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1. Houston Texans: Wade Phillips did some great things with this defense a year ago. But he’s not the only member of the Texans’ organization who deserves credit for an incredibly improved defense from 2010 to 2011. Houston’s front office was very aggressive in addressing the defensive side of the ball last offseason. Now, Houston has big-time players at each level of its 3-4 defense.

For those who don’t yet know, J.J. Watt immediately established himself as one of the up-and-coming defensive players in this league. Not only is Watt is a fantastic hustle player, but he has ideal size and length for his 3-4 defensive end position to go with well above-average athletic ability. Watt will be a star. Like Watt, Brian Cushing did everything asked of him really well from his inside linebacker spot last season and has established himself as one of the better second-level defenders in the league.

Before last season, the Texans paid a premium to sign him, but simply put, Johnathan Joseph is one of the very best cornerbacks in the NFL today. He is the total package and probably the best player on this excellent defense -- which is really saying something. The Texans could use one more cover man to step up, though. Overall, Houston is well-equipped in coverage and of course the pass rush helped a lot in that capacity.

Maybe what the Texans’ defense did best in Phillips’ first year was rushing the quarterback -- even without Mario Williams for much of the season. The Texans did add Whitney Mercilus to further enhance their threat off the edge and Connor Barwin could be knocking on the door of stardom.

Besides the first-round selection of Mercilus, who is in an ideal position to learn the outside linebacker position slowly, the Texans mostly stuck to improving their offense in the draft. However, Houston did land an intriguing prospect to play behind Watt and the underrated Antonio Smith in late fourth-round pick Jared Crick, who is an ideal fit for this defensive scheme. Only the Steelers, 49ers and Raves allowed fewer points than Houston last year. Don’t expect much of a drop-off this year.

2. Jacksonville Jaguars: The AFC South has a shot to have two top-five defenses in 2012. Mike Malarkey takes over as the Jaguars’ head coach, but his focus will be getting quarterback Blaine Gabbert’s career straightened out and improving a dismal Jacksonville passing game.

The defense will be in Mel Tucker’s hands. Tucker wants a fast-flowing, physical and aggressive defense that doesn’t blitz a lot and gets most of its pressure from the defensive linemen. The Jaguars found a gem in Jeremy Mincey, who’s excelled in all facets of playing defensive end in their 4-3 scheme. But this defense really lacked a complementary end to Mincey, especially as a pass-rusher. Jacksonville used the No. 38 pick in this year’s draft on Andre Branch, who could help immediately on passing downs but offers little against the run.

One guy who let this defense down last season is Tyson Alualu, who really had a down 2011 season in all regards. Still, only three teams bettered Jacksonville in rushing yards allowed per attempt in 2011. A vastly underrated positional group in the NFL is the Jaguars’ linebacker corps, especially Daryl Smith, who does everything well on the second level. Paul Posluszny isn’t much behind Smith and was a fine addition to Jacksonville’s defense in free agency a year ago. The Jags’ secondary lacks star power but it is pretty solid at each position. The Jaguars were 10th in the league in points allowed last year. They could improve upon that in 2012.

3. Tennessee Titans: There isn’t a lot of star power here, but the Titans are very young on defense and could be poised to improve. Youngsters Jurrell Casey, Karl Klug, Alterraun Verner, Jason McCourty and others are much better players than many casual NFL fans know. Third-round pick Mike Martin should be the perfect complement to the run-stuffing Casey and the lighter pass-rushing Klug in the Titans’ defensive tackle rotation.

The Titans’ pass rush was a huge problem last season, as only Tampa Bay recorded fewer sacks than Tennessee, but it should be much better this year, especially with the addition of Kamerion Wimbley. Former first-round pick Derrick Morgan also should finally be healthy. This is a key season for Morgan -- and the Titans need more from him.

On the second level, the Titans are now very young and active. Colin McCarthy is a tackling machine and should quickly establish himself as a leader of this defense. Tennessee lost Cortland Finnegan to the Rams in free agency, but overall, their coverage people were above average last season -- despite that suspect pass rush. Finnegan had an excellent season, though, and will be difficult to replace.

The Titans look to be improved up front in their ability to pressure opposing quarterbacks, but not as strong on the back end in coverage. Only seven teams allowed fewer points than Tennessee during the 2011 season. Maintaining that standard could be difficult, but overall, this is a pretty solid group in just about all areas.

