There were some revealing comments in the Texans postgame press conference following the win over the Browns yesterday.
The comments related to a speech that head coach Gary Kubiak apparently delivered to his players after their loss at Indianapolis last week. This is the first time I've heard about this and I'm guessing it's the first time the Texans have talked about it publicly. Whatever the case, it seems to have worked.
Andre Johnson described the scene in the locker room that day: "...after the Indy game, it’s like we were going to be determined to come out and win this game. And coach Kubiak was like, ‘Are you guys with me?’ and everybody screamed out, ‘Yeah.’ There wasn’t any hesitation..."
I've always felt like there's been good support for Kubiak in the locker room and this is some pretty good evidence to support that notion.
One of the first things you look for in an unhealthy organization is whether the head coach has "lost his players" and I don't see that here. I don't know about anyone else but I'm always looking for a wall to run through after I hear Kubiak speak at luncheons and other functions. You feel that way because you can tell it's pure passion coming from the heart and not some contrived coach-speak. Players can sniff out a phony a mile away.
Meanwhile, I've managed to obtain some top secret video of Kubiak's "Are you with me?" speech. Here's hoping that this fire-'em-up speech will eventually go down in Texans lore as the turning point of the franchise and someday it will inspire a movie starring John McClain.
Hey, maybe this will also inspire some "Are you with me?" signs at our Monday Night Football game with Jacksonville next week. That's a lot better idea than Battle Red Bags.