NFL and Houston Texans Superthread: Are we ready for some football?

SR610 just reported that Andre J. has restructured his contract to make cap space.

...and the General just came on and said that story wasn't accurate. It will be interesting to see how it plays out. I think some players will restructure, but they don't have to. It seems the Texans are prepared to offer Mario something by Monday.

Yea Cat-Man, I don't know anything about that dude, but he has good stats and looks mean and good to go....

Peyton in Miami or Arizona? That's hard for me to fathom. But the Jets might be interested and let Sanchez go...

Listening to the McClain Audio right now.
I tend to believe McClain unfortunately. He says it's possible but nothing has taken place yet. Hopefully they can get something done.

If AJ restructures and Mario takes a hometown discount after AF took one I hope for all their sakes we make it to the Super Bowl next year.

The problem with restructuring any contracts is that they are just pushing the cap money further into the future. It could be a problem later on but I'll take it if it works now.

boardman.. I heard that too.. Though I'm not sure what to make of it. One thing is for sure though. Dre is a real trooper to do that. He's made it known that he wants a championship. That of course is easy to say. However, in the real world, money talks. Dre just spoke. As a leader and the most respected Texan, I'm betting others will follow. I've also heard that the practice of restructuring contracts can be dangerous in the long run and it's not something you want to do every year. Texans are taking risks by making their RB the 3rd best paid at the position and restructuring Dre. I love it though because the window to a championship is very narrow.

2012 Big Salaries (according to sportrac):
Arian Foster $18,000,000
Johnathan Joseph $7,250,000
Matt Schaub $7,150,000/.
Andre Johnson $6,500,000
Owen Daniels $6,500,000
DeMeco Ryans $5,900,000
Antonio Smith $5,500,000
Eric Winston RT $5,500,000
Danieal Manning SS $5,000,000
*Jacoby Jones* $4,791,000
*Kevin Walter* $3,500,000 Originally Posted by One-Eyed Willy

From the way I understand it, you can now scratch Arian, Dre, and Joseph from the list. Foster and Joseph are untouchables, as I understand it, due to their contracts being less than 1 year old. FYI Joseph was signed 7/29/11.

Matt Schaub is still a big question mark in my mind because his contract expires before the 2013 season leaving him a UFA. Restructuring would most likely include an extension. If I was Schaub's agent, I'd advise him not to restructure with out it. Typically the franchise QB is also the breadwinner. Question remains: can they afford to keep him? Or with Peyton willing to sign a performance-based contract, does the craziness make sense to actually trade Schaub for max value and sign Peyton for less money? Don't take it as a knock against Schaub. What I'm saying is: if Schaub has a break out season and is a UFA at the end of 2012, I think we'd like to have a Franchise QB in place or at least enough cap room to keep him here for a few more years.

Don't get your hopes up but check out what the Texans have/don't have to offer and what is believed Peyton may be looking for....

Contender: check
Class Organization: check
Great Locker Room: check
Great WRcheck
Familiarity: check
Weather: check
RB and TE with soft hands for check downs if the arm gets tired: check
Great O-Line: were working on it. Bring in his beloved Saturday if Myers walks.. Plausible
$$$$$$: I'd like to believe he left the Smurfs because they're rebuilding and not because of the $$. A player of his caliber on the last years of his play, simply deserves more.
Great Defense: check

Synopsis: I actually like Schaub but I just can't make an arguement to say he is a better fit than Manning. BT, I know what the general says about this(Schaub better in system, Peyton's heath, yada yada yada). But if the season started tomorrow, the fact is, Peyton has been cleared and is back to throwing. Schaub, on the other hand, still has Titanium rods and screws in his foot that have yet to be taken out. He has not been cleared yet and requires additional surgery. It's great to hear he is making progress, but Peyton has the jump on him. The General also believes that Peyton could or would NOT conform to Kubes offense. I think that's a ridiculous statement. Kubes' system though good, would be great with the influence of one the greatest play designers of all times. Manning is a coordinator/QB all in one package. We lost Knapp. In addition to playing, Manning could do wonders in the development of TJ. TJ, only knows 1 system, ours. Manning could help TJ expand his game. IDK, but the talks of Texans with #18 jersey behind center are heating up if your name is not John McClain. Winning a SB is like winning the World Poker Tour. Playing it safe will get you close, but to take the pot, you need to go ALL IN!!!

