Where is Barwin?
 

Where the hell is Barwin? Dude is costing himself some serious coin.

Still early, but I sure hope he gets it going soon.

Real soon.

I agree, but Barwin pointed out that last year he only had 1 sack in the first 5 games. He also said that sacks usually come in bunches and that all he can do is to continue to work hard.

As long as the D is producing and the team is winning who cares where Barwin is? I like Barwin the person and player, but costing himself some coin while the team is still winning is good for the team/cap overall, no?

Barwin costing himself money doesn't concern me, him not showing up does. At some point, we are going to need an outside pass rush. He has been tagged "the guy". Whether he is or not, remains to be seen.

Yes, the D is playing great. But I'd sure like to see some production from either he or Reed.

Barwin has 6 tackles, no sacks in 3 games. You were expecting more? ;)

Seriously, he has been awfully quiet. The Texans don't have a top 100 tackler on the team. JJ Watt leads with 15 tackles followed by Cush with 14. The remaining tackle totals are spread very evenly among the rest of the defense.

I suppose part of it is that the defense is not on the field as much in these first three games due to the offense's good time of possession.... Makes for weak numbers on the defense....

It's just three games, though.....if it continues for another three games, then I would think it would be a legitimate concern....

While I too want all the players to play great, it's probably not going to happen all the time. Antonio Smith hasn't really been seen or noticed all that much either. Nor has Reed, Manning or pretty much anyone not named Watt. However, save for an ill-timed fumble setting up great field position and ridiculously horrible officiating in the 4th Qtr yesterday, the D overall has been lights-out.

The biggest concern I had defensively yesterday was with the lack of pressure up the middle and we also seemed to get away from any sort blitz packages later in the game. How many times did Manning just step up into the pocket and have a clean throwing lane? Thank god his WRs suck at running routes and kept dropping the ball.

Split this out from the Bronco thread... I had a similar thought about Barwin. It isn't just that he isn't getting sacks, but rarely have we seen him even disrupt the pocket or be in many stops (albeit early into the 2012 season). I think three games in is a good time to start wondering what's up though. Reed, Antonio, etc aren't piling up big stats either, but at least they are doing things to get them noticed (by me at least).

Barwin added a little weight this season... can't tell if that's really a factor though. He burst on for the team last year largely due to one big game against the Jaguars. One big game this weekend against the Titans could render this thread dead.

He remains part of a unit that overall is excelling, and he has been lined up against a couple really good left tackles already too. That said, he sure seems to be making himself appear expendable this upcoming offseason.

Barwin is an effort guy and that means sacks are going to come and go. Some days guys will get flushed out of the pocket and run into him, he'll get in on half sacks, he chases guys down attempting to scramble, etc...

He is not and has never been a superior 1-on-1 pass rusher. He didn't get most of his sacks last year by blowing by guys and getting to the QB.

We are have a great team-pass rush and amazing defensive effort on every play, but no superior individual pass rusher.

It is starting to get a little worrisome. Watt is going to get blocked one of these days. Barwin and Reed both have seemed out of it so far. The odd part is with the leads, you would expect the OLBs to do better as they are less worried about the run.

I don't want to pay him that much money if he's going to disappear like this. Three weeks in and it's almost as if he's not even on this team.

Has our first round pick been on the field? I thought he'd be in a rotation with Reed & barwin. Just sayin.

I noticed him in on one play in a passing situation against Miami. He's been playing a lot on special teams.

Mercilus has been on STs and seen some defensive snaps in garbage time. That tells me either he's behind in the learning curve or Wade is so pleased with his OLBs that he's willing to let Mercilus be groomed slowly.

A clip from here:

http://blog.chron.com/ultimatetexans...day-will-come/

You know, if the other 3/4ths of his season look like the first 1/4th, we may wind up signing him for less than the offer we gave him.

Lance Zierlein (@LanceZierlein) tweeted:
No need to panic, but Connor Barwin has 6 tackles in four games with 0 sacks, 0 INTs, 0 FFs, 0 Fums recovered and very few pressures

Panic is a little strong, but his lack of production is concerning to me for someone who's supposed to be "the guy". Maybe he was prematurely anointed that title. Time will tell, but its something to continue to watch.

His numbers are very Marioish......

Those numbers aren't like Mario at all. Mario was never a dominating force but he always produced here.

The broadcasters last night were slobbering over Jason Pierre-Paul and then got into a discussion over which if any DE one might take if not JPP. One of them said that age must play a role in the decision, yes, the other wisely concurred. Was Watt mentioned at all? I'll let you guess.

The local radio guys spent all afternoon yesterday gloating over the fact that the Texans are recognized by many as the best team in the NFL. Let me say that I am not at all sure that is the case and even if it is week four is not the time to start in with a case of Bieber fever over it. But it was sort of odd to hear these LA jackoffs last night gloss over the guy who might be the best defensive player in the league.

It seems JJ Watt is getting plenty recognition to me, atleast where I was listening. Did miss the Sunday night game due to Bonnie Raitt concert.

I agree a little early to say Texans are no. 1 team around, yes we are balanced, consistent, no weak points, plenty of play makers, but, honestly the competition hasn't been the top teams yet. next 4 games will tell a lot more, @Jets(Mon), Packers(late Sun), Ravens, Bye, Bills ( 3 home games).

Connor Barwin, while I watched he doesn't seem to be as aggressive as he was last year coming past the tackles for some reason, as an uneducated observer. Maybe that is his assignment to protect an area, I don't know.

I think the defensive scheme has something to do with it, plus Barwin is often lined up against the other team's best pass blocker. Whereas Watt lines up against a RG or RT most often, Barwin draws the LT. He also has containment duties in his role, as opposed to Watt who maybe just controls a gap.

Can't say I'm a guru with this defense, but it is possible a good pass rushing 3-4 DE has more opportunity than the 3-4 OLB. That said, Barwin is still making little noise ...on the stat sheet at least. The team is 4-0, and maybe this weaken's Barwin stance at the bargaining table, which is really a win for the team and its fans if it means Barwin re-signs at a lower than previously offered rate.