Falcons down the ensuing kickoff in the endzone, touchback.

Falcon's ball at their 20.

Renfree in at QB.

Ward loses 3.

Ward gains 2. 3rd and 11 coming up.

Ward gets 2. Falcons have to punt with 12:09 left in the game.

Shorts fields the punt and runs west for no gain. Ball at Texan 25.

This is terrible. I don't even know where to begin. I can't wait for John Harris to put a "good spin" on this one.

Texan's ball at their 25.

Hoyer's pass goes out of bounds, inc.

Hoyer's pass off the hands of Polk, inc. 3rd and 10 coming up.

Pass to Shorts gets 13 and the 1st down.

Deep pass to Shorts sails, inc.

Deep pass to Hop goes out of bounds, inc. 3rd and 10 coming up.

My gosh, screen works for the 1st down.

Blue for 6. About 10:30 left in the game.

Deep pass to Shorts goes for 42 - ball at the Falcon 1 yard line.

Blue stopped short of the goal....very close but no cigar. 2nd and goal coming up.

Polk punches it in for the TD.

Falcons 42, Texans 14

9:09 left in the game.

Falcons fair catch the ensuing poochy kickoff.

---------------------------------------------

Falcon's ball at their 24.

Ward loses 1.

Ward gains 1. 3rd and 10 coming up.

Ward gets 12 on the delay.

Ward for 3.

Ward for 3 more. Makes it 3rd and 4 coming up.

Ward for no gain. Falcons will have to punt with about 5 minutes left in the game.

Shorts fields the punt and runs out of bounds about the Texan 26.

Holding on the Falcons adds 10 yards to the previous punt.

Texan's ball at their 36.

Pass to Hop gets 18. Ball at the Falcon 46.

Pass to Hop goes to the Falcon 20.

Pass to Hop in the end zone is inc....

Hoyer's pass goes inc in the end zone.... 3rd and 10 coming up.

Pass to Hop gets 12 at the 8 yard line. 1st and goal.

Pass to Shorts good for the TD.

Falcons 42, Texans 21

3:01 left in the game.

The ensuing kickoff goes out of the end zone, touchback.

---------------------------------------

Falcon's ball at their 20.

Flags presnap, false start Falcons, -5. 1st and 15 coming up.

Ward goes left for 5.

Renfree boots for a loss of 4. (Texans out of timeouts)

Ward for a couple. Falcons will have to punt.

2 minute warning.

Shorts returns the punt to about the Texan 48.

Texan's ball at their 49.

Deep pass to Hop is broken up, inc.

Pass to Graham gets 6. 3rd and 4 coming up.

Pass to Hop goes to the Falcon 20 yard line.

Pass into the end zone is inc. 2nd and 10 coming up with 43 seconds left in the game.

Pass over the middle goes inc. 3rd and 10 coming up.

Pass to Hop goes for 11. 1st and goal at the 9.

Pass into the endzone broken up, inc.

Hoyer gets sacked. Loss of 8. 3rd and goal coming up.

Pass to Hop is a TD but will likely get overturned because Hop went out of bounds and came back in....

Ruling is an incomplete pass. 4th and goal with 1 second left in the game.

Shorts takes the pass and fumbles - Falcons pick up the ball and score a TD.

Extra point is kneeled (no good).

Final score:

Falcons 48, Texans 21

I didn't think we'd have another game as bad as the Chiefs game this year, but this was worse, far worse. Team wasn't ready, had no focus, coachs obviously wern't ready and didn't adequately prepare the team. What a stinker.
Hey all is not lost, we had an X-man sighting out there in the 4th quarter. Have no idea what to expect Thursday night ? I guess Hoyer will be starting ?

We won't beat the Colts with Hasselback.

This team is an embarrassment. O'Brien is an embarrassment for thinking he could enter a season with these QBs.

Kyle Shanahan took our lunch money all day. It makes me think the problem has never been our dumb coaches, especially since everyone has success when they get away from our broken franchise (Capers, Fangio, Shanahan, Kubiak).

So Barrett, your conclusion is that the whole franchise is simply snakebit and its hopeless to think they could ever be a success ?

Ben Tate, Earl Mitchell, Darryl Sharpton, Garrett Graham, Brooks Reed, Brandon Harris, Rashad Carmichael, DeVier Posey , Brandon Brooks, Ben Jones, Keshawn Martin, Jared Crick, D.J. Swearinger, Brennan Williams, Sam Montgomery, Trevardo Williams, Xavier Su'a-Filo, C. J. Fiedorowicz, Louis Nix III, Tom Savage, Benardrick McKinney, Jaelen Strong.

That, friends, is a list of the Texans' second through fourth round draft picks since 2010. If you are looking for a place to start in trying to understand why the Texans are as bad as they are this is as good a place as any.