4. Indianapolis Colts: The Colts might have the worst defense in the NFL this season. Their run defense was abysmal last season. Indianapolis has nowhere to go but up in this department and additions such as Cory Redding, Brandon McKinney and Josh Chapman should help shore up the run defense at the line of scrimmage. Still, such a drastic scheme change really leaves Indianapolis in a bind on this side of the ball for 2012.

Although the Colts surely will not be playing with the lead as much as they did when Peyton Manning was behind center, the edge pass-rush presence of Dwight Freeney and Robert Mathis should still rank among the best in the NFL. Mathis was probably the Colts’ best defensive player last season. He can still get it done. I believe the same is true with Freeney. As good as Freeney and Mathis still are, just the Titans and Buccaneers sacked opposing quarterbacks less than Indianapolis.

Besides Freeney and Mathis, Pat Angerer and especially Antoine Bethea are above-average starters for their respective positions. But outside of these four, the remaining prevalent members of the Colts’ defense are littered with flaws. One player I am very high on is Drake Nevis, but Nevis was drafted to be an upfield disruptive three-technique. The problem here is that if Indianapolis goes with a predominantly 3-4 alignment, Nevis’ great penetrating abilities could be wasted. That is the problem with switching schemes -- players from the former philosophy aren’t well-suited for what the new coaching staff has in mind. This applies to many members of the Colts’ defense, which up until now was a fast-flowing undersized unit built on speed. Now this unit will be building to be much like what Chuck Pagano coached in Baltimore -- and Nevis is one of many examples of the problems with making such a change.

The Colts were not strong at all in coverage last year -- and it doesn’t look as though they will be much improved in 2012. They are particularly weak at cornerback. Indianapolis also had the fewest interceptions in the league last year. Pagano and his defensive staff will be more creative with their looks and pressures, which he hopes will leads to more turnovers created. Getting more Ravens-type of defensive players will be a massive priority for Indianapolis next offseason.

The Houston Texans have gotten a lot of praise for fourth-round pick Jared Crick, a defensive end out of Nebraska.

In his final Insider file assessing early impact players out of the draft, Mel Kiper Jr. looks at the fourth, fifth, sixth and seventh rounds that has Crick as Kiper's lone entry from the AFC South.

Houston spent the 126th overall selection on Crick, the defensive lineman out of Nebraska

Writes Kiper:

He's not J.J. Watt, but Crick could be used the same way in Wade Phillips' scheme. Undersized for an NFL 4-3 DT, I see Crick using his quickness as a penetrating 3-4 DE (though it's hard to classify positions in Phillips' system in truly conventional terms). I once had a first-round grade on Crick. He landed in the fourth round only because of a laundry list of recent injuries -- though he did start every game in 2009 and 2010. He could be a steal if he can stay on the field.

The Texans have Watt and Antonio Smith as their base ends. Smith kicks inside in nickel situations when at least one of the outside linebackers creeps forward as a functionally a defensive end.

As first-round pick Whitney Mercilus gives the team a third quality outside linebacker, Crick should give them a third quality end.

Houston needs help on the right side of the offensive line. It needs another dynamic receiver. It needs depth at outside linebacker. It needs a corner, particularly if it doesn’t think second-year man Brandon Harris can replace departed veteran Jason Allen.

In 2011, in the first year of a 3-4 front under defensive coordinator Wade Phillips, the Texans did just fine with the nose tackles they had -- Shaun Cody and Earl Mitchell. Phillips predicted that.

But if you’re looking for a spot in the returning defensive lineup that can be upgraded, it’s Kareem Jackson’s cornerback spot (where the team is fiercely dedicated to the No. 20 pick from 2010) and its nose tackle, where the Cody-Mitchell tandem is not regarded as the strongest possible.

They combined to play just two-thirds of the team’s snaps (38.19 percent for Mitchell, 28.22 for Mitchell), with Antonio Smith kicking inside in the nickel package. Cody and Mitchell are asked to stuff the run and force more than one blocker to get at least a hand on them.

Even so, the Texans are allowed to get more than 50 tackles, two tackles for a loss and two sacks from their two primary nose tackles. Which is why they should draft one if they can.

DeMeco Ryans was due a $5.9 million base salary this season.

It’s Philadelphia’s salary to pay now.

The Texans dealt the inside linebacker to the Eagles. In return they get Philadelphia’s fourth-round draft choice in 2012, the fourth overall pick in the round that originally belonged to Tampa Bay. The Eagles and Texans also swapped third-round choices, with the Texans climbing from the 89th overall pick to the 77th pick in the draft.

