Past Installments

Past Installments of The Advance Scout | HoustonProFootball.com

Past Installments

First Dream of a Virgin Offseason Keith couldn’t wait to make a fantasy wishlist of three possible free agents for the Texans to sign. (January 6, 2008)

Third Quarter Nap Keith thinks the Texans must be doing something other than preparing for the third quarter during halftime. (December 5, 2007)

Leave Petey Alone! Unable to work a webcam to videoblog on YouTube, Keith instead defends Demarcus Faggins right here. (September 24, 2007)

Let’s Go to the Mattresses Keith thinks the Texans’ losing ways might soon be sleeping with the fishes. (September 8, 2007)

Jake and the Fast Man Jerome Mathis is making a comeback and Jacoby Jones is making a name for himself, all while Keith is there to watch it unfold. (August 3, 2007)

In the (New) Beginning… Training camp is finally here, and Keith can’t help but breathe in the optimism from the second day of practice. (July 27, 2007)

Hope Springs Eternal Once Again Keith senses a change to his spring fever and is actually looking forward to what the Texans might accomplish this fall. (April 18, 2007)

Paradise Lost Regardless of whom is quarterback, Keith knows the way toward restoring Eden for the Texans. (February 19, 2007)

3rd Annual: The Way I See It Keith spills the details on yet another self-indulgent offseason manifesto for the Texans. (February 11, 2007)

Financing a Used Carr Keith spells out pretty much all you need to know from a salary cap perspective should the Texans decide to trade or release David Carr. (January 3, 2007)

Faith in the System Taylor-Dayne may sound like pop songstress, but to Keith it is restoration of the lost trust in Kubiak’s well-oiled ground machine. (January 1, 2007)

2006

Take a Knee Keith reviews Gary Kubiak’s curious choice at the end of regulation in the loss to the Titans and wonders what it says about David Carr. (December 11, 2006)

Time to Scream, Houston Rick Smith and Gary Kubiak have turned Reliant Stadium into a house of horrors for injured and underachieving players. (October 28, 2006)

Buchanon, the Olive Branch Keith finds a not-so-hidden message from Rick Smith and Gary Kubiak in the release of Phillip Buchanon. (October 18, 2006)

Counting Down the Days With Vic Keith can’t help but wonder what Vic Fangio thinks of the 2006 Texans defense right now. (September 19, 2006)

Gaining Traction Too many serious injuries are plaguing the Texans just seven days into Camp Kubiak. (August 4, 2006)

Reality Seeps In Too Quickly The injury to Demarcus Faggins is a grim reminder that the Texans have an uphill climb in the secondary. (July 29, 2006)

Camp Kubiak’s Kickoff The dawn of a new era in Texans football began, well… just after dawn in a Houston heat that proved difficult to outlast for some. (July 28, 2006)

The Leader Who Might Still Be If Gary Kubiak is to be successful as a head coach in Houston, he better hope that his quarterback of choice does more than simply execute his gameplans. (July 27, 2006)

Kubiak is a Real Texan Gary Kubiak stepped out on his own to make a pick few others would have the guts to make, showing everyone else what being a Texan is all about. (May 2, 2006)

Remember the Rocket? As the Texans prepare to open contract negotiations with Reggie Bush and Mario Williams, Keith is reminded of what happened prior to the 1991 draft with Rocket Ismail and Russell Maryland. (April 22, 2006)

Secondhand Smoke Signals All this talk about Mario Williams has re-established the Texans as the power brokers of the draft, but who might be coughing on the smoke? (April 18, 2006)

VY for Vendetta Yearly The Texans aren’t drafting Vince Young, and that has some fans fearing his vengeful return to Houston, possibly as a Nashvillain. (April 4, 2006)

Second Verse, Same as the First A lot of things changed this offseason. Or so Keith once thought. (March 15, 2006)

2nd Annual: The Way I See It For the second year in a row, Bob McNair tosses the keys to the franchise over to Keith for the offseason. (February 17, 2006)

Davey Franchise David Carr is the Texans’ franchise player, but Keith believes it would make sense for him to be the Texans’ franchise tagged player. (January 31, 2006)

