I have no love for the Titans. Their owner took the team from me and I haven't cheered for them since, not even in the Super Bowl against the Rams. Once the Texans joined the same division as the Titans, two games a year ensured the vitriol would continue.
Which is why Sunday's dominating victory was so satisfying. It wasn't so much that the Texans won, but how they won. The Titans never had a chance. Chris Johnson, who so often looks like a video game character he's so good, was held in check and looked very mortal. In short, the Texans simply dominated on both sides of the ball.
Last year's game where Andre Johnson beat down Cortland Finnegan was great, but this game proved to be the stamp I needed for this season. It established a tone, it reversed the trend from a last second loss to the Raiders and a fade out against the Ravens. Even without their best offensive player, the Texans managed to run up the score.
It's also easy to see why the Texan offense struggled the past two weeks. Arian Foster may not be as good a player as AJ, but he's integral to this offense. With both of them playing well, the Texans can put up points like the Saints, but they can still win games if Foster is running like he did against the Titans.
The defense played well, as Johnathan Joseph showed us one more play to justify his money. I knew he was good in coverage and making interceptions, but I had no idea he could hit like he did when he lit up Nate Washington. That was a big-time play.
As I thought Sunday, Danieal Manning's loss will be felt. Troy Nolan is okay, but he's not playing at nearly the same level as Manning, so the Texans will have to do a better job of pressuring opposing defenses. Luckily, they catch the Jaguars and Bengals the next two weeks, which gives them time to work out the issues.
The Texans have scored 30 or more points in three games this season. The franchise record is five games, set last season and the Texans have never topped 40 points more than once in a year. With nine games left, there is a chance both of those records fall.
I think I'm going to talk about this in my fantasy column this week, but Joel Dreesen has stepped up since James Casey got hurt. I'm not sure his chances will continue once Casey is back, but it's nice to see another weapon emerging (or playing like he did last year).
Tennessee was completely fooled by Schaub's naked bootlegs not once, but twice. How is that possible? Do they only have tape on Houston from 2005?
I know anything is possible, but from what I saw out of Tennessee on Sunday and what Jacksonville and Indianapolis have done all season, the Texans should cruise to the AFC South title. Heck, it might even be worth resting Andre for another week, since they should beat Jacksonville easily.