Chron: The going's about to get a lot tougher for Texans

http://www.chron.com/cs/CDA/ssistory.mpl/sports/2169606

Seasons don't die in October or after just six games. But they can get out of hand in a hurry if a team is already two games down in the loss column and facing a schedule like the one the Texans must navigate over the next 10 weeks and, more immediately, in their next five games.

Beginning with Sunday's game at Indianapolis, the Texans will play three teams currently leading their divisions over the next five weeks, and their next five opponents have a combined winning percentage of .656. Only Cincinnati, which has won two of its last three games, has a losing record, and the Texans must face the Bengals on the road.

At 2-4, the Texans run the risk of digging a much deeper hole for themselves if they don't do some serious defying of the odds during this difficult stretch. The Texans were less than two minutes away from being 3-3, but after blowing a 14-point lead against the New York Jets this past weekend, they must wonder if things could spiral downward.

"Could they?" tight end Billy Miller said. "Of course they could, if we don't find a way to put more points on the board. Our offense is doing 10 times better than last season, but we have to solve this red-zone issue. We have to solve that and our third-down problem.

"We're moving the ball on first and second down, but third down is hurting us. We've calmed down on the sacks and the turnovers. We had the ball on the (Jets') 27-yard line (with 1:04 remaining in the game). We have to score. If we don't do that, especially against the teams we're getting ready to play, it's going to be tough."

After the Texans play at AFC South-leading Indianapolis (5-1), they host NFC South pace-setter Carolina (5-1), then visit Cincinnati (2-4), which is showing signs of turning around its season. After that, the Texans travel to Buffalo (4-3), where the Bills have won three of four games, before returning to Reliant Stadium for a game against AFC East-leading New England (5-2).

"It's going to be tough," strong safety Eric Brown said. "We definitely have to stay focused. We can play with people when we go out there and get in our minds that we're going to play for four quarters. When we start doing that, that's when we're going to know where we are. We really can't get too far ahead of ourselves in terms of the schedule. We have to focus on Indianapolis. There's a hole you have to climb out of when you're 2-4. It's certainly a deeper hole than when you're 3-3."

Most prognosticators didn't give the Texans a realistic chance to win more than four or five games in their second season, but good luck finding a player or coach willing to accept that.

The Texans entered the season with the seventh-toughest schedule based on their opponents' records from last season. The schedule certainly has lived up to its billing. Only three of the Texans' remaining 10 games -- against the Bengals, the visiting Falcons on Nov. 30 and the host Jaguars on Dec. 7 -- are against teams that currently have losing records.

"I don't look ahead at opponents," linebacker Charlie Clemons said. "I feel like any time you lose a game it hurts, and you really need that game to get to where you want to go. We let one get away (against the Jets), and it's really nobody's fault but our own.

"If we play like we're capable of playing for four quarters, we have a chance to beat anybody. With that being said, I don't worry about what a team's record is. If we want to be a playoff contender, we have to beat whoever we're facing that week."

Contending for a spot in the playoffs appears ambitious. A more realistic goal for the Texans is to finish with more victories than the four they claimed during their inaugural season.

The game against Atlanta seemingly is the best remaining chance the Texans have to be favored, but even that isn't a lock if injured Falcons quarterback Michael Vick is back in the lineup. It's worth noting the Texans were underdogs when they claimed their only two victories against Miami and Jacksonville.

"I never know what our record is going to be," Texans coach Dom Capers said. "I focus more on trying to improve the team, because I think we can control that more. Would we like to have a better record? Yes. I'd like to be standing here 3-3 today, but we're not. That all takes care of itself as long as the team continues to improve. The encouraging thing is that the team continues to improve. It doesn't always show up in the record, but I know we're getting better. Every week is a new challenge.

"How we do next week and the week after that and the week after that is going to depend on how we respond. It's a learning process. When you work hard and invest a lot, you go through the full gamut of emotions. You're angry, frustrated, upset. But you have to come back in here on Wednesday and go to work and try to use that to your advantage."

Considering their closing schedule, the Texans will take any advantage they can get.