Take a Day Off, Texans The Texans have the NFL draft at their fingertips, but they appear to be rushing into a decision. Ferris Bueller would be so disappointed. (January 8, 2006)

2005

With a Reeves Up His Sleeve Dan Reeves might need to move over a couple offices if he replaces Dom Capers next month, but is Bob McNair making the right decision if he does? (December 30, 2005)

Someone Mention a Tank Job? Someone must have since General George Patton is sending instant messages from the great beyond to Keith. (December 12, 2005)

Ho, Ho, Hopeless Since the Texans are full of the giving spirit on the field, Keith hopes Bob McNair uses pink slips as stocking stuffers. (December 6, 2005)

Get Your ‘O’ Face Ready Keith has the top candidate in mind to replace Charley Casserly as general manager of the Texans. (November 23, 2005)

Something’s Brewing It’s Halloween, so time for Keith to dress up his latest article with an ode to the season’s first free coffee. (October 31, 2005)

The First Cut is the Deepest Baby, Keith knows. He knows that there’s a lot of potential dead money waiting for the new regime next season, but the cap situation isn’t as dire as it first seems. (October 24, 2005)

The Philly Loophole If the Texans keep insisting they still intend to exercise David Carr’s buyback option, then Keith just asks that they exploit the salary cap’s biggest snafu in the process. (October 17, 2005)

Behind Enemy Lines With an eye toward Sunday night’s matchup in Seattle, Keith goes head-to-head with Doug Farrar of Seahawks.NET, ten questions apiece. (October 13, 2005)

Straight to the Moon In the wake of Sunday’s loss to the Steelers and the firing of Chris Palmer, Keith has an idea of where he would like to send this team. (Septmeber 19, 2005)

Send in the Clowns Following the lead of Coach Capers, Keith won’t let his emotions get the best of him in writing this week’s column. (Septmeber 12, 2005)

The End of the Innocence David Carr has not had a good preseason in the wake of the changes to the offensive gamplan. He had better hope that preseason games are meaningless. (Septmeber 2, 2005)

Not Quite ‘Hard Knocks’ The NFL Network arrived with live cameras in hand to film the Texans’ Tuesday evening workout. Anything was bound to happen, though none of it did. (August 17, 2005)

Follow the Money With the sweet smell of signing bonuses still fresh around Reliant Park, the Broncos joined the Texans during Wednesday’s night practice. (August 11, 2005)

Hot, Fat, and Hungry Keith watched the Texans’ training camp practice on Monday night and fell in love with the 2005 rookie class. (August 2, 2005)

Dancing With the Starlings Keith checks in to file his report from the first evening of Texans training camp practice. (July 31, 2005)

Subject – Verba Agreement The Texans are reportedly locked in a waiting game for offensive lineman Ross Verba. Keith thinks that if the Texans really are serious about signing him, then they shouldn’t wait too much longer. (June 24, 2005)

Megatrends vs. The Cover-2 Keith cannot forecast to you the statistical production of the Texans’ 2005 passing offense. The cover-2 defense has been a riddle wrapped in a mystery inside an enigma. Perhaps there is a key. (June 5, 2005)

Bring on Phase Two Keith sees the departure of Aaron Glenn as a benchmark on the Texans’ road from expansion to the playoffs. (April 28, 2005)

It’s Showtime at the Apollo City Trading for Phillip Buchanon is the type of low-risk and high-reward transaction that Keith can applaud. (April 21, 2005)

So What Else is New? The signing of "Ultimate" and the subsequent impact on veterans Jamie Shaper and Jay Foreman gets Keith laughing at the order found in the pre-draft chaos. (March 7, 2005)

The Way I See It… Keith goes Tolstoy on article length to break down how he would handle the Texans offseason. (February 14, 2005)

Europe, Here We Come Dave Ragone is headed for NFL Europe. Keith hopes the extra frequent flyer miles are worth the trouble. (February 9, 2005)

A Fan’s Appreciation of the Offseason Priorities With roughly seven months to stew over the Texans’ embarrassing home loss to the Browns, Keith starts by ranking the top three items on the team’s offseason To Do list. (January 4, 2005)

2004

You Don’t Know, Jack Keith tries to explain to Jaguars coach Jack Del Rio why his team lost to the Texans on Sunday in front of… well, just about nobody. (December 27, 2004)

