The Texans have lost 8 of their last 9 football games so all they have to play for is pride this weekend.  They also can be the spoiler as the Jags could win the AFC South with a win this Sunday and a Colts’ home loss to the Titans.  The Jaguars are without Maurice Jones-Drew & David Garrard in this game so they could be coming to a gun fight with a butter knife.  Here is a look at the matchups in this game:

When the Texans have the ball:  Andre Johnson isn’t going to play this Sunday but it might not matter against a very soft D of the Jaguars.  The Jaguars are giving up 250.1 yards passing per game so I look for Matt Schaub to light up the sky targeting Jacoby Jones, Kevin Walter, Owen Daniels and Arian Foster.  Arian Foster is leading the NFL in rushing yards this year with 1,436 and the Texans will give him a lot of opportunities to win that crown this Sunday against a Jags’ D that is allowing 113.4 yards rushing per game and 4.5 yards per carry.

When the Jaguars have the ball:  I have a feeling that the Texans are going to have to prepare for an air raid this Sunday.  Trent Edwards will be taking aim at a Texans’ secondary that is allowing 277.1 yards passing per game.  Edwards will likely have a short leash with the playoffs a possibility for the Jags with a win.  Todd Bouman might be warming up most of the game.  The Texans must also prepare to stop RB Rashad Jennings who also has a chance to be a hero for the Jags.

PREDICTION:  TEXANS 30, JAGUARS 24

The Texans have placed 22-year old rookie LB Darryl Sharpton on the Injured Reserve List due to a dislocated shoulder.  Sharpton was a 4th round pick (#102 overall) out of Miami (Fl) in last April’s NFL Draft.  Sharpton played in 12 games for the Texans this year and he had 34 tackles, 1 sack and 2 tackles for a loss.  Sharpton look solid this year and he will have a role in the defense going forward.

23-year old linebacker Brian Cushing was an absolute demon on defense as a rookie in 2009 as he was the NFL Defensive Rookie of the Year.  But it was drug charged as he failed a test for PEDs and he was suspended for the first four games of this year.  Upon his return, he found the league much tougher when you aren’t cheating.  Cushing has played in 11 games for the Texans this year and he has 71 tackles, 1.5 sacks, 7 tackles for a loss, 4 passes defensed and 1 forced fumble.  He has now played in 27 games in his first two years with the Texans and he has 205 tackles, 14 passes defensed, 6.5 sacks, 3 forced fumbles and 4 interceptions.  The Texans are just going to have to accept that last season was a mirage for Cushing.

The defense let the Texans down once again yesterday as the Broncos scored the last 14 points of the game.  Matt Schaub completed 23 of 33 passes for 310 yards with 1 TD pass and 1 INT in this game.  Arian Foster led the way on the ground with the Texans in this game with 91 yards rushing on 19 carries (4.8 ypc) with a TD run and he also caught 4 passes for 44 yards (11.0 avg).  WR Jacoby Jones (5 rec, 115 yards) and TE Owen Daniels (8 rec, 73 yards, TD) led the way in the passing game for the Texans.  The Texans finished up with 91 yards rushing on 22 carries (4.1 ypc) and they also completed 23 of 33 passes for 310 yards.

The Texans’ D was awful as usual yesterday.  CB Glover Quin (8 tackles), safety Bernard Pollard (7 tackles) and CB Jason Allen (4 tackles, 2 passes defensed and 1 interception) led the way for the D in this game.  The Broncos finished up with 126 yards rushing on 33 carries (3.8 ypc) and they also completed 16 of 29 passes for 305 yards in this game.  The Texans are now 5-10 on the year.

The Texans have lost 3 games in a row and 7 of their last 8 games.  The Broncos have lost 5 games in a row and 9 of their last 10 games this year.  So, something has to give this Sunday in the Mile High City.  Here is a look at the matchups in this game:

When the Texans have the ball:  The Texans are likely to come out throwing the ball against the Broncos in an attempt to get a quick lead.  The Broncos only have 18 sacks this year so Matt Schaub should have plenty of time to throw the ball and he will inflict damage.  Andre Johnson, Kevin Walter, Jacoby Jones and Owen Daniels will likely all get a few balls thrown their way in this game against a Broncos’ D that is allowing 227.6 yards passing per game so far this year.  The Broncos also can’t stop the run as they are allowing 158.4 yards rushing per game and 4.6 yards per carry.  Arian Foster and Derrick Ward could have big games this Sunday for the Texans.

