Best things about the Texans win over the Chiefs:

Chris Brown looked great. He carried the ball with a spring in his step and looked like the perfect compliment to Steve Slaton. Let's say it all together, "He just needs to stay healthy."

Connor Barwin getting a sack was a nice debut. Barwin looked like he belonged. And Tim Bulman looked like he wanted to set up residency in the Chiefs backfield. Between those two playing well and moving Antonio Smith inside, the Texans plan for an improved pass rush might bear fruit.

Dan Orlovsky made a nice debut. Okay, a few passes sailed but that's correctable. He made some big plays with long completions. Give him more time in this system and he'll get up to speed to be the insurance QB this team needs.

Things to look out for:

Steve Slaton does not need to carry the ball much in August. We already know he's excellent. He bulked himself up and that's ok but only as long as it does not affect his speed. Remember when Demeco bulked up last year and lost some speed (only to get lighter and quicker as the season progressed)? You would hate to see that happen with Slaton. Not that it will but we'll be watching.

Defensive line depth is getting tested early. With Travis Johnson out and Deljuan Robinson and Frank Okam dinged up it's going to be interesting to get through the next three games.

Finishing drives and staying on the field is key to this teams development. The Texans only converted two third downs. This is hardly 'sound-the-alarm' material but if they are going to win big games on the road they need to score and eat clock. The first team offense had an impressive 94 yard drive so you can exhale for now. Against the Saints and Vikings it will be important to start hogging the ball

When you talk about Texans vying for playing time you don't automatically say "hey, how about that battle for long snapper?" But those are the things that Special Teams Coordinator Joe Marciano thinks about all the time.

James Casey is trying to win a job there to go along with a job at TE and perhaps some part time work as fullback as well. It's Marciano's task to see if he can cut it in short order. Casey is a throwback who can do a lot of things. Marciano compares he and Connor Barwin to Jim Thorpe (in versatility not degree of difficulty, of course).

In well over two decades Marciano has seen NFL players and coaches come and go but he insists the game of football basically stays the same. "The game hasn’t changed. The players are the same players. When I got in this league in ’86, we got the same players in there, they just have different names, different faces.

"We’ve got some great guys and we’ve got some guys we’ve always got to keep our thumb on all the time. But the game hasn’t changed. I still show tape of Bennie Thompson, Steve Tasker, the tackling of Rod Woodson and Deion Sanders. I still got all those tapes. What I coached then, I coach now. The principles of football don’t change.”

Marciano says being a father has made a difference in his coaching style. "I’ve learned from raising a boy, my son, that you’ve got to have patience, especially with a special needs son like I’ve got. He’s come along fine so that has helped me transform into having some patience with these guys."

Plus, the attitude of gratitude is something Marciano likes to push. "I tell those guys, ‘I’m not going to yell at you. If you do this you’re going to be out of work. I’ve got to work, you’re looking to get work. Where else can you go and come to work in underwear, where else, and go make $325,000? Try doing it my way.’ That’s all I say. Plus, being around Tony Dungy has helped. He’s not a yeller and those guys will run through a wall for him."

It's easy to understand why Joe Marciano has been so good for so long.

Gil Brandt was at Texans practice this weekend and told me he likes the team's chances to win the AFC South. The Colts and Titans have not stood still acquisition-wise but it's the Texans who appear poised to leap forward while the others may take a small step back.

Anyone who saw Sunday morning has to be pumped about the defense. They're performing like they are sick of hearing all the love about the offense while they get analyzed like a dysfunctional child. Demeco picking off a pass and Mario and friends forcing negative plays got plenty of oohs and ahhs from the crowd. The offense will be fine. It's the defense that needs to look better immediately.

It's the 8th Texans camp and the buzz is louder than ever. The turnout for the first few practices has been super strong and there is an expectation of success in the air that we only caught occasional whiffs of the last couple of years.

The contract quotes from Ryans and Daniels put a bit of damper on day one but Rick Smith put it all to rest for the moment by saying "it's time to play football." The most important thing about negotiations is leverage and Dunta, Demeco and Owen don't have enough. Ryans and Daniels are likely to remain restricted free agents next year and Dunta can still be franchised. If he is not then his value likely dipped below the reported $23 million guarantee offer he turned down this offseason.

Enough on the cash, how about the dash? Arian Foster looks spry and James Casey catches almost everything thrown at him. Jacoby Jones was sensational Saturday and David Anderson looks more solid than ever. Punt returner is wide open with Andre Davis getting a long look with the rest of the candidates. It should be Jacoby's job but he left the door open.

It's time.

Your local baseball team is gasping for air. Your basketball franchise has health issues that could stock a season of Grey's Anatomy. But your football squad is finally ready for action.

Many folks hate the preseason but I like it. I'm not saying I would like it in November but I appreciate the build up toward the regular season and the chance to look at some new blood in action.

