss games, one possession games or one score games. We give more credit to teams who lose one score games than teams who win the one score games. And by that, I mean, like you look at a team a couple of years ago or like a team this year, like the Bengals are a good example. The Bengals lose a

ton of one score games. And we look at them and we're like, God, if they could have just won a couple of those, they're in the playoffs and they're a fucking scary team. Nobody wants to play the Bengals. And that can be true. I would agree with that. If they would have won a couple more, I mean, their games were gut punch, dick punch, heartbreak games.

Had they won those games and were in the playoffs right now, they would beat a bunch of teams because I think they're really fucking good. They just didn't do it. But it's almost like we use the one-score thing with the Chiefs as a way to knock the Chiefs down so we look at the Bengals and we go oh look the Bengals have lost x number of one score games boy they should have won those and they'd be right there the Chiefs we look at them and say those sons of bitches should have lost all these one score games and they actually fucking suck we're

not giving them credit for winning them now part of it is they've caught some massive breaks in those games. But on the other hand, you look at the, I mean, you couldn't find two teams more polar opposite in their luck than the Bengals and the Chiefs. The Bengals, I mean, the way they lost their games are unreal. They've gotten blown out a couple times. But, again, that game in week, the game where the chiefs uh it got the pass interference call that looked like it was bullshit uh bad snaps on field goals in overtime just

shit like that that will absolutely rip your fucking heart out but when we look at the bangles we give them a compliment for losing those games yet we don't seem to give the chiefs the compliment for winning the close games mostly because we hate the Chiefs but here they are might finish 16 and 1 on the year how many teams have won 16 regular season games ever I believe it's still two right is it the the Dolphins uh the 72 Dolphins and the uh 16 and 0 Patriots again there's one extra game. But still, not too many teams all time have won 16 regular season games, and the Chiefs are on the verge of doing that.

And all we do is shit on the Chiefs for how they've gotten there. When they get in, Patrick Mahomes is going to beat Lamar Jackson if he faces him. He is going to beat Josh Allen, Mr. MVP. Both of these guys are the two frontrunners for the MVP right now. Patrick Mahomes will beat both of them. He will be in the Super Bowl again. But all we can do is sit here and go, well, you know what?

We're kind of lucky with these one-loss games. Maybe so. But you'd rather be lucky in those one-loss games and be in the Super Bowl than be the fucking Bengals who need a miracle to get in, losing those one- or one score games. So just keep that in mind. And then you look at a team like the Texans and you're like, they're not even lucky or good.

They're not really unlucky. Like, I don't look at the Texans and go, boy, they've caught some shitty breaks. No, they just play shitty football. So like, they haven't lost a ton of games where you'd look at it and go, boy, that was a tough break. They just lose games where they fucking suck. So I have zero confidence for them going into the playoffs.

Even with the shitty football we're getting from the Steelers, who have had the division lined up for them, the Steelers should be playing a home playoff game, but instead they've gotten worked three weeks in a row, and now they'll find themselves playing on the road in Houston like it's funny I think both of those teams will look at this and be okay with the matchup right like if the Steelers you're like it could be worse we're going to Houston we'll have more fans there than they will oh and they will that's actually not true if there's 70,000 or 67,000

fans in there there will be more Texans fans but the louder fans will be wearing black and yellow, black and yellow, black and yellow. So like, they'll feel like they're going to have a home playoff game there. And if you're the Texans, you go, well, shit, we're going to get the best matchup here. Cause we think we can beat this team. They're reeling too. So both teams are going to look at each other and go,

I think we got a shot to win this fucker. But if you're, especially if you're the Steelersers like you don't want to go on the road to a place where there's teams you know that like again the I know that these matchups couldn't happen but if you were like the Steelers would you rather be going to a place like Baltimore where it's going to be a raucous crowd all against you at Denver where it's a raucous crowd all against you Kansas City a raucous crowd all against you? Or would you rather go to Houston where the place is going to be half empty midway through the first quarter and more of your fans are going to be making noise? I mean, I think the Steelers kind of like,

do they, would they rather play a home game? Absolutely. They would have rather been playing a home game in the playoffs. However, if they look and go, oh, well, I mean, what are our other options? They're taking the option to come into Houston and play in front of a docile crowd and a bunch of their fans that are going to be invading that stadium with a CJ Stroud who's played like absolute shit and for as bad as things have been for the Steelers and they've had a lot of bad shit go against them they can still get nasty on defense they still got some guys that can really pulverize that offensive line guys like t.j watt obviously so like holy shit the steelers have to be looking at this as hey things are going bad but it could certainly be a whole hell of a lot worse so this texans playoff run is going to

be quite short all right more to come