When the Broncos have the ball:  The Texans are going to go all out to stop the Broncos running game and dare Tim Tebow to beat them with his arm.  Tebow does  have a good set of WRs to work with as Brandon Lloyd, Eddie Royal and Jabar Gaffney are all solid targets.  The Texans will have to blitz Tebow a lot and try to keep him in the pocket where he’s less effective than when on the move.

PREDICTION:  TEXANS 34, BRONCOS 24

The Texans were never much of a threat to the Titans in this game.  Matt Schaub completed 35 of 54 passes for 325 yards with 2 TD passes and 1 INT.  Arian Foster had a rough time with 11 carries for only 15 yards (1.4 ypc) and he caught 6 passes for 46 yards (7.7 avg).  WRs Kevin Walter (7 rec, 79 yards, TD), Andre Johnson (6 rec, 58 yards, TD) and Jacoby Jones (7 rec, 50 yards) led the way for the Texans in the passing game.  The Texans finished up with 30 yards on 17 carries (1.8 ypc) and they also completed 35 of 54 passes for 323 yards.

The Texans were led on defense by safety Troy Nolan (6 tackles), safety Bernard Pollard (6 tackles) and CB Jason Allen (4 tackles, 1 pass defensed and 1 interception).  The Titans finished up with 147 yards rushing on 30 carries (4.9 ypc) and they also completed 14 of 24 passes for 212 yards.  The Texans are now 5-9 on the year.

The Texans have lost six of their last seven games with the lone win coming against the Titans, 20-0 in Houston.  The Titans have lost six games in a row but they showed some life last week against the Colts before falling 30-28.  Here is a look at the matchups in this game:

When the Texans have the ball:  The Texans’ offense is going to go through Arian Foster as usual this Sunday.  Foster has 1,834 yards rushing & receiving so far this year and he has scored 15 TDs.  He will be taking aim at a Titans’ D that is allowing 120.6 yards rushing per game and 4.0 yards per carry.  The Titans need to put pressure on Matt Schaub or he’s going to scorch their secondary with Andre Johnson, Owen Daniels, Jacoby Jones & Kevin Walter.

When the Titans have the ball:  The Texans don’t have much of a pass rush with Mario Williams out of action.  With that in mind, don’t be surprised to see Kerry Collins putting the ball up a lot in this game.  He also has his favorite receiver (Kenny Britt) back in action giving him a monster deep threat against a Texans’ D that is allowing 279.9 yards passing per game so far this year.  Chris Johnson will also get his share of carries against a suddenly tough Texans’ run D.

PREDICTION:  TITANS 30, TEXANS 27

The Texans have signed 31-year old DE Jarvis Green to a 1-year deal.  Green played in 13 games for the Patriots last season and he had 36 tackles and 1 sack.  Green has now played in 121 games in his 8 years in the NFL and he has 232 tackles, 28 sacks, 5 passes defensed and 9 forced fumbles.  The Texans are hoping that Green can help them out in the last three weeks of the year.

The Texans have placed 27-year old WR David Anderson on the Injured Reserve List due to a shoulder injury.  Anderson played in 12 games for the Texans this year and he caught 11 passes for 117 yards (10.6 avg).  He has now played in 61 games in his first five years with the Texans and he has caught 81 passes for 886 yards (10.9 avg) with 3 TD grabs.  Anderson is pretty much the Texans’ #4 WR so they should be able to get by without him the last three weeks.

The Texans have placed 27-year old right guard Mike Brisiel on the Injured Reserve List due to a shoulder injury.  Brisiel played in 12 games (9 starts) for the Texans this year.  He has now played in 37 games (34 starts) in his first five years in the NFL.  This will hurt the offensive line the last three weeks.