Texans general manager Rick Smith issued this statement:

“DeMeco Ryans contributed significantly toward helping us build the foundation we hope will bring a world championship to the city of Houston. His professionalism and leadership cannot be over-exaggerated. This move was mutually beneficial for the Texans immediate and long-term goals, DeMeco’s career, and the Philadelphia Eagles. We appreciate all the hard work and effort DeMeco invested in our organization and wish him only the best moving forward. He is a class act.”

While fans surely feel an emotional attachment to Ryans, a quality player who was a great spokesman for the franchise, they should understand the move.

Ryans played only 58.23 percent of the Texans' defensive plays last season, a year after he missed the Texans’ final 10 games following shredding an Achilles tendon.

Darryl Sharpton was cutting into Ryans’ snaps before he missed the final eight games of last season after suffering a right knee/hamstring injury.

Sharpton was a fourth-round draft pick out of Miami in 2010. If he’s healthy, Sharpton is a young player the team will feel comfortable plugging in this fall beside Brian Cushing on base defense downs.

The move doesn’t do anything to alleviate the team’s cap issues. It actually will cost Houston $750,000 this year. While Ryans was due the large base salary, he had $9 million left of a prorated signing bonus that moves to this year with the trade. He will be off the Texans' books next year.

They also need options for the right side of their line, where they cut tackle Eric Winston and watched guard Mike Brisiel go to Oakland as a free agent.

Those two and Ryans makes for three starters lost from the defending AFC South champs.

Two of his teammates spoke to Sirius XM NFL Radio.

• Antonio Smith: “It’s a big surprise to me. I don’t know what is going on at this moment but DeMeco is a great player, a leader. He’s going to be an asset to each and every team he plays for. … Our defense is going to miss him. That’s all I can say about it. I’m not in agreeance with it.”
• J.J. Watt: “DeMeco by far and away [is] the most respected guy on the defense, our leader. He’s a guy that everybody turns to especially when things are going tough. It’s tough to see him go, but at the end of the day, what can we do? He’s obviously going to go play great football for the Eagles. Now it’s time for the rest of us as a defense to step up and find a new leader and go out there and play football. We can’t do anything about that so it’s time for us to go out there and do it on our own.”

Following their breakthrough into the playoffs, the Houston Texans face some big questions.

Foremost among them are the contracts of outside linebacker Mario Williams and running back Arian Foster. Williams can become an unrestricted free agent and potentially command the richest contract for a defensive player in league history. Foster will be a restricted free agent who could be pursued by another club.

While general manager Rick Smith and coach Gary Kubiak worry about roster construction, and while many analysts like this one predict continued big things for the franchise, team president Jamey Rootes is looking at growing the team’s loyal following.

He’s already using a theme Kubiak is sure to hit with his players when they reassemble:

“You start back at zero. Nobody gives you anything. You’ve got to go out and earn it again.”

As with any team, a playoff breakthrough marked a significant increase in interest in the Texans.

But because theirs was the first time in the postseason, a lot of people were being exposed for the first time. Rootes wants to ensure the big moments of last season -- an AFC South clinching win in Cincinnati, a home playoff win against the Bengals, and a tough divisional-round loss in Baltimore -- are sticky.

“I thought it would be kind of a slow build, kind of a slow climb,” he said. “But from the time we got on the plane to go to Cincinnati to the time we came home as division champs, the world was completely different ...

“While we’ve had this great base of fans, that being recognized as a winner brought a whole new group of people into our family. Now it’s our job to hold them.”

Rootes cited three great indicators:

• TV ratings for the two playoff games in Houston shot up to a 36 from an average of 24. That’s an estimate of the percentage of the market watching. The playoff game in Baltimore had a 68 share in Houston, meaning 68 percent of the households with TVs on were watching at that given time.
• Texans gear was under Christmas trees all over Houston. The team sold more than $1 million worth of merchandise in just December, and Rootes said the Texans are up 200 percent, year over year.
• National attention was up, as Rootes noticed the Texans being featured in ESPN’s weekly “NFL Matchup” show.

Said defensive end Antonio Smith: “It’s way more intense. The fans have done, I don’t want to say a 180, but the city blew up. The difference is noticeable. I think it’s very important we hold onto those new people, that’s big for any organization, starting to secure a legacy…

“There are still people in their hearts who are Houston Oilers fans, they’re torn in between the Titans and us. We won a lot over. We have to continue to do so, and have the city 100 percent behind us.”

Rootes will latch on to that, campaigning to win over anybody and everybody who’s hasn’t connected or committed to wearing Texans colors.

