ESPN NFL

The Houston Texans have uncertainty at linebacker. But they also have flexibility and time.

Two things are certain: Brian Cushing will be back from a torn ACL and manning the weak inside spot, and second-year man Whitney Mercilus will graduate to the starter on the weak side.

Two things are uncertain: Who mans the inside spot next to Cushing, and who will line up on the strong side?

There are two primary scenarios.

• One of the team’s rookie outside linebackers, Sam Montgomery or Trevardo Williams, shows up big from the beginning and starts on the strong side, nudging Brooks Reed to the inside.
• One of the team’s injury-prone inside options, Darryl Sharpton or Tim Dobbins, earns the spot alongside Cushing, allowing Reed to remain on the strong side.

Either scenario could be fine on a defense looking to replace Connor Barwin, the weakside linebacker who had a disappointing 2012 and left for Philadelphia as a free agent, and needing to find the right guy to play inside with Cushing.

"The one thing I've learned about Wade Phillips is he knows exactly what he's doing when he drafts a player," Cushing said. "He sees things in people and prospects other coaches and scouts don't. He will always play the best players and we have a lot to pick from now."

Reed can key a lot of the flexibility.

“Brooks can do it [inside], he played inside some last year and he played real well,” said Phillips, Houston's defensive coordinator. “It’s not something foreign. He’s played inside enough where we can say, ‘Wow, he can play inside, too.’ And we’d still rush him on third downs outside. You’d still get the rush factor with him. It’s a possibility.

“But right now, we’re just looking at those two rookies to see how they do. It just depends on how good our young players are, and what they can do.”

Sharpton isn’t part of the Texans' organized team activities right now, still recovering from a hip issue that landed him on injured reserve at the end of the regular season.

For Montgomery and Williams, who were 4-3 defensive ends at LSU and UConn, respectively, the big transition might be about dropping into coverage.

That’s nowhere near as complicated as some people make it out to be, Phillips said. The Texans' defense can drop the strongside linebacker into the flat, but “he doesn’t ever cover the tight end,” Phillips said.

“It’s not that big a deal,” Phillips said. “I think people can go overboard on what kind of drop guy you have to have, because he doesn’t drop all that much.”

Rushing the passer remains the primary job, and the defense rushes five players almost all the time -- typically three linemen and both outside backers.

“This is what we normally get, guys who played defensive end in college," Phillips said. “We’re excited about both of them, we think both of them can do it. I’ve had a lot of them in the past who’ve done it, and these guys both have the ability. We’ll see what happens. Both of them can rush the passer No. 1, and that’s what we look for in outside backers.”

Phillips and the Texans want to have three outside linebackers they can rotate. But in 2011 they lost Mario Williams early, and Barwin and Reed played virtually all the time. Last season, Mercilus wasn’t ready to contribute early, then Reed missed four games because of injury.

If both Montgomery and Williams pan out, and both Sharpton and Dobbins stay healthy, the Texans could have serious depth and actually be able to rotate more on the outside.

But Phillips won’t set any playing-time goals. He said it depends on how good guys are, and what kind of stamina they have. He’s had starters who have played 94 percent and guys who have played 80.

Cushing was lost when he tore up his knee in the Texans' fifth game last season. He looks very good now, Phillips said, and Houston expects him to be on the field on opening day with no issues.

That will be the biggest, and best, change to the linebacking corps.

“He’s running around, he’s running fast and moving well right now," Phillips said. "So I think three months from now he’ll really be ready to go. … He’s a fantastic player, he’s a difference-maker.”

“The type of energy that he brings out there,” Mercilus said of Cushing, “it’s unreal.”

Even without Cushing, and with eight players starting at linebacker at some point, the Texans were seventh against the run in 2012.

Owner Bob McNair said after the season that the team needed better linebacker depth, but it’s silly to think any team can have better depth than the Texans did. Any team needing to play that many guys at one position will have problems.

Moving forward, with defensive tackle J.J. Watt, Cushing and safety Ed Reed, the Texans' defense will be strong up the middle with star players. That is the reigning defensive player of the year in front of Cushing, and a future Hall of Famer behind him.

The team’s 2012 first-round pick, Mercilus, will take over Barwin’s spot, and expectations are high for his second season. He got on the field more late last season when Brooks Reed was hurt and had a bigger role once Reed returned from his groin injury.

Mercilus had six sacks, the third most on a team that relied heavily on Watt, who notched 20.5.