Today reminded me of some of the Capers era games where it seemed like the other team was playing a totally different sport.

I don't think snake bit has anything to do with it. Snake bit implies bad luck. Like Chuck's list shows, this is about incompetence not bad luck. I think it starts from the top down. McNair is awful. The comments on Foster this year were maybe the worst owner comments I've ever seen. His Brady/Watt cell phone comments were almost as stupid. He is a rube who likes being in the owner's club. I don't think he really cares too much what happens on the field as long as he isn't embarrassed (today was a bad day for him). He has been beyond worthless at hiring people and at (not) firing people. McNair's two GM hires are Smith and Casserly.

Rick Smith is the common denominator in Chuck's list and has been almost as bad in free agency and extensions. He's put a pair of 1st round picks and tons of FA money in our secondary and they are gasoline on a fire. We have drafted half a dozen edge rushers in the first 2 rounds and let the only good ones walk (Barwin and Mario) while whiffing on the rest (Reed, Mercilous, Clowney).

And Bill O'Brien actually had the thought, "Yeah, it's a good idea to enter the year with Mallett and Hoyer", and Smith and McNair signed off on it.

I just reviewed all the drafts the Texans have had since inception. It's time for a new GM. No other way to say it.

Snakbit does imply unlucky but also doomed for failure. Almost like a bookyman factor at work. But how are we that much different than say Indy, except they had the incredibly good fortune not once but twice to have both Pyeton Manning and Andy Luck in the Drafts the 2 years they held the first overall. pick. And I don't think McNare is a rube, because he's a self-made billionaire. Maybe he's not polhished but he's educated and successful in the business world. If you've read the mans biography, you know he cut a deal with the slickers and their lawyers at Enron to make his first bill when he sold them his cogfneration energy business. Now he may know little about football, I don't argue that but that it makes him an equal to most of the NFL owners.
Now you may have maybe put your finger on something when you mentioned his decision to retain Smith this long.
So where are we now moving forward ? Do you think he should rid himself of both Smith and O'Brien or just replace his GM ?

The next move will be to jettison Smith and give more power to OB. Don't agree that it's the right move, but I can see that happening.

I think they should shitcan Smith and bring in a real GM to manage the draft, free agency, the cap, etc. If they give BOB Belichick type power (terrible idea and completely undeserved) they should also give him an incredibly short leash.

But none of this matters because Smith is going nowhere. When he canned Kubiak he told everyone that he thought Smith had been doing an OUTSTANDING job. You can't argue with that sort of delusion.

Rube was the wrong word. Bad word choice on my part. McNair is definitely 1000Xs the business mind I'll ever be.

Outdated might be a better word choice. To come out and bash Arian Foster after an injury was the worst owner move I can think of. It shows how out of touch he is. And while I don't think he is racist, I think Foster being outspoken AND young AND a vegan AND black played into how he was treated by McNair. The generational divide is just so big between McNair and the players. It is just as big for many owners, but they keep their mouths shut in public.

Saying you're not surprised is a truly bizarre thing to do after your star offensive player gets hurt. A statement like that can have no possible positive effect. Who wants to play for an owner like that.

Then the unsolicited and public attack on Brady. Even loudmouthed Irsay only took shots from the shadows. Why would you ever put a target on your franchise like that? The Patriots will probably put half a hundred on us and we'll be lucky if they don't look for excuses to cut block Watt all game. The last thing JJ needs is someone putting more attention on him.

And as for your question about what separates him from the Colts, I agree it is little more than luck/Luck. But it doesn't make me feel better to think our franchise is run by an unlucky Jim Irsay.

Well said. And I really agree with you about McNairs comments on Brady. That was really stupid and uncalled for.
Anyway we are just one game out of first place in our division. Honestly I don't have any idea what's gonna happen Thursday night when the Colts are in town. Hey hope springs eternal as they say. I'm actually looking forward to the game because I don't know who will show up ? I guess OBrien will start Hoyer, but then he may pull him before the game is half over ? I really want to like O'Brien and I do like him, but he's looking shaky with some of these snap decisions.

I also think very highly of O'Brien. That is being tested right now. We've been unprepared twice this year in ways that make me doubt a little his gameday coaching chops after a year that made me a huge believer. And his total lack of a QB plan makes me think he's no better than Smith as a personnel guy. Smith has actually been worse partnering with O'Brien in the draft than he was with Kubiak.

So I still think O'Brien is a good/possibly great NFL coach. He still hasn't made a move that kills his future because he has avoided making any moves at QB. But I feel like he should have bottomed us out last year rather than this year. People would have accepted getting rid of the vets, clearing the cap, and winning 4 games last year. I think doing it this year is going backwards.

