00:0013 years ago today was a milestone, and I'm not going to lie to you.
00:05Wasn't a good one.
00:06No.
00:06However, it was a no one and one that I think matters in the history of the Houston Texans.
00:11What was that, John Lopez?
00:12It was the most infamous, one of the most infamous days in the history of Houston sports.
00:1613 years ago today, the 11-1 Houston Texans were traveling up to face the New England
00:24Patriots and Tom Brady, Monday night football in Foxborough, and they decided,
00:30to make some custom Letterman jackets.
00:34And even before, some people will remember this, some won't, even before the game.
00:40Because some people say, hey, and we talked about it this morning, hey, had they won,
00:43it would have been a real rallying point, and everybody would have them,
00:47and they'd sell a million of them.
00:48And that may be true if they won.
00:50Sure.
00:51But even before the game, they were criticized.
00:53Oh, yeah, no, it was like, this is high school, this is hokey.
00:58But I think that there's a lot of things in sports that are that,
01:02and that we don't talk about as such because the context changes what happens.
01:07This is not quite that, but it just jumped to mind because of what we're talking about.
01:13The framing of Tom Brady as ultimate competitor, because he threw technology on the ground and stuff,
01:21always bugged me.
01:22Just over there being petulant and yelling at people like, see, that's why he's a winner.
01:25No, because he won, we let that fly.
01:27And I think similarly, if the Texans had won that game, I think that that would have been,
01:32at the very least, like a fun point to return to where we go, you remember that time where they won,
01:37where the Letterman's, and maybe every once in a while you'd see the Letterman game
01:41or something like that happen?
01:42Yeah, no, no.
01:43Because the jackets on their own were sweet.
01:47They were, they looked, they were.
01:48Yeah, they actually looked cool.
01:49They were awesome.
01:50But let's not revise history too much here.
01:52Even before the game, that whole week, I remember sitting here, you know, talking about like,
01:56come on, what are we, what are we doing here?
01:57That's Tom Brady over there, man.
01:58That's, that's the Patriots over there.
02:00You don't think.
02:00Were you nervous?
02:01Yes.
02:02About that?
02:03Yes, absolutely.
02:0411 and one team.
02:05You was nervous?
02:06Yes.
02:07Dang.
02:08Absolutely.
02:09Because of the, you know, the whole spectrum of it.
02:11But let's go to the, how it started and how it ended.
02:16The football game itself.
02:17Of the, of that game.
02:20They have the best record in the NFL.
02:22A balanced and explosive offense.
02:24Game-changing plays on defense.
02:27The 11 and one Houston Texans.
02:29Tonight, their biggest test to date.
02:31And they beat Tom Brady in Foxborough in December on Monday Night Football.
02:36They complete Brady and the Patriots 42 to 14 over J.J. Watt and the Houston Texans.
02:46That's how it started and ended.
02:48And then they were torched.
02:52Absolutely torched.
02:53And if you don't think the, and by the way, the effect of it too, they were 11 and one going into the game.
02:59They not only lost that game, they lost two of the next three.
03:02And you know who they faced in the divisional round?
03:04The New England Patriots.
03:05Yeah.
03:06And got whooped again.
03:07It was infamous.
03:09I mean, it was just an absolutely infamous moment.
03:12I do have a question I want to get to regarding, regarding the Texans in this.
03:16But this was not too long ago.
03:18I think it was last year.
03:19Maybe the video has the, the timestamp on it.
03:21But they were still talking about this.
03:24This was earlier this year.
03:25It was earlier this year.
03:26Is this the Edelman podcast?
03:28Or one of those games with names?
03:31So earlier this year, it was Julian Edelman.
03:35And Stephen Ridley.
03:36And they're still talking about it.
03:37It was like a talk or maybe SportsCenter or something had said that like somebody on the team was getting jackets made or something like they were making a big deal about it because they were coming out of H-Town and coming up there to the freaking, to the brick, to the brick.
03:51You know what I mean?
03:51It's what I call B-Town.
03:53It's brick cold.
03:54It's freezing.
03:54So I guess it was something going around saying they were going to hop off the plane with these jackets.