“Now these new people are exposed to us, which is good,” Rootes said. “We weren’t on their radar before. I think it comes back to the fundamentals. The people that loved us, we were on their radar, they saw what we do: ‘These guys are working hard, they're trying to build a champion, they create memorable experiences for us every time I’m involved with them.’

“We talk about 'create raving fans'; that’s our goal. Do whatever it takes to delight people, and that’s how you conduct yourself, and how you serve people and the experiences you provide. Do great things for Houston.”

It’s marketing spin language, for sure. But it’s an important time for the franchise to make it work, no matter how it’s framed or executed.

While the football side plans how to field the best team possible for an encore performance, the administrative side needs to do the same. To grow the team’s footprint, to ensure that deep roots take hold, Rootes and his staff need to seize on the good feelings that linger and make people feel invested.

The Texans didn’t play a prime-time game last season, so as good as they were they had no national game until Cincinnati visited for the playoff opener.

Houston is sure to be a regular presence in prime time in 2012, when an expanded Thursday night package will expand the opportunity. Rootes said he campaigns with the league and with network executives for the publicity, the best advertising he can get.

“There is such energy in the stadium that the world doesn’t know about, it’s like a local phenomenon,” he said. “We want to expose it to the world, and national television is the way to do that.”

I suspect the Texans will go from invisible on the national slate to regularly featured. The hope is that they can play even better than they did while going 10-6 in 2011.

And, that as they do, an additional layer of fans in southeastern Texas and beyond will be invested in it all.

Monday we presented the All AFC-South offense. Today we move to defense and special teams.

I felt like there was a worthy candidate at every spot, and beyond wrestling with choosing between Dwight Freeney and Robert Mathis for a defensive end spot, I didn’t have any gigantic struggles.

To accommodate the personnel of the 3-4 Texans along with the 4-3 Colts, Texans and Titans, we created a 12-man defense with four linemen and four linebackers. It seemed like a fair approach to me that stops short of bastardizing the team.

DEs: Houston rookie J.J. Watt was a giant presence from the start, serving as a key piece of the team’s revamped front. He was easily the division’s rookie of the year. Mathis gets the nod over Freeney but it could have gone either way. They both had fewer chances because teams threw less against them, but remained quite effective.

DTs: Antonio Smith of the Texans played end in base and tackle in nickel and his versatility was really highlighted in the 3-4 system. Casey was not at a similar level, but the Titans rookie was a stout and reliable run-stopper.

OLBs: The Jaguars were stacked at linebacker thanks to their free-agent shopping. On an upgraded defense, Daryl Smith really got to show himself a fine player. In Houston, Connor Barwin blossomed into an 11.5-sack guy who was constantly around the quarterback.

ILBs: Brian Cushing was a terror for the Texans, proving an excellent fit as an inside backer for Wade Phillips. At his best, he was something to behold. The same can be said for Jacksonville’s Paul Posluszny. He gave the Jaguars everything they were looking for in terms of production and leadership as a free-agent acquisition.

CBs: Houston’s Johnathan Joseph was the AFC South MVP in my eyes. The Texans hit a home run by adding Joseph, a settling force in the secondary who played sticky coverage all season. Tennessee’s Cortland Finnegan didn’t produce on the same level, but his willingness and ability to shift inside and play a physical brand of nickel was a positive factor for the Titans' defense.

S: The Texans' move of Glover Quin from nickel corner to strong safety worked out beautifully and they are trend-setters in terms of having guys with corner skills playing in the middle of the field. He was steady and productive. Dwight Lowery showed good smarts and awareness for the Jaguars at a spot that was a huge hole the previous season. Signing him will be a priority.

K: Rob Bironas of the Titans missed just three field goals all season. While Jacksonville’s Josh Scobee missed only two, he tried fewer. And Bironas had a division-high 44 touchbacks

P: The Colts' Pat McAfee gets the edge over the Titans' Brett Kern in a very close race. Punting out of trouble was more important more often for Indianapolis, and McAfee’s net average was hurt by less than stellar coverage but shouldn’t offset his slightly bigger leg.

PR, KR: There was no outstanding work done in these spots for anyone in the division, so we pretty much go chalk. Tennessee punt returner Marc Mariani led in punt return average and Jacksonville kick returner Deji Karim led the division in kick return average.

ST: Kassim Osgood of the Jaguars continued to be a top guy in coverage work.

Many NFL awards have been doled out, but I know the top players from the division still await our All-AFC South Team.

So it’s time to set about putting it together.

Here you’ll see my initial sketch of the team. The players I’ve added, in my eyes, are unquestionably worthy of spots on the team. Debate their presence if you are so compelled.