Many of you haven't had much new to say on the airwaves about the team because you haven't seen them yet. After five weeks of off season practice I have a pretty good idea of what we're going to get but there are still many unanswered questions.

Let's assume Dunta comes back in time to start against the Jets. It's likely Fred Bennett is your third corner. But I'm anxious to see what Glover Quinn can do. It's too bad Antwan Molden is banged up because he needs to give the coaches a better idea of what he has.

Xavier Adibi, Zach Diles and Cato June are going to have a war opposite Brian Cushing. Travis Johnson's hernia surgery could open a door for Deljuan Robinson or Shawn Cody but it's still the 'nole's job to lose. Amobi Okoye may be younger than many rookies but he has to produce in year three.

The offense is like a breath of fresh air except at running back where the depth chart falls off a cliff after Steve Slaton. Nothing against Chris Brown but assuming oft-injured running backs stay healthy around here has not been a solid bet.

Arian Foster looked good in OTAs but now it's time to put on some pads and shine in a preseason game or two. If I was coaching I might not play Slaton, Matt Schaub and Andre Johnson much at all. They don't need the work and you have to have a long look at the reserve backs and Dan Orlovsky. Come to think of it, Brown just needs to get enough carries to look like he belongs then sit until the bell rings against the Jets.

I'll be blogging much more during camp.

WOW! All those series against relatively weak teams that the Astros struggled to win during this run and they end up SWEEPING the Cards.

Game three's theme: you'd rather be lucky than good. Chris Coste can't get a bunt down in the ninth so he ends up with an RBI double on an 0-2 pitch. Then, first and third with one out and on Matsui's grouder the Cards come home for a made tag rather than a sure inning-ending double play. The extra out gave Tejada an at bat to get his walk off hit.

This team is in it now. Forget about being sellers. As long as Roy O. and Wandy stay sharp they should be able to at least hang in there. But they'll need help. And when teams make the kind of mistakes the Cardinals did this week it certainly boosts the cause.

So much for those '70's mustaches with the Cardinals pitching staff. Try NHL playoff beards next time.

How can agents say that there is collusion in baseball? Well, teams shaved a collective $47 million in payroll from last year. A lot of free agents took a bath or didn't get signed at all.

Welcome to America circa 2009! Scott Boras's contention that baseball is in great financial health relative to the rest of the world may be true. But the same could be said for his clients.

Attendance is down 5% which is a miracle considering yours and my stock portfolios are still gasping for air. But many MLB teams tried to get a tad more conservative with their spending. You can't blame them considering we are hardly out of the recession yet.

People ask me all the time about the "impending doom" of an NFL work stoppage in 2011. I would be surprised if it happened. The last thing fans want to hear about is millionaires arguing with billionaires while unemployment pushes 10%. Of course, I would hope the economy would be better by the time we get past the 2010 season. That would slightly soften the ire of the fans. Still, I expect cooler heads to prevail and play to continue.

Another thing I always get asked about is the Texans' contract situations with O.D., Dunta and Demeco. I don't exactly have a wire tap into Rick Smith's phone but I would be totally shocked if these guys aren't coming out of the tunnel September 13 completely focused and prepared to beat the Jets. The rest is conversation.

You hear a lot of things: the teams says this, the player tweets that. The bottom line is contract disputes and negotiations are just a reality in sports. As my buddy RJ says, no one wants to see the sausage being made. Well, ignore the noise, wait for the opener and bon appetit!

Aaron Glenn is done playing. Teams keep calling but he's home for good in Houston now after 15 seasons in the league. We had him in studio Wednesday morning and talked about a lot of things including 19-10. He still sees it as one of the greatest games he's ever been in. He talked about the smoke being so thick (from the pregame fireworks) that players had trouble seeing the ball in the first half. Corey Bradford drew a pass interference call on the first drive of team history but told Aaron he couldn't find the ball anyway. Two plays later Billy Miller was in the endzone.



My most lasting Steve McNair memory is not a good one. Last play of the Christmas weekend game in 2003 McNair found Drew Bennett in the endzone on 4th and 10 in the 3rd most gut wrentching loss to the Titans in team history (you know about the other two). I'll always remember things Dom Capers told me about how hard it was to bring down McNair. He was super strong and one of two QBs in my lifetime who could skip practice and be precise on Sunday. Dan Fouts was the other.



I really hope Daryl Morey has something up his sleeve for this season because it's looking like '09-'10 will be a 'wait until next year' kind of campaign. Right now there is no "easy offense" on the roster. Not that the team as it stands can't play hard and make things interesting but it's hardly a contender.



Lance Armstrong's run is compelling. I don't watch it but I follow it. I've called him the Barry Bonds of Europe only because of how many locals feel about him. If he's never tested positive in a sport that tests more than Ron Artest tweets, that's good enough for me.