It's May 14, and that means it's time for end of the year awards for the 2012 Houston Texans!
No. It's not.
It couldn't be less time for those awards.
What's the point in giving out fake awards nearly four months before the season starts? It's a great way to establish expectations for the year. I'm a big believer in creating reasonable targets and seeing if players are able to hit them.
Here's what I expect out of key Texans in 2012:
The Howard Stern Award (Offensive MVP):
Matt Schaub needs to win this award. He's facing coming off another injury and is in the last year of his deal in Houston. If he is going to be the franchise-leading quarterback for the next five to seven years, he absolutely has to stay healthy and prove that he can be the, uh, most offensive Texan.
The Metta World Peace Award (Defensive MVP):
Johnathan Joseph won't put up the biggest numbers on the team, but he will be the Texans' defensive MVP. He may be the most irreplaceable Texan. So much of what Wade Phillips does schematically rests on the ability to trust Joseph to close down his his man. It's much easier to bring pressure knowing that you don't have to help both corners.
Plan on Joseph being the most frustrating player for opposing offensive coordinators to deal with.
The New Girl Award (Rookie of the Year):
It's too easy to pick Whitney Mercilus, and based on his What to Expect baseline, he'll probably be the man. Still, I love what Jared Crick brings to the table and think that while his numbers may be low, he could be just as important.
Defensive ends in the 3-4 typically don't pile up stats, but good play on the line opens up lanes for the linebackers to make big plays. Crick is young, but I expect him to have a quirky, hard-to-describe kind of value for the Texans.
The Neville Longbottom Award (Most Improved):
Garrett Graham has gotten a vote of confidence from the team and will pick up the slack created when Joel Dreessen left for Denver. He's played sparingly in his early years, but seems ripe to pick up more targets in 2012.
I could easily see a few hundred impact yards receiving and five touchdowns in his future. That would be a massive jump for the tight end who could go from bench warmer to stalwart this year.
The 30 Rock Award (Most Likely to Get Cut):
Kevin Walter is played out and not as good as he used to be. The Texans have a variety of talented young wideouts and Walter's production has dropped. Even if he survives training camp, I suspect his 2012 run will be a limited farewell tour.
The Fringe Award (Most Likely to Disappoint):
Sometimes a player starts off great, but just lets you down. Danieal Manning is that guy for the 2012 Texans. There is a very real shelf-life for NFL safeties and most play their last effective year before 30 years old. Manning missed three games in 2011 and I think injuries might well continue to be an issue moving forward. I'm a big believer in macro-trends trumping individual circumstances and it won't surprise me at all if Manning proves to be a big letdown in 2012.
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