“In Year 2 I can do a lot more, especially coming into a starting role,” Mercilus said. “Run techniques are something I’ll be focusing on a lot more so that I’m a more well-balanced player than I was last year.”

“The position they put me at plays a lot to my strengths. I’m pretty good at rushing the passer, getting after the quarterback. There’s not really a whole lot of thinking, it’s just getting out there and playing ball.”

After grabbing a strongside linebacker in the third round, the Houston Texans went with a weakside linebacker in the fourth: Trevardo Williams from UConn.

The Texans will now ideally have Whitney Mercilus and Williams on the weakside with Brooks Reed and Sam Montgomery on the strongside.

Williams is an athletic guy who was productive for the Huskies.

Like Montgomery, he will be making the conversion from college end to NFL linebacker under defensive coordinator Wade Phillips and linebacker coach Reggie Herring.

NFL Draft Scout raves about Williams’ abilities at the snap.

"Explosive athlete with natural edge-rush ability. Extremely quick get-off to go with flexibility that makes him a consistent threat to round the edge on every play. Big-time closing burst in space. Exhibits an impressive lateral quickness when countering back to the inside from the edge. May have the best pure get-off of anyone edge rusher in this year's class. Relentless motor to the whistle. Exhibits acceleration to track down the stretch play from the backside."

The Texans still need to address inside linebacker.

During his time at the NFL scouting combine, Sam Montgomery addressed concerns about the consistency of his effort as a college player.

The problem is that he admitted there were concerns about his effort as a college player.

He’s now a member of the Houston Texans, who Friday used their second third-round pick, 95th overall, on Montgomery, the LSU defensive end.

If there is an effort issue, it will fall on defensive coordinator Wade Phillips and linebackers coach Reggie Herring to get week-to-week and snap-to-snap effort from Montgomery. He seems to be a more complex character than they discussed.

At the combine, Montgomery said he didn’t play all-out because weak opponents allowed for some respite.

“You know, some weeks when we didn't have to play the harder teams, there were some times when effort was not needed,” Montgomery said in Indianapolis. “But when we had the big boys coming in, the Bamas or the South Carolinas, I grabbed close to those guys and went all-out.

“Of course, this is a new league, the NFL, and there are no small teams, small divisions. It is all Alabamas and LSUs every week. It's definitely something I have to get adjusted to, but I'm sure with the right coaching I will be fine.”

In a conference call with Houston media, Montgomery said his best quality is his relentlessness -- contradicting the idea that he didn’t give his all against teams like North Texas, Idaho and Towson.

Herring suggested that Montgomery got caught up in entertaining the media, given that he likes to talk, and that his film didn’t show a lack of effort -- something general manager Rick Smith has said he cannot accept from a player.

“If anything, the young man is guilty of being a bit naïve," Herring said.

A scout I asked about Montgomery didn’t reply with an effort question.

“He plays very hard,” he said. “Good pick.”

The Texans plan to start Montgomery out as a strongside linebacker, so their first four picks have addressed three areas of concern.

DeAndre Hopkins should be the No. 2 receiver, D.J. Swearinger could play a lot as a nickel or dime safety, tackle Brennan Williams could win the right-side job from the recovering Derek Newton and Montgomery should be part of a rotation.

Houston hopes he’ll be part of a three-man gang, along with Brooks Reed and Whitney Mercilus, that splits up the work at outside linebacker.

Last season, when the Texans drafted Mercilus in the first round, they said the same thing about using him with Connor Barwin and Reed.

But Reed’s playing time only really dipped when he missed four games hurt. Barwin, who’s since gone to Philadelphia as a free agent, played 93.8 percent of the defensive snaps last season. Even with four starts, Mercilus was on the field only 46.6 percent of the time.

The Texans will have to learn how well Montgomery can drop and cover, something he wasn’t doing as a college defensive end in a 4-3 scheme under LSU coordinator John Chavis.

“He’s big, strong, powerful, explosive individual,” Herring said. “The one thing that he will have to learn is that he will have to learn to drop a little bit and things that he hasn’t done as a defensive end at LSU -- understanding that they don’t cultivate OLBs in college, so we have to pull from the defensive end position.

“Basically, you have to give and take with their ability to drop out in space, something they haven’t done. That remains to be seen. That’s something we’ll have to work on. As far as playing the run and having pass rush skills and having the play strength that’s above average in college, he has a foundation to be a good outside backer for us.”

One thing that might have hastened the draft drop by Montgomery, once rated as a first-round prospect, was his inclusion on a list of 10 players by LSU strength and conditioning coach Tommy Moffitt.