The Five People You Meet This is the story of a man named Keith and the day the Texans’ expansion honeymoon died. (December 14, 2004)

Forget the Titans Beating Bud’s team will never, ever grow old as long as Bud is still around, but Keith puts the win over the Titans into perspective. (November 29, 2004)

It’s All Downhill From Here The Texans running game is stuck in neutral. Keith digs deeper to find out why. (November 25, 2004)

From Contenders to The Pretenders Keith flips on the hi-fi and asks Chrissie Hynde to help the Texans put losses to the Colts and Broncos behind them. (November 15, 2004)

A Most Important Article Go Keith, it’s your birthday. Too bad Keith sipped Bacardi like it’s his birthday before writing this. (November 9, 2004)

Receiving Praise The Texans receivers are playing well, and Keith says that coach Kippy Brown deserves much of the credit. (October 17, 2004)

Vets on Defense in Jeopardy! The bills are coming due on the original core of the Texans 2002 defense, so Keith reviews the receipts. (October 12, 2004)

Sharper’s Image Keith helps Jamie Sharper fire up the bandwagon for a well-deserved trip to Honolulu in February. (October 5, 2004)

Texans Get Smart Don’t tell Keith the Texans pulled out the old fake punt trick to help them win in Kansas City by that much. (September 27, 2004)

Sloppy Seconds The Texans repeat several of the same mistakes in their second game that they made in their first, and that makes Keith apologize to his TiVo for having to sit through both of them. (September 20, 2004)

Flip the Switch Keith blames the Texans opening loss to the Chargers on a pair of bad omens before kickoff. (September 13, 2004)

Praying for Moses J.J. Moses may not be manna from heaven for the Texans, but to Keith, he’s still worth a spot on the roster. (August 31, 2004)

The Sloan Supremacy? Sloan Thomas may be separating himself in a crowded competition for the last spot at wide receiver, while fellow receiver Derick Armstrong could play a more prominent role in the Texans offense this fall. (August 20, 2004)

Wong Moving in Right Direction The Kailee Wong shuffle continued at Tuesday night’s training camp workout, and Keith thinks the Texans finally got it right this time. (August 18, 2004)

Wells in the Running Keith sees a rejuvenated runner fighting for his NFL career in Jonathan Wells, then shares his other thoughts from Monday night’s training camp practice. (August 10, 2004)

Wondering About Wand Keith takes notes from the Texans scrimmage against the Dolphins. (August 7, 2004)

Like an Old Pair of Jeans The Texans have a new element on display at training camp: familiarity. (July 31, 2004)

Camp-tastic! Keith is back with his training camp diary, both already in midseason form. (July 31, 2004)

The Stepford Lives Keith says it’s time to snap out of our euphoric post-expansion daze and up the ante on expectations for the Texans and David Carr in 2004. (June 22, 2004)

MIB: Men in (Defensive) Backfield The selction of Dunta Robinson coupled with Marcus Coleman’s switch from corner to safety seems to improve the secondary on paper, but is it setting Coleman up for a franchise tag next February? (May 8, 2004)

Pimp My Ride Keith comes to grips with how Charley Casserly runs his draft day war room, but not without stacking up his key picks for comparison first. (May 1, 2004)

Vapor Action Because of all the pre-draft stuff floating around in the springtime air, Keith searches for something to make him breathe easy once again. (March 28, 2004)

Advocating a South Beach Diet With 2004 marking the tenth straight year a Hurricane player has been selected in the first round, Keith endorses an annual Texan scouting trek to Miami. (February 29, 2004)

Gone in a Flash Despite the NFL’s best efforts to keep him out, Keith found his way into the Super Bowl to file this, one fan’s report. (February 2, 2004)

Don’t Sweat the Technique It ain’t no joke. Keith says the Texans have already been paid in full for the Drew Henson era. (January 29, 2004)

The Untouchables The Texans keep talking about drafting defense, but Keith wonders if we should also keep an eye on the best player available, even if he plays offense. (January 6, 2004)

2003

Losing, Oiler Style Here’s a stumper: The Texans played the "Oilers", yet they’re the ones finding a way to lose in "Oiler" fashion. Discuss. (December 22, 2003)

