They are who we thought they were

by Bill Young

Last week, the Houston Texans had a chance to establish themselves as a Super Bowl contender while the Cowboys were attempting to keep their playoff hopes alive. Is it too early for saying it was a must-win for the Cowboys? Not really, considering their awful play the first two games of the season.
The Texans came in after two good wins with a chance to bury the Cowboys and gain a strangle hold on their division. Unfortunately, the Texans are who I thought they were: a playoff pretender who can't defend against the pass. As long as they can't defend against the pass and Andre Johnson continues to get nagging injuries, their season hopes will look increasingly dire.
On the flip side, the Cowboys reminded us of the playoff and division winning potential they have by putting forth a solid effort in all phases of the game versus the Texans. The defense constantly pressured Matt Schaub, while much maligned WR Roy Williams has finally started to show up. If this continues, Miles Austin may not see constant double coverage for the rest of the season due to the balance in the Cowboys offense.
On a side note, the Redskins are who I thought they were: a competitive team who will not win ANY meaningful road games. Will they be in the playoff race til the end of the season? Probably. However, this is thanks to the Cowboys horrific start and the great potential for the Eagles to collapse. At home, the Redskins defense can play a decent game, but on the road, don't bother turning on the TV for those games because if a team allows the Stephen Jackson-less Rams to score 30 points, then there isn't much hope for the defense to stop anyone.
While everyone in Washington praised the hire of Shanahan, I was skeptical--not because his coaching record is less than stellar without Elway. Shanahan has always been an offensive minded coach. The NFC East is won every year with DEFENSE. Before Shanahan, even Zorn understood this. Even the best offense has trouble scoring in the NFC East. This greatly limits the effect of Shanahan's offensive genious while greatly highlighting the normal defensive difficulties his teams usually have. It was a good gig for Shanahan because the money was worth it. In terms of actual fit, another rebuilding campaign will take place 2 years later when management finally realizes what kind of football wins in this division.