Moffitt posted the names for scouts and said they were athletes who “miss workouts and always have an excuse.”

“They lack the self discipline and motivation to take care of their responsibilities,” the sign on an office door in the Tigers' facility said. “I will not answer questions regarding their performance numbers or character, as they care only about themselves.”

ESPN.com scout Matt Williamson said he likes the idea of Montgomery as a strongside linebacker in Phillips’ system.

“They really play a 5-2, so strongside 5-2 defensive end/outside linebacker,” Williamson said. “Supposedly had some awful interviews at combine, though.”

Williamson is the second person in one night who mentioned that to me.

Clearly, Montgomery’s interview with Houston was fine, but a guy who bombed in multiple other opportunities seems concerning.

Perhaps what Montgomery said about playing with Antonio Smith hints that he can qualify as wacky to some, wacko to others.

Montgomery said he knows Smith, the Texans defensive end who calls himself the "ninja assassin."

"I'm willing to take the ninja's teaching," Montgomery said, “and make ninjasonic out of it."

Personality-wise, Connor Barwin was one of the most affable, likeable guys in all of the AFC South.

Production-wise, after a big drop-off from 2011 to 2012, we’re going to have to wait and see.

Tania Ganguli of the Houston Chronicle reports that Barwin's six-year deal with the Eagles is worth $36 million, with incentives that can lift the value to $40 million. That’s close to what the Texans offered him before the 2012 season, she adds.

That’s a great payday for a guy who will have plenty of chances to rush the passer in Philadelphia’s new 3-4 defense.

The team he left behind had the foresight to draft a first-round outside linebacker last year. Whitney Mercilus didn’t force the Texans to play him as much as the team and player would have liked, but he did get to show off some pass-rushing skill. He will have to fare better against the run.

And Houston will need to draft another outside linebacker, a spot that is a regular restock position for plenty of 3-4 teams. Bryan Braman is a fan favorite for his work on special teams but has not looked comfortable or ready when given a chance on defense.

The Texans got insufficient pass rush from everyone on defense except J.J. Watt last season. Brooks Reed, Mercilus and whoever else lines up on the edge will find plenty of one-on-one matchups they have to win.

It’s unfortunate that the Texans are in a position in which free-agent defections affect what they do in the draft. But losing Glover Quin and Barwin means they have to restock with a safety and an outside linebacker, even if veteran safety Ed Reed joins the team.

They have to have contingency plans for an aging veteran and develop someone for when he’s done.

My plan for the Houston Texans as we approach the start of the 2013 NFL calendar year:

Finances: Cut wide receiver Kevin Walter, saving $2.5 million in cap space. Restructure the deal of wide receiver Andre Johnson, reducing his base salary from $10.5 million to $940,000 (giving him the rest now as a bonus), resulting in a salary cap savings of $7.17 million. Restructure the deal of cornerback Johnathan Joseph, reducing his base salary from $7.5 million to $940,000 (giving him the rest now as a bonus), resulting in a salary cap savings of $4.373 million. Extend defensive end Antonio Smith, reducing his 2013 base salary of $6 million and his cap charge of $9.5 million significantly.

Continuity: Re-sign safety Glover Quin. The Texans didn’t use the franchise tag on him but would face a tough hole to fill if they let him depart. He’s carved out a good role on this defense, and it would be mutually beneficial for him to stay. In addition to extending Smith and saving money, invest in inside linebacker Brian Cushing, who counts $4.643 against the cap in the final year of his initial deal and is due $3.143 million in base salary.

Turnover: Allow outside linebacker Connor Barwin to leave as a free agent if he gets a good deal. Although it would be nice to keep him, the team is equipped to move on without him and should be able to draft a player who can be the third guy at the position behind Brooks Reed and Whitney Mercilus. Brice McCain can be a nice nickel but should be replaceable if he finds an opportunity he prefers. Be done with nose tackle Shaun Cody.

Additions: Sign a free agent defensive tackle like Roy Miller from Tampa Bay. He’s a good run stopper who could replace Cody and be better in tandem with Earl Mitchell in Wade Phillips' 3-4 front, which allows for a smaller nose. Mike DeVito (New York Jets) could also work and wouldn’t have to transition to 3-4 thinking.