But I am most interested in your help filling in the blanks.

Last year showed I am willing to leave a spot blank if we don’t have a quality person to insert into the lineup.

The Texans’ change to a 3-4 defensive front provided a new wrinkle. My solution? We make the defense 12-players deep, with four linemen and four linebackers. That allows us to mix the personnel of three 4-3 fronts with the Texans’ 3-4 front and come out with a satisfactory team.

In my eyes, with apologies to the Colts' Pat Angerer, the linebacker slots are fairly easy to fill.

You can have significant influence over my thinking as the final team is formulated. As of now, I intend to post it on Friday.

So hop into comments here and make a case for your man. Or men. Thanks in advance for your part in it.

A quick zip around the division to catch up on some things that have happened while I had a few days off.

The trio of coaches charged with shaping Blaine Gabbert in Jacksonville is in place: coach Mike Mularkey, offensive coordinator Bob Bratkowski and quarterback coach Greg Olsen. Olsen comes to the Jaguars from the Buccaneers where he worked with Josh Freeman, who regressed badly last season. Everyone’s got a clean slate now, and these coaches will be judged largely on what they are able to make of Gabbert in his second season.

The Colts' list of candidates to be the new head coach is not going to excite the general population. There seems to be a lot of buzz about Jim Tressel, and it appears he’s met with the team twice, but we don’t know who else has and it may be a mistake to label him the front-runner. It’s funny: When the team brought him aboard as a meager replay consultant, we tried to find a connection and label him as a Bill Polian guy, a Chris Polian guy or a Jim Caldwell guy. Whether he’s the next coach or not, it turns out he was a Jim Irsay guy.

Dave McGinnis has been a valuable member of the Titans' coaching staff for years. He’s left to re-join Jeff Fisher in St. Louis. While Mike Munchak will miss McGinnis as a sounding board, the addition of Keith Millard as a pass-rushing coach looks like a smart one. The Titans have not traditionally rushed the passer well from beyond the defensive line. The league is specializing, and having a coach who goes beyond positions to teach a set of skills is a fresh approach in Tennessee.

Texans center Chris Myers, Texans defensive lineman Antonio Smith and Jaguars special-teamer Montell Owens were added to the AFC Pro Bowl roster. Wade Phillips was named assistant coach of the year by the Pro Football Writers of America and Pro Football Weekly. Congrats to all.

Houston Texans

The Houston Chronicle's John McClain answers a dozen hot-button questions about the team heading into the offseason, such as whether this playoff season was a fluke, whether Mario Williams will be back, and what's the biggest need in this year's draft.

McClain ranks the Texans.

Texans center Chris Myers and defensive end Antonio Smith have been added to the AFC’s Pro Bowl roster.

Indianapolis Colts

The Colts asked for permission to interview Bengals defensive coordinator Mike Zimmer to fill their head-coaching job.

The team is expected to interview New Orleans offensive coordinator Pete Carmichael either today or Friday, according to the Indianapolis Star's Mike Chappell.

Meet the candidates to become the Colts' next head coach.

Jacksonville Jaguars

The team hired Greg Olson, who was the Buccaneer's offensive coordinator from 2009-11, to mold Blaine Gabbert as its quarterbacks coach.

Ron Zook told the Florida Times-Union's Tania Ganguli that he had not been offered special-teams coordinator job by the Jaguars.

Tennessee Titans

Mike Munchak added Steve Brown, a former teammate from his days with the Oilers in the '80s, to his staff as assistant secondary coach, reports The Tennessean's Jim Wyatt.

The Examiner's Greg Arias identifies the Titans' biggest areas of need and some players who may be of interest to the Titans in the first round of the NFL draft.

The Titans' 2011 draft class was one of the most productive ever for the team, writes The Tennessean's John Glennon.

Music City Miracles grades the performance of the team's tight ends last season.

BALTIMORE -- The equipment truck just outside the Houston Texans' locker room sounded in need of a tuneup. It chugged loudly and unnecessarily in a tunnel at M&T Bank Stadium, doing its part to drown out the ugly end of a breakthrough season.

But the Texans spoke up proudly about the season that had just crashed to a close, talking of the disappointing suddenness of losing 20-13 to the Baltimore Ravens and falling just short of a trip to play the New England Patriots in the AFC Championship Game.

“Everybody sees the potential that this team has now,” said running back Arian Foster, who sliced through Baltimore’s vaunted defense for 132 rushing yards. “I think we gained a little respect in this league this year and it only continues to grow from here. We have a young team, a talented team and I think the upside is tremendous.”