articles:
http://sports.yahoo.com/nfl/news?slu...w_teams_030612Has Texans #1

http://search.espn.go.com/s/overlay/...dims=6&start=0

http://blog.chron.com/ultimatetexans...suing-manning/ From the General

http://blog.chron.com/jeromesolomon/...mannings-list/- Chronicle's Jerome Solomon.

http://profootballtalk.nbcsports.com...ower-rankings/ Also lists H-Town as top destination

If the Texans choose to turn the other cheek and they're in the position to do so, how would P. Manning joining the Ravens affect our SB hopes?

So Where Will Peyton Go??

Don, have you already seen these?...

Peyton Manning odds
(next season’s team):

Retire: 20% ($100 wins $250)
Dolphins: 20% ($100 wins $250)
Redskins: 17% ($100 wins $300)
Colts: 14% ($100 wins $400)
Jets: 11% ($100 wins $500)
Cardinals: 3% ($100 wins $2,500)
Broncos: 3% ($100 wins $2,500)
49ers: 2% ($100 wins $4,000)
Titans: 1.5% ($100 wins $5,000)
Chiefs: 1.5% ($100 wins $5,000)
Texans: 1% ($100 wins $7,500)
Other Team: 6% ($100 wins $1,000) Originally Posted by One-Eyed Willy

These Vegas odds have now been updated. Texans are moving up. Anyone bettiing???

Cardinals: 19% ($100 wins $250)
Dolphins: 16.5% ($100 wins $300)
Redskins: 13% ($100 wins $400)
Jets: 9.5% ($100 wins $600)
Chiefs: 7.5% ($100 wins $800)
Retire: 6% ($100 wins $1,000)
Seahawks: 6% ($100 wins $1,000)
Texans: 4% ($100 wins $1,500)
49ers: 3% ($100 wins $2,000)
Broncos: 3% ($100 wins $2,000)
Titans: 1.5% ($100 wins $4,000)
Other Team: 11% ($100 wins $500)

Broncos and Titans seem like the play to me.

Anyone bettiing??? Originally Posted by One-Eyed Willy

If I were betting, I would put my money on the Dolphins.
If I were hoping, I would hope for the Skins. (take that Jerry Jones)
The team that makes the most sense, the Cardinals!

I hope he doesn't pull that LeBron type shit and drag this out. Just pick a team and be done with it. Whomever gets him is taking a major chance. Noone will know until a big defensive player blindsides him and tries to take his head off...

Now we are without a punter...what next? Can any of you boys kick?

I hope he doesn't pull that LeBron type shit and drag this out. Just pick a team and be done with it. Whomever gets him is taking a major chance. Noone will know until a big defensive player blindsides him and tries to take his head off... Originally Posted by Satin

I do not see Peyton dragging his decision out, I believe he wants to get it done quickly and move on (I hope I'm right on this). There is a lot of upside for any team in need of a qb, to sign Peyton. From my perspective, he is the best qb I have ever seen, anywhere and anytime! If healthy, Peyton Manning would be an improvement for any team in the league except the Saints, Packers, Patriots and possibly the Giants! Please note: that is a huge "if" in front of the word healthy.

With all of his upside, due to his neck injury there is equally as much downside for most teams. One team which might be the exception would be the Dolphins. They do not appear to have much to lose. Their qb situation is terrible and there is not much hope that it will improve anytime soon unless a healthy Peyton Manning signs on the dotted line.