Making My List My, my, isn’t Keith already in the festive holiday mood? Check that, no he isn’t. (December 1, 2003)

Mind the Stepchildren We all know Andre Johnson is setting the world on fire, but what about the progress of Jabar Gaffney and Corey Bradford? (November 16, 2003)

Hollywood Ending Keith looks deeper into how the Texans might address needs on defense in the offseason. (November 12, 2003)

The Newlywed Game Despite the losses that keep piling up, Keith finds what he is looking for in the Texans’ young offense. (October 28, 2003)

Man of the Century Rookie Domanick Davis is the first Texan rusher to gain 100 yards. Keith sees balance in the offense if he can keep it up. (October 20, 2003)

Idle Thoughts Keith looks at what it will take for the Texans to keep their faint playoff dreams alive in Nashville on Sunday. (October 7, 2003)

When Push Became Shove Keith was among the few, the proud who actually witnessed the Texans’ gutsy call. (September 29, 2003)

NFL: "Mo’ Better Lose" Keith examines the Maurice Clarett legal situation. (September 25, 2003)

Bring on The Jerk Keith finds Pennies From Heaven in the signing of Steve Martin. (September 16, 2003)

Miller’s New Bling-Bling Keith takes a look at the Texans re-signing of tight end Billy Miller. (September 10, 2003)

¡Hola Tres Amigos! With three legitimate receivers running under David Carr’s passes, Keith sees the Texans earning a little respect. (September 7, 2003)

Texans Should Hold Him Keith sees a Royal Flush in Ohio State’s Chris Gamble. (September 1, 2003)

Future Shock Keith returns to Casserly’s blueprint to keep fan expectations in check for 2003. (August 20, 2003)

Wanted: Free Safety Keith watches the Texans try to fill the void left by Matt Stevens. (August 14, 2003)

When the Sauce Hits the Fan Keith watches the Texans prepare for Denver. (August 7, 2003)

The Plot Thickens As The Depth Thins Keith starts to worry about the Texans’ health in his latest camp diary. (July 31, 2003)

This Other Time, In Training Camp… Keith spends another day with the Texans. (July 30, 2003)

This One Time, In Training Camp… Keith spends an evening up close and personal with the Texans. (July 28, 2003)

(Re)Drawing the Line Keith examines what’s quickly becoming a deep offensive line with some potential. (June 12, 2003)

Careen At Two, Jabar? Keith catches up with Jabar Gaffney at the crossroads. (May 29, 2003)

Not A Daft Draft Keith comes to praise, not bury the Texans’ 2003 draft. (May 6, 2003)

Too Far Down the Rabbit Hole Keith warns not to let the pre-draft’s lull get the best of you. (March 31, 2003)

The Pace Chase Is On Do the Texans have what it takes to possibly land Orlando Pace? Keith thinks so, but wonders if he’s worth it. (March 18, 2003)

Paging Dr. ‘Dre Keith examines Andre Johnson’s top 3 credentials. (March 10, 2003)

A Backup Plan Should the Texans use a pick on a backup quarterback? Keith examines the ins and outs. (March 3, 2003)

Gross Misjudgment Keith discusses why the Texans should avoid reaching to fill a perceived need in April’s draft. (January 28, 2003)

Chuck Rogers Worth the Bucks? Keith examines how WR Charles Rogers could impact the Texans’ 2003 draft. (January 15, 2003)

2002

It’s the Draft’s Holy Grail Keith discusses the complexities of trading down during the NFL Draft. (December 31, 2002)

Whatcha Talkin’ ‘Bout, Willis? Keith debates the merits of drafting Miami stud, Willis McGahee. (December 10, 2002)

Speak of the Devil Terrell Suggs’ enormous potential makes Keith feel warm all over. (December 3, 2002)

Ding Dong! The Old Carson’s Dead Keith takes a look at the suddenly resurgent Trojan quarterback and how his rising stock might impact the Texans on draft day. (November 26, 2002)

JFK: Jimmy Freakin’ Kennedy Keith is blown away by the exploits of Penn State’s mammoth defensive tackle. (November 19, 2002)