Still, opportunities like this one are hard to come by and missing out on them fills a team with regret.

In a regular-season loss here on Oct. 16, the Texans saw the Ravens really come after the quarterback. But with rookie T.J. Yates under center rather than veteran Matt Schaub, Baltimore backed off, looking to complicate things with coverage rather than pressure.

And the hosts got what they needed, making the conventional pregame wisdom come true: a rookie quarterback wouldn’t be able to win here.

Yates threw three interceptions that turned into 10 points. The real killer of the trio was No. 3. Houston had the ball at the Ravens’ 38-yard line at the two-minute warning. The coverage showed just a single high safety and that dictated Yates to look to Andre Johnson deep down the right side.

But Yates failed to convince that lone safety, perennial Pro Bowler Ed Reed, to linger in center field. Reed raced to the right side of the end zone, went up and pulled in a pass intended for Johnson.

“You can’t coach a kid enough as a quarterback how good No. 20 is in the middle of the field and he found out the hard way today,” Texans coach Gary Kubiak said.

Said Yates: “I learned pretty quickly that just because I read the right coverage, it may not work. Ed Reed makes up for so much. He is all over the place. You may be making the right read, but Reed will make a play anyway.”

It shouldn’t have come down to a single scenario.

After they fell behind 17-3, the Texans really took control of the game. The defense sacked Ravens quarterback Joe Flacco five times and made him very uncomfortable. Cornerback Johnathan Joseph blanketed receiver Torrey Smith, who made one 9-yard catch. The Ravens didn’t break a run longer than 9 yards. Eight times in 15 possessions the Ravens punted after only three plays. The Texans produced a big goal-line stand at the end of the third quarter.

But Houston couldn’t find a takeaway to offset its giveaways -- the three picks and a fumbled punt by Jacoby Jones.

They popped the ball out twice, but fumbles by Flacco and Ray Rice were recovered by the Ravens.

“If they would have just bounced our way I think we would have got a whole other outcome,” defensive end Antonio Smith said.

In time, the Texans will come to appreciate a landmark season. They captured the AFC South crown, earned the franchise’s first playoff berth and won a wild-card round playoff game over Cincinnati before falling just short against the Ravens.

Because of the way it played out, they left town convinced they were the better team that just didn’t play better.

Tired as they may be, they’ll be tossing and turning Sunday night and beyond, running through plays they could have made that would have made things different.

“I’m not going to get a lot of sleep tonight, I know a lot of guys on this team are not going to get a lot of sleep tonight,” said Foster, who traded jerseys with Ray Lewis after the game. “It’s what we do for a living, it’s how we defend our legacy, how we write our story.

“And it matters. It matters to me. It matters to these guys in this locker room. It’s one of those things that’s going to haunt you until you can get that taste out of your mouth Week 1 of next year.”

Players are accustomed to routine and always expect to win. They go about their business expecting the pattern to continue. Everything tells them that Monday morning should be about review and recovery and the start of a plan for what’s next.

But now, nothing’s next.

“It’s weird,” linebacker Brian Cushing said. “I don’t think anyone wants to stop playing football in here and I think that’s a different feeling than we’ve ever had in this locker room.”

Wait 'til next year is the familiar refrain of every talented team that comes up short.

The Texans said it Sunday, still hurting. The sentiment will grow stronger as time passes, putting distance between them and the details of this loss.

“Coming into an environment like this, you have to play clean,” safety Glover Quin said. “We didn’t play clean on offense or defense and they won the game.

“Next year will be different. This game will be at our house.”

The ability of the Texans’ defense to run stunts that an offensive line doesn’t have time to react to will be one big factor in Saturday’s Cincinnati-Houston playoff game.

The same personnel man who spelled that out so clearly also delved into other areas of the matchup:

Arian Foster running routes: Cincinnati has to keep the Texans' running game from getting going, because everything spins off of that. Put the game on the rookie quarterback. Houston’s system and Gary Kubiak design easy throws, especially early, that get T.J. Yates some confidence and rhythm early. Foster will be a huge part of that. The Bengals don’t have a defensive back or linebacker who will be a good matchup on the Texans running back as a pass-catcher. “That’s a problem,” he said. “He’s not Darren Sproles, but he’s close to that. He’s an excellent route runner, he’s got excellent hands, he’s a matchup nightmare.”