Draft: Swing big for a wide receiver who can line up opposite Johnson and pose a matchup threat. Perhaps Cal’s Keenan Allen or Clemson’s DeAndre Hopkins fits the bill. Tavon Austin from West Virginia, who is smaller and quicker, could give the Texans the sort of weapon they don’t have. Use other early picks on inside linebacker, safety depth and corner/nickel depth. Emphasize linebacker with late picks, looking to boost special teams coverage and blocking.

INDIANAPOLIS -- When the Houston Texans traded DeMeco Ryans after the 2011 season and as they look to recover from a 2012 filled with injuries at inside linebacker, I’ve maintained that a one-dimensional position doesn’t require big attention. It can be easily filled.

Tom Gower of Football Outsiders and Reading and Thinking Football sees it as a bigger need. He argues, basically, that if the Texans had a better inside linebacker to go with Brian Cushing, they wouldn’t be so quick to get out of their base defense.

That versatility would be helpful and give defensive coordinator Wade Phillips more options for how to, say, cover a tight end like Rob Gronkowski.

It’d be good if Phillips had extra alternatives, sure. The Patriots' quick-snapping offense gave the Texans all kind of troubles last season, twice. Perhaps if Houston could simply have stayed in base, we'd have seen less panic and more preparedness to matchup with what New England does so well.

So what’s general manager Rick Smith think about an inside linebacker spot where injury-prone Darryl Sharpton is the primary option at this point?

“Obviously you want the best players you can find, a guy that can stay on the field,” Smith said at the scouting combine. “You make a mistake if you try to limit yourself just to trying to fit a particular player in a particular role. I think what you try to do is you get the best football players and you let it sort itself out.”

If the team adds an inside backer who could be a three-down player, how much might Phillips change how he deploys his personnel?

“What I think is it gives him some options,” Smith said. “If we have two inside backers who can stay on the field in passing situations and matchup better against [tight ends], I think that’s a positive. If he wants to employ a three-safety system in other situations whether it’s longer distances or a blitz package or whatever it is, if he wants to employ those he can. I think the more you have players who can stay on the field and impact the game I think that’s the option, that’s the ultimate for him because it gives him the flexibility that he likes.”

There is one other possibility at play here.

If the Texans re-sign Connor Barwin, as they say they want to, then they’ll have Barwin, Brooks Reed and Whitney Mercilus as outside linebackers.

Coach Gary Kubiak indicated they could look at Reed inside.

"He's very capable of being a stack player, playing inside in our 3-4,” Kubiak said. “Yes, that could happen. But we'd liked him as a Sam, he's a heck of a Sam player. But you've always have to have some flexibility with one player or two players in various situations when you come across like what we did last year.

“Depending on what happens with our football team moving forward right now with Connor (Barwin) and some other things, we're always looking for some flexibility."

We’ll have to stay tuned.

But with or without Barwin, I expect the Texans will be adding a linebacker in free agency or the draft. The questions remain, with how much of an investment or with how high a pick?

HOUSTON -- Greetings from Reliant Stadium where we are approaching kickoff of the biggest game between division teams this season so far.

The big lineup/personnel question is about the Colts' offensive line, where A.Q. Shipley is in at center for the injured Samson Satele and Jeff Linkenbach is in at right tackle for the injured Winston Justice.

The Texans’ pass rush beyond J.J. Watt has largely stalled, and it would be giant if the outside linebackers, Connor Barwin and Whitney Mercilus, could generate some consistent pressure or make some big plays against quarterback Andrew Luck.

It was pouring outside when I came in at about 9:30 a.m. CT. The Reliant Stadium roof is pretty much always closed, so there was no doubt it was going to be closed today. Fans here often stay away rather than venturing out into the rain, the Houston Chronicle's John McClain tells me. It will be interesting to see if the weather manages to help the Colts by keeping some people away and making it a bit less loud. The over-under for when I dry out is halftime. I'm taking the over.

A couple notes of interest heading into this game, thanks to ESPN Stats & Information:

• Luck needs 260 passing yards to break Cam Newton’s rookie record of 4,051 set last season.
• The Colts have allowed 3.2 yards per rush before first contact this season, the fourth-worst rate in the NFL. The Texans have rushed by design 48.1 percent of the time this season, second-highest in the NFL.
• The Texans are coming off a 28-point loss to the Patriots, their largest margin of defeat since 2008. According to Elias Sports Bureau, only four of the 46 Super Bowl winners lost a game by at least 28 points: the 2003 Patriots, 1994 49ers, 1979 Steelers and 1976 Raiders.
• Arian Foster has 46 touchdowns over the past three seasons, 12 more than any other player.
• Over the last four games, the Texans are allowing a league-high 439.0 yards per game. Through nine games this season, the Texans were second in the NFL in total defense, allowing 281.6 yards per game.

