Quick Start a Must for Texans

Playoff berths can’t be secured through the first four weeks of the season, but they could be lost during that time. With the Texans playing in the ultra-competitive AFC South, which finished with the best collective record in NFL history a year ago, they must get off to a quick start to take the next step which would be their first playoff appearance.

Houston plays AFC opponents during the first six weeks of the season, included in that are three AFC South games in the first five weeks. If the Texans are going to be a legitimate playoff contender, they must show that they can defeat those teams early on.

Although Houston will be tested early on, their schedule wouldn’t exactly be considered a “murderers row” of opponents. The Texans travel to Pittsburgh on opening day, which will likely be a difficult place to win, as the Steelers have won five consecutive home openers and six out of their last seven. Following the trip to Pittsburgh, the Texans return home for their home opener to take on the Baltimore Ravens, who despite having a stingy defense, finished with a 5-11 record a year ago which was good for last place in the AFC North. Baltimore has a new coaching staff and it’s possible that rookie quarterback Joe Flacco could start. The Texans must win one out of their first two games.

Weeks three and four will be a little more difficult for Houston, as they take on division rivals Tennessee and Jacksonvillle. The Tennessee Titans have had the Texans number to say the least, as they’ve defeated Houston six consecutive times and have won 10 out of their 12 all-time meetings. If Houston is going to prove themselves to be a legitimate playoff contender, the first step will be to beat Tennessee and get out of last place.

Although Houston has had good success against Jacksonville historically, the Jaguars have a loaded roster and many see them as a legitimate Super Bowl contender. The Texans will travel to Jacksonville where the Jaguars have enjoyed great success at home in September. Jacksonville has won five out of their last six home games in September, and the north Florida heat and humidity have proven to be a one of the most underrated home field advantages in the NFL for the Jaguars over recent seasons. If the Texans can be a .500 team throughout the first four weeks of the season, they will be in a solid position to make a playoff run.

Week five is another AFC South showdown as the Texans host the five-time defending division champion Indianapolis Colts. One of the numerous reasons why Indianapolis has dominated the division has been their early season play. Indianapolis has begun with no worse than a 7-0 record to start their last three seasons. Although the Colts schedule looks a little more difficult in 2008, nobody is better early on in the season.

Following the Colts matchup, the Texans have two highly winnable games, both at home against Miami and Detroit, who finished with a combined record of 8-24 a year ago, and have won just 17 of their last 64 regular season games over the past two seasons. These are must wins for Houston, as they will likely need these two games to put them on pace to have a better than .500 record.

AFC playoff teams finished with a combined record of 39-9, a winning percentage of .813. If the Texans can take care of business at home, like most playoff teams do, they will be on pace to better their 8-8 record of a year ago, and put themselves squarely in the hunt for a wildcard spot at the very least.

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Charlie Bernstein is the Editor-in-Chief of Sports Media Interactive, covering multiple teams in the National Football League, NCAA, and National Basketball Association. Charlie is a regular syndicated contributor to FoxSports and Sirius NFL Radio, and has been featured on the NFL Network. Charlie is also a member of the Pro Football Writers of America. Feel free to contact him -HERE- with questions or comments.

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