Beware of Antonio Smith: Against a high-quality pass rush, Cincinnati’s strategy should be obvious. “Get the ball out quick and try to establish your running game.” he said. “If they don’t, it’s going to be a long game. They have guys that can get after the quarterback. Antonio Smith might not have the sacks that Connor Barwin or Brooks Reed have, but he is a problem. He can cause a lot of disruption. He’ll force plays to Barwin, he’ll force plays to Reed, he’ll force plays to J.J. Watt.”

His expectation: “I think Houston will win this game. I think their defense is going to come out and really get after Andy Dalton.”

They come from everywhere, with a great initial push that puts blockers on their heels and speeds up the clock in quarterbacks' heads.

The Houston Texans have a lot of excellent pieces. But to me, nothing sets the tone more than their swarming defensive front. A different defensive lineman or linebacker pops through into the backfield and forces a mistake, drags the quarterback down or strips the ball and pounces on it with great frequency.

Forty-four sacks are nice, and ranked sixth in the league. But they are hardly the only representation of how effectively the Texans have rushed. Opposing quarterbacks completed a league-low 51.9 percent of their passes against Houston. They've been hurried and harassed, throwing inaccurately and throwing balls away to avoid hits and sacks. The front always has hands up, and batted down a league-best 19 passes.

The work of the group is going to be the No. 1 thing to watch Saturday at Reliant Stadium. Can Cincinnati’s big offensive line keep the Texans off quarterback Andy Dalton long enough to let him work? If it can’t, the Texans should wind up in prime position for a second-round game in Baltimore.

“The front seven is probably the best in football; they flat get after you,” Colts center Jeff Saturday said. “Antonio Smith is their best player. J.J. Watt, to be a rookie, he’s been very impressive. And then those guys [Connor Barwin and Brooks Reed] come off the corners -- they call them linebackers, they’re really defensive ends.

“So you’re playing a five-man front all day. DeMeco Ryans and Brian Cushing can run with the best of them. They just give you everything they’ve got. I respect the heck of the way they play.”

Dalton, who’s missed work with the flu this week, said the constant effort of the Texans’ defense is what he notices every time he watches it and what the Bengals have to be prepared to counter.

“They just play so hard,” he said. “That’s the one thing you see on film. They are never giving up. Even guys who are getting blocked, it’s not like they are stopping their feet. They are doing everything they can to get off of their blocks. That’s what makes their defense play the way they do.”

An AFC personnel man I spoke with this week said he sees a weakness for Cincinnati on the interior line, where left guard Nate Livings, center Kyle Cook and right guard Mike McGlynn will be susceptible against Houston.

The Texans do superb work with stunts and twists where a defender loops around and makes an offensive line switch who they block. Those plays will cause the Bengals’ bigger, slower linemen problems.

“They run their stunt game better than anybody,” the personnel man said. “They rush to the point where the offensive line cannot pass off, they are so deep into their sets, deep into their rush, that you can’t pass it off. If you pass it off, another guy is going to come free. They do a real good job making it so those offensive linemen cannot come off of you to take the looping rusher.

“The Texans are just too deep into their rush, you can’t do it. There is not enough time. They do it so quick, they are so tight. If you want to put on a clinic of how to rush with stunts, put on the Houston Texans' defense. That’s like no other team I’ve seen do it, that’s as perfect as you can do it.”

Houston defensive coordinator Wade Phillips will find stuff out of the regular-season matchup, which the Texans won in Cincinnati on Dec. 11, to exploit in a second chance.

What’s the antidote for the Bengals?

Dalton will have to get rid of the ball in a hurry, and drives will be reliant on yards after the catch and the ability to string together long drives with a lot of first downs. The Texans will win some plays by taking away Dalton’s first and second reads, and he simply won’t have the time or opportunity to find the third.

Of course, Cincinnati rushes the quarterback well, too. The Bengals had 45 sacks from 15 different guys. But their 4-3 front is more straightforward, and Houston's offensive line is another team strength.

Smith said the Texans take pride in dependably rushing the passer every week. Those 44 regular-season sacks were the sixth-best total in the NFL. Eleven different linemen and linebackers factored into those sacks.

“That’s consistent, man,” Smith said. “The front seven has done a tremendous job, especially with all the sacks spread over not just one or two guys. … Each and every person on this defense has a role and a job to do, and is capable of getting it done.

“We’re capable of getting to the quarterback, I don’t think that’s been a problem all year. Teams started changing up the way they attacked us with the quick passes and the three-step drops and slide protections. But with our outside rushers we’re still able to get there.”

The respect card is in play in Houston.