The full list of inactives:

Colts

• WR Nathan Palmer
• S Tom Zbikowski
• RB Delone Carter
• ILB Kavell Conner
• C Samson Satele
• DE Clifton Geathers
• T Winston Justice

Texans

• CB Alan Ball
• RB Jonathan Grimes
• OLB Brooks Reed
• G Antoine Caldwell
• T Andrew Gardner
• G Cody White
• NT Terrell McClain

A look at the key injuries and what they mean in the AFC South…

Colts

Safety Tom Zbikowski, right tackle Winston Justice, inside linebacker Kavell Conner, center Samson Satele and running back Delone Carter are out.

Of the new missing guys, replacements will be right tackle Jeff Linkenbach, inside linebacker Pat Angerer, center A.Q. Shipley and running back Mewelde Moore.

Jaguars

Running backs Rashad Jennings, Maurice Jones-Drew and Jordan Todman, cornerback Aaron Ross and defensive end George Selvie are out. Montell Owens will start at running back again.

Austin Pasztor is expected to start at let guard, where Mike Brewster is done for the season and Eben Britton is seemingly out of chances. Receiver Cecil Shorts is expected to play.

Texans

Outside linebacker Brooks Reed and cornerback Alan Ball are out. Whitney Mercilus will continue to work as the outside linebacker replacing Reed.

Inside linebacker Darryl Sharpton, safety Glover Quin (hip) and right tackle Derek Newton are questionable. Quintin Demps would replace Quin.

Titans

Designations come tomorrow since they play Monday night. Middle linebacker Colin McCarthy is not expected to play and Tim Shaw would start for him again. Receiver Damian Williams and end Scott Solomon also missed Friday practice.

It’s been a while since the New England Patriots won a Super Bowl, but they remain the standard-bearers in the AFC.

They’ve been to two of the past five Super Bowls, including the most recent one. They’ve been in five of the previous 11 Super Bowls and won three in four years from 2001 to 2004.

For teams looking to become consistent AFC powers, the Patriots are the target. One of those teams, the Houston Texans, is heading to New England for "Monday Night Football."

No matter the result, the Texans will still have at least a one-game lead for home-field advantage throughout the playoffs. This could be an AFC Championship Game preview.

Can the Texans overtake the Patriots?

"I think they can," one AFC executive said. "They have the talent, they have the consistency of scheme on both sides of the ball to do it. The wild card is their health, particularly on defense."

"That's going to be a tough one," said Rosevelt Colvin, who played six of his 10 NFL seasons as linebacker with the Patriots and spent a training camp with the Texans. "Patriots are the closest thing to consistency you will find in this era of NFL ball. Two big reasons: Bill Belichick and Tom Brady."

New England’s coach and quarterback have the skins on the wall and the credibility that come with them. That doesn’t mean someone new can’t break through, though only three other teams have represented the AFC in the Super Bowl since the Patriots came to prominence: Oakland once, Indianapolis twice and Pittsburgh three times.

Are the Texans poised to break through?

"Everybody would like to do what they’ve done over a long period of time," Texans coach Gary Kubiak told Houston reporters. "This league’s about consistency. I think I learned a lot about that in my time in San Francisco and Denver. Doing things right all the time.

"We’re trying to become a very consistent organization here and put a consistent product on the field week in and week out and do things the right way. We’re very young in the process, but we have a lot of respect for what they do."

One major similarity: Patriots owner Robert Kraft and Texans owner Bob McNair are widely regarded as two of the best owners in the NFL. They are willing to spend to make things first-class, and they back their coaches.

Let’s look at some other ways the Texans are similar to the Patriots and some ways they are different:

Scheme: The Patriots morph as required, not just season to season but sometimes week to week.

They drafted two high-quality tight ends when they saw Rob Gronkowski and Aaron Hernandez available and shifted their offense to be predominantly two-tight. When both missed time because of injury -- Gronkowski won't play Monday -- they easily shifted to three-wide. They’ve been a 3-4 team. They’ve been a 4-3 team.

Belichick adapts to what he has and the circumstances.

The Texans don’t morph.

They’ve updated and improved Kubiak’s offensive system since he took over in 2006, but the principles are the same. The zone-blocking line cuts defenders down, and the back is asked to make one cut and go. They run a ton of play-action and ask quarterback Matt Schaub to roll out and run bootlegs off that. It’s not a common scheme, which makes it a bit tougher for defenses to handle.