The Direct TV McNair will jettison Smith, never give OB/HC full control, and hire the most qualified and available personnel man from either Seattle or Green Bay. If that's not an option, DTV McNair will try to lure Howie Roseman from Philadelphia. But unfortunately, I'm convinced we have Cable McNair and will be stuck with Smith for a long time or will make the wrong move - again.

Popanot, that's kinda funny.

My 2 cents here: there's a saying: a fish stinks from the head down. Rick Smith is the head.

One other thing. Arky, others have said it, but thanks for doing the play-by-play here each week. I know it had to be tough to stick with it yesterday. I couldn't watch anymore when it became 35-0.

Other than the colossally inept QB play, the overall team speed is severely lacking and is extremely noticeable on the field. That's goes for almost every position. And last year's record was a bit misleading, IMO. The 9 wins last year were to teams with a combined record of 43-101. The only teams they beat either had a rookie QB, a crappy QB (one of which is likely now our starter), or Joe Flacco (who arguably could be lumped into the crappy QB category).

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2014_H..._Texans_season

I know Drew Brees is old and looks to have lost it some, but if I'm the Texans, I'm hoping like hell the Saints purge their cap and I'm making a run at him along with drafting a QB high. You have got to fire that draft bullet sooner or later regardless of risk.

Cable McNair. Awesome.

I was wondering last night which Texans player I would trade for Brees straight up right now. There aren't many that would not be on that list. Which is sad because Brees is 50 years old and throws like Jeff Bagwell.

Houston Texans
‏@HoustonTexans
O'Brien: "Brian (Hoyer) did a good job, but being on a short week, it's important to stay with Ryan right now."

Play at safety has been terrible. I would have expected better from Rahim Moore, and the team basically has a street FA giving them quality snaps. Missing Mike Mohammed has been a tragedy.

Also, and I haven't rewatched the video and hopefully never will, but it seemed to me Vince Wilfork was pulled after being ineffective against the zone scheme blocking. This after mostly three games of providing less than the expected impact we thought he'd have before the season. Ahman Green, Ed Reed ...now Vince Wilfork? Yeesh, please no.

As for Mallett vs. Hoyer Thursday, meh. Just as Mallett was fool's gold racking up yards in Week 1 garbage time, Hoyer was doing the same in Week 4 garbage time yesterday. O'Brien just has to go with his gut on this since it'll be his job on the line anyway. If he wants Mallett out there to save the season, then so be it.

Clearly, this team is going nowhere without a QB, and it seems obvious to all that the 2016 starter is not on this roster already, very disappointing.

He all of a sudden has a weaker arm than Peyton Mannning. I can't believe he agreed to play yesterday. Their season is already lost and can't be salvaged. If I was Brees I would have been resting up for my 2016 employer.

And I would probably trade 52 of our 53 man roster for old and mostly used up Drew Brees.

That's pretty much exactly where I ended up.

Safeties, BAD! ILBs, invisible. I was thinking during the game yesterday that it would be better if RAC simply invented a new defense that does not employ ILBs. I am dead serious. They do nothing, they add nothing, they contribute nothing. Get them off the field. What do you want to replace them? Doesn't matter. DL, OLB, CB, S, hell, put a TE or two out there and see if you can confuse someone. They don't do anything on offense anyway.

This squad has way more problems than just QB. Not saying that isn't a big issue, but its certainly not the only one.

I actually though Cushing made more individual plays than he has since before the injury. He may have been a part of blowing lots of plays too, but at least he showed he is capable of making a few still.

I also think Hopkins was mugged all game. We seriously must draw the fewest PI/holding calls in the NFL, while surrendering the most. Our guys just don't draw flags. I also got a laugh out of the drive where we got a pair of questionable hands to face calls against us while Julio Jones reached out 5 feet at the top of the route to throw a CB off him by the face. I didn't have it in me to complain yesterday because we were so bad it didn't matter, but it does get old being constantly kicked around by the officials.

The tackling effort on the last rushing TD was maybe the worst moment in Texans history.

And JJ Watt needs to suspend all pre-packaged celebrations. They are bad enough from players on winning teams currently winning the game. But saluting after a TFL in a game you give up 49 points is weak. He makes too many plays to still celebrate every one like a ST who made a punt coverage tackle.

If we lose this week to the Colts I'm ready to throw in the towel and go full blown suck-mode for the top pick. Which as of right now, looks to be Goff if we go QB (but alas, we'd probably go DE). Just wish I could come up with a good Goff mantra 'ala Suck for Luck... Only thing I can think of at the moment is kinda dirty.

They could be worse. They could be the Texas Longhorns.

Seriously, both looked so bad as to be comical. The worst guy on the field yesterday was Arian Foster. Couldn't run. Couldn't catch. Couldn't hold onto the ball.