Defensive end Antonio Smith saw Vegas odds of the NFL teams still in the playoff picture last week. And the Texans had worse odds than anyone, including the Cowboys and Giants -- when one of those teams was sure not to make the playoffs.

Smith played in the Super Bowl with Arizona before he jumped to the Texans in 2009, and he will do all he can to spread knowledge about the playoff experience.

He’ll also relish the perceived low expectations.

“It’s from scratch right now, but I like that,” he said. “And I am hoping that all the non-Houston Texans fans do that exact same thing, because I really do think that we function better when everybody is against us, when we are the underdog.

“They don’t have to believe or we can be the team least picked to go to the Super Bowl or win the first playoff game. That fuel has helped us in the past and I would love to have it.”

But you’re the third seed playing at home, I said, you can’t pretend no one is expecting you to win?

“They’ve already said it, the Houston Texans are the least picked team to win the Super Bowl, so they already believe it,” he said. “They think everything was just a fluke. That’s why we’ve got to go heard to work and make sure we prove them wrong.”

HOUSTON -- A couple halftime thoughts from Reliant Stadium, where the Titans lead the Texans 13-10.

• The Titans smartly came out with something different, using shotgun with an empty backfield. They had great success with it early, but seemed to sag when it didn’t lead to a touchdown drive right out of the gate. An injury to receiver Damian Williams that’s knocked him from the game may force them to use it less than they’d like the rest of the way.
• Houston’s front is great. The Texans swarmed against a good pass-protecting offensive line and produced two Antonio Smith sacks of Matt Hasselbeck. The linemen and linebackers just come from a different spot on every play. I think that pass rush is going to key them in the playoffs.
• Jake Delhomme got away with a very bad throw late in the second quarter. Cornerback Jason McCourty would have probably gone for a touchdown if he didn’t flub the pass like a man who had casts on two broken hands.
• Receiver Donnie Avery benefitted from Williams’ injury and caught the Titans' touchdown on a smartly designed play. Tennessee bunched three receivers right, then had Hasselbeck throw to Avery against Jason Allen on the left from the 1-yard line. It was Avery's first catch of the year.
• The Texans should pound it with running backs Ben Tate and Derrick Ward in the second half. I think they can break the Titans' defense that way, and that the Titans could be frustrated they aren’t having an easier time considering Houston didn’t dress Arian Foster, Johnathan Joseph or Owen Daniels.
• I thought rules dictated teams announce in-game injuries. But the Texans have not said what prompted T.J. Yates’ trip to the locker room and exit from the game. And the Titans took a long, long time before finally revealing at the half that Williams has a rib injury and his return is questionable.

The list of Texans Pro Bowl alternates is nine-deep. We don’t know where they rank in the line waiting for invites to Hawaii. But if they don’t go to the Super Bowl, odds are several of them wind up on the AFC’s roster because of drop-outs, injuries and the absence of players from the AFC’s Super Bowl representative.

The guys who could still get in: outside linebacker Connor Barwin, left tackle Duane Brown, outside linebacker Brian Cushing, tight end Owen Daniels, receiver Andre Johnson, returner Jacoby Jones, center Chris Myers, end Antonio Smith and end J.J. Watt.

(Side note: If you are lamenting how some of these guys aren't in, you should also be questioning how Johnson is anywhere close as he's spent most of the season rehabilitating hamstring injuries.)

John McClain of the Houston Chronicle writes this morning that the “snubs” can help fuel an anger the team needs to funnel into better play. A couple wins now and they’ll gain a lot of the respect they may be lacking at this point.

I think Cushing and Myers should be on the roster. Brown also has a strong case, but the first time a guy is deserving he often doesn’t make it.

Jerome Solomon wondered if suspensions Cushing and Brown have served for violations of the league’s policy against performance-enhancers hurt their candidacies. I feel certain those hurt, and that’s part of the long-term consequences for a positive test for a banned substance no matter your defense.

Writes Solomon:

Brown and Cushing both were suspended for four games of the 2010 season for violating the NFL’s performance-enhancing drug policy. Brown says he failed a test after taking a supplement that he didn’t know contained a banned substance. Cushing maintained that his failed test could be explained by his natural body chemistry, as opposed to anything he took.

“I’m not sure if that played a part or not,” Brown told me Tuesday evening. “I think just it is more of getting your name out there, getting on the radar. The guys that made it have been doing it for a long time. I can admit that I’ve been up and down in my career and haven’t put together other solid years like this one.”

That mature response by Brown to disappointing news is a great sign for the Texans, perhaps a better overall development than being named to the AFC roster would have been.