Dein erstes Forum » The Houston Texans have matched a franchise record

for most consecutive wins and are the first team since the 1925 New York Giants to win seven straight games after opening a season 0-3.Despite this impressive streak Deshaun Watson Jersey Elite , they're far from satisfied and know they'll have to continue to improve to get their eighth win in a row when they host the Tennessee Titans on Monday night."We understand that it's going to be tough each and every week, and we understand that all 31 other teams don't really care what we've done in the past," Houston quarterback Deshaun Watson said. "It's about what we do this week. We don't believe in the hype. We just grind and go out there and prepare and try to play our hardest to get a win."Coach Bill O'Brien agreed with Watson and said he stresses to his players that things could go downhill quickly if they focus on what they've already done instead of worrying about their next opponent."You're always looking to improve. No doubt about it," he said. "I think that's what the league's all about. Who can get better the fastest, who can be the team that improves the fastest as the year goes on? I think every game there's going to be chances for improvement, and we definitely have to improve."The Texans, who lost to Tennessee in Week 2, have a two-game lead in the AFC South over the Titans and Colts, who are both 5-5.Houston beat the Redskins 23-21 last week for its second straight two-point win after downing the Broncos 19-17 on Nov. 4 before its bye. The Titans have had an up-and-down two weeks after beating New England 34-10 on Nov. 11 before Indianapolis routed them 38-10 last week."The Houston Texans are a true example of handling adversity and moving forward. They lost 3 in a row early on, everybody thought their season was over and all of a sudden they're on top of the division and might be fighting for a bye depending on where they're going," Tennessee linebacker Brian Orakpo said. "They're on our schedule now. We lost one, chance to redeem ourselves."Some things to know about Tennessee's Monday night visit to Houston:PROTECT THE QBMarcus Mariota was sacked four times in the first half alone before being knocked out of the game last week just before halftime with a stinger. Now the Titans face the Texans with Houston defensive end Jadeveon Clowney healthy instead of watching from the sideline as Clowney did in Week 2 when these teams met.Mariota and the Titans hope the quarterback will be available Monday night, though he's waiting for a nerve in his throwing arm to settle down.If Mariota doesn't start, that would mean Blaine Gabbert gets his third start this season and second against the Texans.GETTING INVOLEDWide receiver Demaryius Thomas hasn't made much of an impact since being traded to the Texans from Denver on Oct. 30 after Will Fuller suffered a season-ending knee injury. The nine-year veteran had three receptions for 61 yards in his debut, but didn't have a catch on two targets on Sunday. O'Brien took the blame for his limited work."It's not Demaryius," O'Brien said. "I have to do a better job of getting him more involved. He's working hard, he's a good pro and we need to do a better job of getting him the ball a little more."PEES BACKTitans defensive coordinator Dean Pees rejoined the team Tuesday after leaving the team's last game with a medical issue. Coach Mike Vrabel is trying to limit the 69-year-old coach's hours at the team headquarters in Pees' return to work.Having Pees available and calling blitzes and coverages from the coach's box in Houston could provide a nice boost to a defense that was dissected by Andrew Luck last week. The Titans allowed a season-high 38 points Authentic Whitney Mercilus Jersey , dropping from the NFL's top scoring defense to second overall.Orakpo said hearing Pees had been taken to a hospital shook the Titans."Man, that was definitely a scary scene to be a part of," Orakpo said.WATT AND CLOWNEYClowney and J.J. Watt have combined to be one of the league's most feared defensive duos this season. Clowney has 12 tackles for losses, 14 quarterback hits, 6 1/2 sacks and two fumble recoveries, including one for a touchdown. Watt has 10 sacks, 12 tackles for losses, 17 quarterback hits, four forced fumbles and has swatted down two passes.Vrabel is very familiar with Clowney and Watt after working as an assistant with the Texans from 2014-17. But he rarely had both players on the field at the same time when he coached in Houston because of various injuries to the two players. He was asked if he's happy to see that they're finally both healthy and playing so well this season."I think 14 games out of the year, I'd probably feel