Texans taking advantage of bye week

HOUSTON — The Houston Texans are tied for first place in the AFC South and off to the best 6-game start in franchise history.

Let the healing begin.

The Texans (4-2) are so withered by injuries heading into their bye that coach Gary Kubiak called off practices for the rest of the week after a light workout on Tuesday morning.

“I'm going to use this whole week to try and get this team healthy,” Kubiak said.

Pro Bowl linebacker DeMeco Ryans limped into the locker room on crutches Tuesday, a stark reminder of one of the biggest challenges Kubiak faces when the team resumes practices next Monday. Houston's next game is Nov. 1, at Indianapolis.

Ryans is out for the season after rupturing his left Achilles’ tendon in Sunday's 35-31 win over Kansas City. Three other linebackers — Kevin Bentley, Xavier Adibi and Darryl Sharpton — were inactive for the Chiefs’ game with injuries, and Kubiak is hoping all three can heal during the time off. Bentley and Sharpton are two options to replace Ryans.

“It's still the big topic of debate right now, the three guys that have been out and where they're at,” Kubiak said. “All indications are pointing toward them being back next week.”

The bye is arriving just in time for several other starters who've been nursing nagging injuries for weeks. Kick returner Jacoby Jones (calf) and defensive end Mario Williams (shoulder) sat out practices last week and Pro Bowl receiver Andre Johnson has been playing through a sprained right ankle since Week 2.

“It'll help me out a whole lot,” Johnson said. “I get a chance to stay off it, I don't really have to bang it up. I'll just be doing my rehab and icing it up, and just see how it feels when I get back out there on Monday.”

The Texans will use the break to mentally recuperate, too, after an up-and-down start.

They beat the Colts in an emotional opener, twice rallied from fourth-quarter deficits for victories and lost to Dallas in a game regarded as one of the most important in team history. The Texans also worked around four-game drug suspensions to two key players, linebacker Brian Cushing and left tackle Duane Brown, and have faced daily questions about their NFL-worst pass defense.

“I just want to get away, I honestly do,” safety Bernard Pollard said. “I don't think a lot of people understand, this thing, it can take you. My mind is just bogged down with bad plays, with good things, with our record, it's just so much right now. Just to get away is big.”

But those defensive issues will still be waiting when the Texans get back.

Houston ranks 31st in total defense (410.5 yards per game) and gave up 228 yards rushing to the Chiefs last week. The secondary has given up seven receptions of 40 yards or more and intercepted only four passes, and the defensive front has generated only 10 sacks — none in Houston's two losses.

“The beatings that we've taken, just all the things that have been going on, it really seems like we have a losing record,” Pollard said. “It's time for us to kind of evaluate ourselves and look in the mirror and change the things that need to be fixed.”

The Texans did not make a trade at the deadline, and Kubiak reiterated this week that he's sticking with the defensive players he has, including cornerbacks Glover Quin and Kareem Jackson. Jackson, the Texans’ first-round draft pick, has taken the brunt of the criticism for the gaps in pass coverage.

“When you're having mistakes, that usually brings you back to simplifying,” Kubiak said. “That's something we're checking ourselves, from a coaching standpoint, to see what kind of changes that can possibly be made that can make us better.”

Kubiak said the high number of missed tackles in last week's win over the Chiefs was “puzzling.” Quin thinks the defense can improve by simply focusing on fundamentals when they return from the break.

“We have no other choice but to get better,” Quin said. “The talent is there. We just have to continue to work hard as a group and bring it out on Sundays.”

The offense was shut down by Dallas and the Giants, but it's scored at least 30 points in four victories to mask many of the problems on defense. The Texans rank fifth in total offense (379.7 yards per game) and Arian Foster leads the league in yards rushing (635).

Kubiak wants more consistency from both sides of the ball as the Texans head into their demanding final 10 games. Of Houston's remaining opponents, only San Diego and Denver currently have losing records.

“Obviously, we've got some issues that we got to face here coming up,” right tackle Eric Winston said. “There's no way to sugar-coat it and it's probably best that we don't. We've got to face those issues head-on and the whole team has got to overcome it, and just not one side or the other.”