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Election day in Houston sports

It's J.J. Watt for America. J.J. Watt Twitter account

Today is Election Day for the mid-term elections. If you haven’t already voted, stop reading this right now and go vote dammit! But come back and finish this once you’ve exercised your right to vote.

That being said, I looked at the current landscape around Houston sports and determined there are some figures who could run for office. Some could get elected, some are going to create controversy, and some are dark horses that could rise to prominence. Let’s take a look at some of the candidates:

JJ Watt

Watt is seen as one of the favorites in any race. He has the all-American image and is generally viewed as a shoe-in. However, his spotty record as far as staying healthy enough to perform his duties once elected has the opposition ready to pounce. Ideally, he’d need to run for a seat in the House of Representatives, serve a complete two year term to prove he’s to prove he’s fit for the job and can perform at a high level like he did when he entered the political arena back in 2011.

Simone Biles

Here’s an underrated politician who’s done nothing but win and serve the public on a local, national, and international level in her years of service. She’s still considered a long shot due to the opposition refusing to recognize her accomplishments. The fact that her foreign relations record is impeccable shows that she’d make a great Secretary of State because she’s a beloved figure the world over. She’s also been seen as a dark horse for becoming the first female president. Great follow on social media.

James Harden

Harden is one of those public figures who has some bones in his closet. For some reason, people either tend to overlook his flaws, or excuse them. Either way, he’s the type that would win the election due to interference or some other dubious manor. There was a report of an incident in which someone spoke out about his community relations record that ended up being assaulted and robbed, but nothing was effectively traced back to Harden himself.

Jose Lima

Although Lima is no longer with us, his presence still looms large. He’s the J.F.K. type figure whose accomplishments and larger than life personality are still talked about years after his passing. Some try to live up to his carefree nature and endear themselves to fans, but few will ever some close to filling his shoes. That was until Alex Bregman came along.

D’Onta Foreman/Gerald Green

These guys are homegrown stars who are here to give back through their public service to their communities. Both are self-made and now want to use their platform to improve things on a grassroots level. Instead of searching out greener pastures, they chose to come back home in hopes of giving the kids who they identify with a better shot at making something of themselves through improving education. Solid guys who are the city council lifer types with a chance to run for mayor should the stars align in their favor.

Jose Altuve

Here’s the little guy that came to this country with nothing and made himself political giant. How? He busted his ass and worked harder than the next guy. He didn’t listen to people when they said “But Jose, they’ll never accept you!” Instead, he kept plugging away and grinding it out for the people. Now, he’s the overwhelming favorite to be governor of Texas and has people thinking of changing the laws to run for the presidency.

I don’t know about you guys, but I’m willing to place my vote behind a few of these political figures. Are there any I missed? Please write-in their names on the ballot here and let me know.

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The Houston Texans approach to the offseason has caused quite a bit of controversy among Texans fans and media. Some really like what the team is doing in free agency, while others are underwhelmed.

But the argument that keeps getting thrown around is whether the Texans are ready to win this season, or if the team will have to suffer through another disappointing season. Most would agree the Texans roster has a number of holes, but how will that roster look after the NFL Draft and hopefully a new franchise QB is taking snaps for the team?

The great thing about the NFL is how fast teams can turn things around and start winning. When we looked at the teams coming off a bad season and drafting around the Texans in 2021, many of them showed a huge improvement the following season.

The Lions were 3-13-1 in 2021, last year? 9-8. The Jaguars went 3-14 in 2021. Last year they won the AFC South and notched a playoff win over the Chargers. Look at the New York Giants, they went 4-13 in 2021. They improved to 9-7-1 and also won a playoff game just one year later. And don't get us started on the Jets. They went 4-13 in 2021, improved to 7-10 with bad QB play, and now Aaron Rodgers wants to play there.

The point being, most of these teams hired new coaches in the last couple of years, added some talent through the draft and free agency and started winning. Why are Texans fans and media so convinced they're in for another season of losing? Why can't the Texans be the team that turns things around and competes for a division title? Especially if they land a franchise QB as expected.

The AFC South isn't a very tough division. In fact, the Texans beat the Jags, Colts, and Titans just this year. Shouldn't we expect them to take a step forward with better players and DeMeco Ryans leading the way?

Be sure to check out the video above as we break it all down!

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Listen to The Bench with John and Lance weekdays from 7-10AM on ESPN 97.5 and 92.5.


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