03:58And it's like, bro, you're coming up in our s***, swagging out, rocking these jackets like this about to be a cakewalk.
04:06It was disrespectful.
04:07Texans versus the Patriots.
04:10Week 14, 2012 game.
04:14In one sentence, why this game?
04:16Man, this game was, it was special for so many reasons because I think we were both coming in two hot teams towards the end of the year.
04:24But ultimately, we had a little chip on our shoulder, man, because I think everything goes through Foxboro to that point in time while we were balling.
04:34And those boys came in rocking the Letterman jackets and all the good stuff.
04:37Hey, it looked good for pregame.
04:39But as y'all see as we get into this, man, we were all about the business.
04:44They really made this bulletin board material.
04:46They did.
04:46They did.
04:47That hurts even more.
04:48Because, I mean, I feel like Conor Barwin was just trying to pull the team together, man.
04:51It was just one of those, hey, man, like, let's look good, feel good, play good.
04:55Unfortunately, Deion, not on this particular instance.
04:58Which one do you think is worse when the team do this?
05:01The Letterman's jacket or when they dress up in all black like it's a funeral or something?
05:06I think the Letterman jacket because it was so unique and it was thumbing the nose at a legendary team, a dynasty.
05:14You felt it?
05:14You felt that that was the one?
05:15We talked about it that week.
05:16Like I said, before the game.
05:17Yeah.
05:18You know, like, hey, that's Tom Brady over there, man.
05:20Yeah.
05:20You know, that's Bill Belichick.
05:22That's something.
05:24But I do, okay, I want to get to this question.
05:26Sure.
05:28Is this team more likely or less likely, had that not happened under D'Amico Ryans, to do something like that?
05:39Oh, less likely.
05:41I don't know.
05:42Because I think it does speak to, if you do pull it off, the whole cohesiveness, the swarm, the we're, you know, we're all cut from the same mold type thing.
05:56I started thinking about this.
05:57I'm like, I don't know.
05:59I don't know if, you know, had that not happened and they, you know, they had the idea again or whatever.
06:04I don't know if the Texans would not do this again.
06:07That's an interesting point.
06:08I think that, though, I'll come back to Kamari Lassner, who we were, or was it Kamari that we were?
06:14Yeah.
06:14I'll come back to Kamari, who was on, what, Speakeasy, right?
06:17He was on that podcast.
06:18I think that you can see as much as they have their camaraderie, as much as they have fun, immediately when the time comes, they click into work mode.
06:25Yeah.
06:25And I think that that is one of those places where they'll be like, hey, man, all this, all that, you know, let's click into work mode.
06:30I think that that's one of those places that would happen.
06:33But I think it's fair to bring up that, yeah, man, this is a team that values that camaraderie.
06:37It's one of the reasons why you could see them in the offseason, a lot of guys working out together.
06:42Yeah.
06:43And that is one of those things that could be a camaraderie thing.
06:45I could see that.
06:46But, yeah, I think that they probably, or at least I'd like to think, maybe that's what it is.
06:49I'm hoping and wish fulfilling for myself the idea that they would not get to that place where they have a possibility of embarrassing themselves.
06:56And then that was J.J. Watt at his absolute best.
06:58That was the 20-and-a-half sack season, defensive MVP season.
07:04And the offense was better than this one, flat out.
07:07I mean, just flat out.
07:08Arian Foster, Owen Daniels, Andre Johnson, Matt Schaub was having a good year.
07:12That was a better offense than this one.
07:14And so, interestingly enough, they could face the Patriots in the first round this year.
07:22But the difference is, like, there's not that same.
07:24That's off the Leatherman's jackets.
07:26Don't do that.
07:28That just caused a wave of PTSD through the listenership.
07:32They're mad at you right now.
07:34I can feel it.
07:34But there's not the same entrenched nature of that organization now compared to then.
07:40In fact, if you were to say that, it'd be last week, right?
07:43Or if the Kansas City Chiefs somehow managed to find their way in, which there is still a small sliver of a chance for them to do.
07:49That would be the thing.
07:51It's like, oh, here you go.
07:52You're going into Arrowhead with that level of bravado or hubris.
07:56I don't think that that exists with this current Patriots team, for sure.