Defensively, they struggled to find an identity until they brought in defensive coordinator Wade Phillips. As leader of the defense, he installed his brand of 3-4 and stamped the Texans with a personality they had been lacking. Now they are locked into a defensive system that same way they are locked in on offense.

They are both top-eight rushing teams, but running is less important to New England because its passing game is more straight drop-back and shotgun while the Texans rely on far more play-action.

Leadership: Belichick is the team’s authority, although while the Patriots came to prominence much was made of how he worked in tandem with Scott Pioli in the front office. If they didn’t agree on a player, they would move on to the next one.

Pioli left to become the general manager in Kansas City in 2009. Belichick remains the powerful agenda-setter, but he has resources when he wants them -- including director of player personnel Nick Caserio and senior football adviser Floyd Reese.

Although the Texans have always stayed mum publicly about who has final say, Kubiak was hired first and general manager Rick Smith joined him. League insiders see the Texans as a coach-steered franchise. Kubiak and Smith have an excellent relationship and get good input from front-office personnel, coordinators and assistants.

Kubiak and Belichick have vastly different public personalities. Belichick is gruff and controlling. Kubiak is personable and agreeable.

Belichick wields more power, but the setups for both coaches in their organizations are comparable.

Depth: Belichick once lost Brady in the Patriots opener. He plugged in Matt Cassel and won 11 games.

Overall, New England has done exceedingly well plugging reserves in when needed and getting sufficient production. The Patriots also move guys around with success. We’ve seen them play receiver Troy Brown at corner. Currently, Devin McCourty can line up at cornerback or safety.

Although veterans generally want to stay in their winning atmosphere, the Patriots have not been sentimental about keeping guys. If a player gets too old or too expensive, they’ll let him walk.

The Texans went to the playoffs for the first time in franchise history last season with rookie quarterback T.J. Yates playing because starter Schaub and backup Matt Leinart both got hurt. Outside linebacker Mario Williams was out after five games, and receiver Andre Johnson missed nine. Houston showed off its depth in overcoming the absences.

The team let Williams leave as a free agent, traded inside linebacker DeMeco Ryans and released right tackle Eric Winston in the offseason while fitting other pieces under the cap. They got Schaub and left tackle Duane Brown locked up with long-term contracts before the season kicked off.

Houston is showing off its depth again this season. Inside linebacker Brian Cushing went down after five games, and Tim Dobbins has played well in his place. Brooks Reed missed last week and will be out a few more, and the team has first-rounder Whitney Mercilus to insert into a shuffled linebacker corps.

"Keeping the talent pool full of younger guys that can run that system is key, as well as coaching consistency," Colvin said. "They have a good mix right now."

The Texans have said over and over this season that while Connor Barwin’s sack production is down from last year, the outside linebacker is playing well.

On Thanksgiving, he jumped from his weakside linebacker spot to the strong side when Brooks Reed went down with a groin injury, and he’ll stay there while Reed is out for a while recovering from the injury.

I hardly think Barwin’s been terrible. But one big theme with the Texans right now is that they need more pressure, more consistently from places other than J.J. Watt. Barwin should be leading that charge. Instead, he’s got only two sacks. His 10 tackles for a loss and 13 quarterback hits rank behind only Watt on the Texans.

Barwin is a smart guy and I am sure he’s able to compartmentalize.

Still, somewhere in the back of his head it has to crop up that he’s costing himself a lot of money this season. The Texans had a contract offer on the table for him before the season and he decided not to sign it.

Pro Football Focus, which rates players on every snap, has Barwin 27th in its ratings of outside linebackers in 3-4 schemes. Last year he was 19th. But his rating was minus-4.6 in 2011 and is minus-5.8 now, not a gigantic difference.

After the season, as he approaches free agency, the deal the Texans present is unlikely to be as good as that last one. He was coming off a team-leading 11.5-sack season then.

His agent is sure to pull out comments like this one from Gary Kubiak, from his conference call with Nashville reporters this morning.

“I think he has played well,” Kubiak said. “I do know that the numbers aren’t there like they were last year. But his effort and his consistency as a player and the way he grades out every week it’s been every bit as good as last year.

“We’re asking him to do something new, he played like 70-plus at the Sam position, switched positions right in the middle of the game last week. A lot of that’s on us and what he’s had to do. What we get from him every week has been consistent and I think the other things will take care of themselves.”