With the Skins now out of the Manning sweepstakes, the list of teams to make the final cut has dwindled somewhat. In addition to Miami, I can see KC, Denver, Seattle and possibly the Browns making a strong run for him. As I said in a previous post, it makes a lot of sense for the Cardinals to make a run for him but if they do it would bring a quick end to the Kevin Kolb experiment. (Which is a little sad for me personally, unless his next stop might be to compete with TJ as Schaub's backup in Houston. Eat 'em Up!)

One other team that might enter the sweepstakes would be the 49ers. They have all of the intangibles that Peyton seems to be looking for. Like the Texans, the Niners have a strong running game, a stout defense and a high percentage of playoff probability for the next few years. I am not sold on Alex Smith as their qb of the future but he did play well in 2011. If the Niners front office believes Alex has finally turned the corner, they will not go after Manning. If they are still uncertain, Peyton will be on their radar screen.

Besides the Skins, one other team appears to have dropped out of the sweepstakes in the past 24 hours, the NY Jets. Apparently, they have determined that Mark Sanchez is their qb for the future. The next few days should be interesting but I still believe that Peyton Manning will be wearing a Dolphins uniform next season. (Please note: I did not say a healthy Peyton Manning. Remember, there is a huge if in front of healthy, where Peyton Manning is concerned!

To me, the interesting angle from the Texans' POV is Schaub's health. I'm just not sold yet on his ability to bounce back from that injury, and it's not yet getting a lot of attention. ND Kalu was waxing on it the other day, and talked about how some guys make it back from Lisfranc, and some don't. Scared the shit outta me.

To me, the interesting angle from the Texans' POV is Schaub's health. I'm just not sold yet on his ability to bounce back from that injury, and it's not yet getting a lot of attention. ND Kalu was waxing on it the other day, and talked about how some guys make it back from Lisfranc, and some don't. Scared the shit outta me. Originally Posted by TransAm

I am more concerned about what the medical experts say about Schaub's and Manning's injuries. There are certainly more questions about Peyton's health than there are Schaub's. In truth, there is no way to know for certain until they have a few games under their belts. The rest is just speculation!

Well it looks like the Texans are targeting 2 WR's.....Kendall Wright from Baylor and Stephen Hill from Georgia Tech. I still feel we should go after a veteran WR, but I know we are limited in cap space.

The free agent stampede starts Tuesday at 3 pm. Guess we'll know in the next 48 hours or so if we will move forward without Mario.

Well it looks like the Texans are targeting 2 WR's.....Kendall Wright from Baylor and Stephen Hill from Georgia Tech. I still feel we should go after a veteran WR, but I know we are limited in cap space.

The free agent stampede starts Tuesday at 3 pm. Guess we'll know in the next 48 hours or so if we will move forward without Mario. Originally Posted by Satin

I agree with you Satin a veteran wide receiver would be the best choice since most wide receivers do not usually begin to catch up to the speed of the game until the second year.
The Texans need to step up and strike while they have a good team put together they don't to wait on another Jacoby Jones.

Look what Jonathan Joseph a veteran cornerback did for the secondary.

I would be very surprised if the Texans can keep Mario with there salary cap problems.

Speaking of the cap, it was set at $120.6 million.

Bud Adams does it again....he says he will " do whatever is necessary to persuade Peyton to come to Tennessee, even offering him a job in the front office once his playing career ends".....

Oh boy...

Bud Adams does it again....he says he will " do whatever is necessary to persuade Peyton to come to Tennessee, even offering him a job in the front office once his playing career ends".....

Oh boy... Originally Posted by Satin

Yup Bud Adams is doing it... And just breaking, contradicting other reports stating "Peyton will not make anymore visits," Peyton no sooner gets back to South Beach and now packs for yet another visit.

Titans preparing for visit from free-agent QB Peyton Manning- Chris Mortensen



If the Texans are going to pass, I'd rather see Papa Smurf out the the division than in it. This sux! While the Texans scramble to free up money for Myers and perhaps, Mario, this news has incredibly bad timing. #EpicOffSeason!

edit: Peyton will meet with both Miami and Tennessee away from team facilities in the next few days