pretty good for them, but there will be two of them when I don't," Vrabel said. "They're good people. I thought I had a good relationship with both of those guys."AP Pro Football Writer Teresa Walker contributed to this report. Home sweet home? Not so much for Redskins players right now.Even though Washington has won three of five home games this season and leads the NFC East, cornerback Josh Norman called out Redskins fans in the aftermath of an ugly victory at Tampa Bay and said he felt they played better on the road. In the process, he put the spotlight on the atmosphere Sunday at FedEx Field when the AFC South-leading Houston Texans come to town.Norman said home games are "like the other team's turf" because of an infusion of opposing fans and opined that Redskins fans "just boo everything and aren't really behind us." Teammates hope that sentiment works to provide a spark of energy for the rest of the year."We have a really good team and what it comes down to is myself and Josh, we want to be backed up, and we don't want it to feel like it's 50/50 when we're at our home field and they have as many fans as we do," running back Chris Thompson said. "We just want everybody to be there. That's it. We want our fans to be out there and just have our backs."The Redskins organization began a concerted effort in the offseason to try to improve the fan experience at the stadium in suburban Maryland. Aware a sellout streak the team boasted had lasted the past 50 seasons would end Johnathan Joseph Jersey , the decision was made to stop selling as many tickets to brokers and try to draw back in some of the disillusioned fans of a franchise that has just three playoff victories since its last Super Bowl title from the 1991 season.Washington's average attendance of 61,201 ranks 26th in the NFL, and its 74.6 percent-of-capacity crowd ranks dead last. Chief marketing officer Steve Ziff said prior to the season there's no timeline for when he expects fans to return in droves like the glory days at RFK Stadium."We're going to do things right for as long as it takes," Ziff said. "Every day the goal is to do things right and hopefully over time, win or lose, fans will buy into that."Right now, the Redskins are winning. At 6-3, they're two games up in the division and on pace for their first postseason appearance since 2015.But Thompson, who has been with the team since 2013, understands there are long-term issues under the surface leading to fans staying away. Decades of mediocre on-field performance, polarizing opinions about owner Dan Snyder and the location of FedEx Field are all factors that have nothing to do with the current roster and its wins and losses."All the responses I see all the time is, 'We've been fans for 10-plus years, we've been fans for 25 years 鈥?whatever the case may be 鈥?and we haven't gotten any results (and) the Redskins have been terrible,'" Thompson said. "I've been here for six years. I understand. I know. I've been to one playoff game in six years."If the Redskins win the division and host a playoff game, the stands will be rocking like the old days 鈥?especially if Kirk Cousins and the Minnesota Vikings are the opponent. But to get there, they could use a boost at home so players don't feel like they're in unfriendly confines.For quarterback Alex Smith, it's all about the cadence and ability to communicate verbally."The big thing offensively is communication that you can count on Youth J.J. Watt Jersey ," Smith said Wednesday. "To be at home and be able to communicate, I think you can do more in the huddle and do more at the line of scrimmage."On defense, it's the opposite. The Redskins are coming off allowing 501 yards but only three points to the Buccaneers, and they're counting on noise against DeShaun Watson and the Texans, who have won six in a row since an 0-3 start."The fans play a big part in the way defenses can play, in the way the atmosphere is out there," linebacker Mason Foster said. "When you get those guys going crazy in the stands, it's hard for quarterbacks to communicate, it's hard for them to audible at the line. When you get that going, I think it's a tough place to play at FedEx."NOTES: Coach Jay Gruden said left tackle Trent Williams (thumb) won't play Sunday and there's a good chance Thompson (ribs) is out, too. ... In addition to Williams and Thompson, WR Jamison Crowder (ankle), CB Quinton Dunbar (shin), S Montae Nicholson (illness) and K Dustin Hopkins (groin) did not practice. Gruden said the team would see how Hopkins is Friday before deciding whether to sign another kicker. ... With Crowder still on the mend, rookie WR Trey Quinn was activated off injured reserve and added to the active roster.