Rookie first-round draft pick Whitney Mercilus will be playing in Barwin’s regular weakside spot while Reed is out, probably about three weeks. Bryan Braman will see action as the third outside linebacker.

If those two fare well, it’ll show the Texans how expendable Barwin may be in the harsh realities of the NFL. General manager Rick Smith has shown he’s not afraid to let key people walk.

And Barwin’s best chance to cash in may wind up coming elsewhere.

Neither side is thinking much about that now, since the Texans are nearing the home stretch of what might turn into a dream season.

Are the Texans over-reliant on J.J. Watt?

Khaled Elsayed of Pro Football Focus thinks so, and details it in this Insider piece .

Watt has 11.5 sacks, but only two in his past four games. Over those four, he’s been shut out twice. He’s still hugely disruptive, and he’s drawing more and more attention from blocking schemes.

Elsayed says the Texans are not getting enough supplemental pass pressure from their outside linebackers. Brooks Reed has a sack, hit or hurry on 8.06 percent of his pass-rush snaps and Connor Barwin is at 7.32 percent.

“What makes this worse is that seven of the quarterback pressures Barwin has managed have been either of the mop-up variety or when he was unblocked, while the number for Reed stands at six. They don't consistently win one-on-one battles, and it leads to the Texans needing to blitz to create free lanes to the quarterback. That has resulted in Houston blitzing on 45.7 percent of passing plays (the league average is just 31.2 percent).”

Elsayed makes a case for more chances for rookie first-round pick Whitney Mercilus, who has only rushed on 70 snaps, but has a pass-rush percentage of 11.43 percent. Which approaches Watt’s 11.6 percent, a huge number for a 4-3 end.

The blitz frequency is not a concern for me and here’s why: With a more balanced pass rush last season, Houston blitzed even more than they are blitzing now -- 48.8 percent last season according to PFF’s numbers.

If the pass rush is hurting so much, they wouldn’t be blitzing less. And with whatever pressure they are getting, the Texans are getting results -- they’re still seventh in sacks per play, fourth in points per game and first in third down efficiency. Oh, they are 9-1.

Wade Phillips has earned faith that he will find ways to alter offenses. Watt was bound to slow a bit, and the Texans were due to play a dud. Barwin and Reed have proven they can rush, and I expect they will produce some big hits in some big moments to come.

I believe it’s too soon to worry about other scenarios.

Unsatisfied with what we see, we want an alternative.

I understand this concept. In many aspects of my life, I live by it.

But in professional football, the alternative is cast as an alternative for a reason. Backups don’t start because their coaches judge them as inferior -- my word, not theirs -- to the guy ahead of them.

Recently, I’m struck by how many readers ask me about changes to some of these alternatives.

From Houston, I’m asked why the young receivers aren’t playing and if rookie outside linebacker Whitney Mercilus should be starting.

Well, the young receivers may have more explosive capabilities than Kevin Walter, but Gary Kubiak loves Walter’s precision, dependability and blocking. Those aren’t qualities a first- or second-year player typically possesses, and so Walter is going to continue to play more than the kids and get more chances than them.

Mercilus has flashed beautifully in increased opportunities. But Connor Barwin and Brooks Reed are big-time players. Which one are you going to sit to play the rookie? I’m not sitting either of them. I’m just rotating Mercilus in to get the two starters some rest.

For Tennessee, I actually get questions about quarterback Rusty Smith.

He’s got a big arm, so when the Titans are way behind, shouldn’t he play ahead of Matt Hasselbeck?

In a word, no. The big arm hardly assures consistent deep pass-play connections. A trailing team faces a big pass rush, and he’s got minimal experience handling that. You play a third-stringer very rarely. You don’t look for reasons to get him in, you see reasons not to use him.

I understand craving alternatives. But let’s remember backups are backups for a reason.

An ascending player like Mercilus is ready to contribute. He’ll just have to wait for his time. We’re not sure what Keshawn Martin, Lestar Jean or DeVier Posey can do yet, but they are at the front end of careers. They are more about contributing a bit later than now. Smith might graduate from third-stringer to backup in another year or two, but in Week 9 of 2012 isn’t the time to force-feed him work to get a better gauge.

Coaches are not sitting guys they believe give them the best chance to win.

Sometimes they do stubbornly stick with veterans, refusing to give kids a chance. That’s not the case in anything we’ve been talking about.

The young players in question need to show continued patience. As do the people wanting to see them play more.