08:00And as great as that defense was in 2012, it really was.
08:03I think there's a little more substance than swagger with this one.
08:07There is swagger.
08:08Not to say that.
08:08I'm saying, like, that was J.J. Watt.
08:11You know, everybody's All-American.
08:13And Brian Cushing.
08:14And, you know, all that stuff.
08:16I think there's a little bit more maybe understated, you know, nature.
08:21A little bit more workman.
08:23Workmanlike with this defense.
08:24Yeah, which is funny because it is like workman in the flashiest way, if that makes sense with this defense, which is we're not doing nothing fancy.
08:32Like, there's no fancy schemes happening here.
08:35We will tell you we are rushing with four.
08:37We're dropping back.
08:39Zone or what have you.
08:40Or actually, really, it's more man.
08:42We're going to be entirely honest, right?
08:43We're going to drop back.
08:44We're going to cover you.
08:45We're going to rush our guys.
08:46You know what we're doing.
08:47We know what we're doing.
08:49Stop it.
08:49And then they're just really, really bleeping good at doing that.
08:55But, yeah, I think more importantly than whether or not they would do the Letterman, I don't know that they would do that result with this team.
09:03Like, something of that nature.
09:05Well, that's why I brought up the offense.
09:07I think the defense wouldn't give up 42 points.
09:10Right.
09:11But, you know, that offense was legit a lot better than this one, you know?
09:17So, it'd be interesting.
09:18Yeah, it would.
09:20You want to go to the phone line?
09:21Yeah.
09:21Because apparently we got someone on the phone.
09:22Yeah, we got Lamont on the line.
09:24What's happening, Lamont?
09:26Hey, what's up, fellas?
09:29I appreciate you guys bringing up the Letterman jackets and doing a comparative analysis on that defense versus this defense.
09:38But that was another defense that you guys forgot about.
09:41It was about seven or eight years ago when Whitney Merciless and all those dudes started wearing uniforms and all this.
09:48I don't know what they called them, their names.
09:52And I was like, yeah, I was like, these are paper tigers.
09:55I mean, what are they doing right now?
09:58I think that was probably even worse than the Letterman jackets.
10:02I know the Letterman jackets had a national, everybody was clowning on a national stage, but on a national stage.
10:10But once those guys start coming, I tell you, uniforms and bulletproof vests and fatigues and all of that, I'm like, man, you guys are extra average, man.
10:19Y'all are nobodies right now.
10:21And I just pray to God that these – I just pray to God that this defense does not get into those antiques and all that type of crap because that was silly.
10:30That's all I have, fellas, man.
10:32Keep up the good show.
10:33Appreciate you, Lamont.
10:33I think that that's also –
10:35You talk about the Rock Boys.
10:35The Rock Boys, they were absolutely –
10:37It was Whitney Merciless, Jacob Martin.
10:39The worst.
10:40I forgot who else was on that Rock Boys thing.
10:43They were absolutely –
10:44It was like four of them.
10:45Paper Tigers, 100%.
10:46I don't even want to mention them in the same breath as 2012 or this year.
10:51But I think that that's part of it is like I think that this is a diametric opposite, this team, right?
10:56They could care less about those portions.
10:58I don't know how much they care about us outside at all.
11:01Like this idea that we have and that's continuing to grow that, oh, man, this defense needs a nickname.
11:05I can't imagine them in that building being like, hey,
11:08what do y'all think they call us out there?
11:10I don't think they hair.
11:11I don't think they give a damn.
11:12Didn't they dress up like as – what was it, Figgy?
11:15Like some sort of action heroes or something?
11:17Yeah.
11:18I don't know if it was like Ninja Turtles or – it was something.
11:21It was some type of –
11:22It was something like that.
11:23And I was like, good grace.
11:24Yeah, it was Zach Cunningham.
11:26I think Zach Cunningham was in there.
11:29Merciless.
11:30McKinney.
11:30Oh, the homeless guy that we thought was homeless.
11:34Yeah, he wasn't home.
11:35Yeah, Jacob Martin.
11:38What am I supposed to say?
11:40What am I supposed to say when you start calling people homeless on the air?
11:43What am I supposed to say when you start calling people homeless on the air?
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