Summer Lovin’ Now Autumn Bummin’ Keith performs the autopsy on the once-promising 2003 class of wide receivers. (November 5, 2002)

The Lion Triumvirate Keith goes gaga for Joe Pa’s terrific trio. (October 22, 2002)

Fab Fifty Not Flawless Keith looks back the The War Room‘s Top 50 college prospects. (October 15, 2002)

Seminole Mental Holiday Keith takes a look at the fading fortunes of one of college football’s most storied schools and spotlights four must-see games this weekend. (October 8, 2002)

Thinking Run? Think Again Keith examines Charley Casserly’s history when it comes to drafting a running back. (September 24, 2002)

Byron Left Behind Keith came for Byron Leftwich but stayed for Lee Suggs and Kevin Jones. (September 17, 2002)

Hurricanes Downgrade Grosmman With prospects at pratically every turn, Keith reviews the Miami-Florida match-up. (September 10, 2002)

Prognosis for a Full Recovery Keith reminds pro football fans in Houston how lucky they are to get a second chance at the NFL. (September 2, 2002)

Training Camp Diary Keith spends some time scouting professionals, namely the Houston Texans. (July 29, 2002)

Livin’ Large Keith surveys the QB’s left in David Carr’s wake. (July 15, 2002)

Second Helpings Keith proves it’s never too early to start ranking draft prospects. (June 4, 2002)

Coulda, Woulda, Shoulda Keith breaks out his hindsight and reexamines the Texans’ draft. (April 24, 2002)

Mock This Way, V2.0 In his last pre-draft article, Keith works up the be-all, end-all mock draft. (April 15, 2002)

Will History Repeat Itself? Keith examines Charley Casserly’s draft history while with the Redskins. (March 25, 2002)

Rank and File: Defense Keith turns his attention to the top defensive prospects and tries to figure out what the Texans might do on draft day. (March 18, 2002)

Rank and File: Offense Keith looks at the top prospects at each offensive position and analyzes what the Texans might be looking for come draft day. (March 11, 2002)

Chester Cheated Though not a strong running back class, Keith says a diamond in the rough is waiting to be discovered. (March 4, 2002)

As Good As It Gets Keith surveys the Texans’ expansion draft to see how it might impact their draft plans. (February 19, 2002)

Get on the Bus, Gus Keith takes a look at the best free agent quarterback available not named Dilfer. (February 12, 2002)

It’s Super, Baby, With a Capital S Keith takes a break from scouting to put his own unique spin on Super Bowl XXXVI. (January 29, 2002)

Mock This Way Keith breaks out the crystal ball and looks at the first two rounds of the 2002 NFL Draft. (January 21, 2002)

Nice Day For A Duck Keith compares and contrasts Joey Harrington and David Carr. (January 7, 2002)

2001

Tripp-le Your Pleasure Keith returns from holiday with a look at Holiday Bowl participant Larry Tripplett. (December 31, 2001)

Get UR Neat Freak On Last year at this time, John Henderson was the consensus top prospect in football. Keith revisits the Volunteer’s status. (December 10, 2001)

Here’s My Stop! Keith plays bitter Longhorn fan and rips into Chris Simms for his Big XII meltdown. (December 5, 2001)

Dawg Daze What can fans expect from the Texans in their formative years? Well, if the NFL’s last expansion team is any indication, it shouldn’t too bad. (November 19, 2001)

O Brother, Where Art Thou? Will the Texans be lured by the sweet siren song of the latest Manning offspring? Keith takes a look at Peyton’s little borther. (November 5, 2001)

The Dynamic Duo Keith profiles Miami’s highly-touted bookend tackles, Gonzalez and McKinnie. (October 29, 2001)

Will The Texans Become Brady’s Bunch? Here’s the story, of a man named Brady… Keith profiles New England’s Tom Brady, a back-up who might tempt the Texans. (October 22, 2001)

A Little Music, Please Keith takes a look at South Carolina LB Kalimba Edwards. (October 8, 2001)

A Player Not Just a Mother Can Love In the mother of all interviews, Keith goes one-on-one with Wendell Bryant’s mom. (October 1, 2001)

To QB Or Not To QB Keith cautions getting too excited about out-of-nowhere phenoms like Fresno State’s David Carr. (September 24, 2001)

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