Thoughts on the Texans’ 21-9 win over the Buffalo Bills Reliant Stadium:

What it means: Houston boosted its record to 7-1, continuing to rank as the AFC’s best team with an efficient win over the visiting Bills.

What I liked, offense: The Texans three stars on offense shined. Matt Schaub hit on 19 of 27 passes for 268 yards with two touchdowns and a 126.8 passer rating. Andre Johnson caught eight passes for 118 yards. And Arian Foster carried 24 times for 111 yards and a touchdown -- he’s now scored a TD in nine consecutive home games. The big three need to carry the offense at times, and they showed themselves completely capable of the task against an inferior team in this game.

What I liked, defense: No touchdowns allowed is always a very good thing. And third-down defense was big since, allowing the Bills to convert just twice in 11 chances. J.J. Watt got back in the sack column and added four more quarterback hits while rookie outside linebacker Whitney Mercilus forced a fumble when he sacked Ryan Fitzpatrick.

Better: The Bills are an excellent punt and kickoff return team, but in eight chances against the Texans, who’ve been emphasizing improvement, they gained only 89 yards. The Texans, meanwhile, took six chances 96 yards. Still, there was a big special teams mistake as Shayne Graham’s 46-yard field goal attempt was blocked.

Familiar visitor: Mario Williams, who jumped to the Bills as a high-priced free agent in the offseason, had a sack of Schaub, another tackle for a loss and seven total tackles.

What’s next: The Texans head to Chicago for a Sunday Night Football showdown against the 7-1 Bears. The Texans have been in game-of-the-year scenarios twice before this season, and they got blown out by the Packers and blew out the Ravens.

HOUSTON -- Thoughts on the Texans' 43-13 pounding of the Ravens at Reliant Stadium on Sunday:

What it means: At 6-1, the Texans own the best record in the AFC, and with a win over the Ravens in their pocket, they are in an advantageous position to set up a playoff bye and home-field advantage in the postseason. They showed a nice bounce-back ability, recovering from the pounding they suffered a week ago at the hands of the Packers, exploiting matchups and showing themselves to be far better in the playmaker department.

What I liked on offense: The Texans wisely attacked the Ravens’ secondary in their first game without injured cornerback Lardarius Webb. Andre Johnson has had a relatively quiet season, but had no problem routinely getting open, mostly against corner Jimmy Smith. Matt Schaub also did well finding tight end Owen Daniels. The Texans spread out the carries as they used Ben Tate, but Arian Foster still gained 98 yards and had two scores to round out the offensive effort.

What I also liked on defense: Whitney Mercilus had a sack fumble and Connor Barwin had a sack for a safety on back-to-back plays in the first quarter. Antonio Smith had back-to-back fourth-quarter sacks of Joe Flacco. With pressure and pretty good coverage, the Texans never let Flacco find any sort of comfort zone.

Bounce-back effort: Cornerback Johnathan Joseph (groin) got called for a couple of penalties, but appeared far more effective than he had been the past two games. He picked off a fluttery ball from Flacco that was tipped by J.J. Watt and returned it 52 yards for a touchdown.

What’s next: The Texans have a bye before returning to action with a trip to Buffalo. The remaining home schedule is hardly intimidating with the Bills, Jaguars, Colts and Vikings.

HOUSTON -- Over the past two weeks, the Texans' offense developed rhythm problems.

Houston was disjointed in the Monday night win over the Jets. It got nothing going in the Sunday night blowout loss to the Packers.

But halfway through what ranks as the biggest game of the season so far in the AFC, the Texans are tapping their feet and feeling the beat.

Leading 29-3, they’ve seized absolute control of the Baltimore Ravens in a game that will determine who the conference’s lone 6-1 team will be at the end of the day.

Quarterback Matt Schaub’s done nice work picking apart a secondary that’s missing cornerback Lardarius Webb and hasn’t yet adjusted to life without its top coverage guy.

The Texans looked shaky on their first two series, as Schaub threw to running back Arian Foster on third down each time. Foster dropped the first and couldn’t corral the second.

But things smoothed out from there and Schaub has regularly found Andre Johnson and Owen Daniels.

They’ve combined for 14 catches and 125 yards, with Daniels pulling in a 1-yard play-action touchdown.

The defense chipped in with a sack for a safety by rookie Whitney Mercilus and a 52-yard interception return by Johnathan Joseph, who picked off a Joe Flacco pass tipped by J.J. Watt.