Success is defined as "a state of prosperity or fame". It is also a hit song performed by Aussie pop sensation Danni Minouge (sister of Kylie).
The NFL is a league of the haves and the have-nots. The Indianapolis Colts have won at least ten games in each of the past seven seasons, making the playoffs each time. The New England Patriots have won double digit games in seven of the last eight seasons, ending their season at the Super Bowl in four of those seasons. San Diego has won four of the last five division titles in the AFC West.
On the other side, you have the Detroits, St. Louises, and Oaklands of the world. Detroit and St. Louis entered their game Sunday on a combined 3-46 stretch. Oaklnad is 33-77 since appearing in the Super Bowl in 2002.
Many of these have-nots will never achieve the type of success that the haves achieved. Any type of success is new to them and it is interesting to watch how they deal with it. Last season Arizona won the NFC West and made its first playoff appearance since 1998. After clinching on Dec 7th, they were blown out in consecutive games by Minnesota and New England, outscored 82-21. Many of the players were quoted as saying they didn't know how to handle the fact that they were going to the playoffs. It was a feeling many of them had never experienced. Throw in a rookie head coach and it is no surprise that they were steamrolled in those following two games.
This year Detroit won against the Redskins to snap a 19-game losing streak. They immediately followed this up with a 48-24 pasting at the hands of Chicago.
Both the Bengals and Broncos got off to fast starts this season, both somewhat unexpectedly. Following a third straight come-from-behind win against Baltimore that put them in first place in the AFC North, the Bengals spent all week hearing how good they had become. They went out the next week and were rolled by the Texans. The Broncos spent their bye week hearing all the accolades about their defense following a MNF win vs San Diego, which effectively gave the Broncos the AFC West crown according to some. They come back from the bye and get handled by Baltimore 30-7. These were two teams not accustomed to success, who did not handle it well.
Which leads me to the point of this rant. The Houston Texans are the medias sweetheart sleeper team. Every year they are the "team to make the leap" and every year they finish .500 or worse. The Texans sit now at 5-3, the first time in franchise history they have been two games over .500. How will they handle this new-found success? This week they head to Indy to play the Colts in a "thermometer game". We can use this game to take the temperature of Houston, see whether they are ready to play with the big boys or not. Houston played Indy well last season, losing two very winnable games by a combined ten points. It is now up to Houston to show they can handle this success.
ARE YOU READY TO TAKE THAT NEXT STEP?
The NFL is a league of the haves and the have-nots. The Indianapolis Colts have won at least ten games in each of the past seven seasons, making the playoffs each time. The New England Patriots have won double digit games in seven of the last eight seasons, ending their season at the Super Bowl in four of those seasons. San Diego has won four of the last five division titles in the AFC West.
On the other side, you have the Detroits, St. Louises, and Oaklands of the world. Detroit and St. Louis entered their game Sunday on a combined 3-46 stretch. Oaklnad is 33-77 since appearing in the Super Bowl in 2002.
Many of these have-nots will never achieve the type of success that the haves achieved. Any type of success is new to them and it is interesting to watch how they deal with it. Last season Arizona won the NFC West and made its first playoff appearance since 1998. After clinching on Dec 7th, they were blown out in consecutive games by Minnesota and New England, outscored 82-21. Many of the players were quoted as saying they didn't know how to handle the fact that they were going to the playoffs. It was a feeling many of them had never experienced. Throw in a rookie head coach and it is no surprise that they were steamrolled in those following two games.
This year Detroit won against the Redskins to snap a 19-game losing streak. They immediately followed this up with a 48-24 pasting at the hands of Chicago.
Both the Bengals and Broncos got off to fast starts this season, both somewhat unexpectedly. Following a third straight come-from-behind win against Baltimore that put them in first place in the AFC North, the Bengals spent all week hearing how good they had become. They went out the next week and were rolled by the Texans. The Broncos spent their bye week hearing all the accolades about their defense following a MNF win vs San Diego, which effectively gave the Broncos the AFC West crown according to some. They come back from the bye and get handled by Baltimore 30-7. These were two teams not accustomed to success, who did not handle it well.
Which leads me to the point of this rant. The Houston Texans are the medias sweetheart sleeper team. Every year they are the "team to make the leap" and every year they finish .500 or worse. The Texans sit now at 5-3, the first time in franchise history they have been two games over .500. How will they handle this new-found success? This week they head to Indy to play the Colts in a "thermometer game". We can use this game to take the temperature of Houston, see whether they are ready to play with the big boys or not. Houston played Indy well last season, losing two very winnable games by a combined ten points. It is now up to Houston to show they can handle this success.
ARE YOU READY TO TAKE THAT NEXT STEP?
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