WRESTLING REPORT
In the aftermath of elimination chamber, new talent debuts this week
Feb 20, 2019, 5:38 am
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Born with a comic book in one hand and a remote control in the other, Cory DLG is the talent of Conroe's very own Nerd Thug Radio, Sports and Wrestling. Check out the podcast replay of the FM radio shows www.facebook.com/nerdthugradio!
This week kicked off with a solid Elimination Chamber event here in Houston, with Shane and Miz losing their titles to The Usos and Finn Balor winning the intercontinental belt in a handicap match. The event had some surprises and great moments, the most important being crowning Sasha and Bailey as the first women's tag champions in WWE history. The finale of Elimination Chamber wound up being much better than expected with Kofi Kingston going off for the second show in a row and going the distance against Daniel Bryan before eventually losing what was honestly a great match between the two.
This week on Raw and Smackdown both shows made the interesting decision to showcase some new call ups from NXT with Aleister Black, Johnny Gargano, Tommaso Ciampa and Ricochet. Both shows had them putting on quality matches against the likes of Cien Almas, Elias, The Bar, and The Revival, among others. It's certainly an interesting choice to say the least considering recently EC3, Heavy Machinery, Nikki Cross and Lacey Evans were also called up from NXT. That's a lot of new faces to integrate into what is currently a fairly stacked roster of talent.
This leads right back into AEW, as all roads seem to lead currently, with ripples being felt throughout the wrestling world. On Nerd Thug Wrestling, Brock Baker, indy wrestler formerly of Booker T's program Reality of Wrestling, talked about how the entry of a new big fish in the market has opened opportunities on both WWE developmental schools and throughout the indy scene. With AEW snapping up quality talent from the upper echelons of independent wrestling including former Reality of Wrestling's own Kylie Rae, and forcing WWE to respond by bringing in it's own new young talent so as to not be left out. All these signing means the one thing for every wrestler, an opportunity.
With this week seeming to be a showcase week and less of an "advance the story" week, there wasn't a ton of twists or turns or announcements for Fastlane or Wrestlemania, with the exception of the announcement of Degeneration X being inducted into the WWE Hall of Fame including controversial figure The Ninth Wonder of the World, Chyna.
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NFL insiders hint at eye-opening future for Houston Texans offense
Dec 7, 2024, 2:38 pm
C.J. Stroud faced criticism in Houston's last few games as the Texans hit a rough patch after losing just two of their first eight games.
But the second-year quarterback remained confident and his strong performance last Sunday helped the Texans (8-5) to a 23-20 win over the Jaguars to enter their bye with a two-game lead atop the AFC South.
“When he is leading and playing the way he is playing, our entire team feeds off of him,” coach DeMeco Ryans said. “I am excited for his second year. I think he is showing a ton of growth, he is in a really great spot for us physically, mentally. I really love where he is and I am excited to see how he comes back after the break.”
Stroud threw for 242 yards and a touchdown against Jacksonville to leave him ranked fourth in the NFL with 3,117 yards passing this season. That game came after he threw two interceptions in a 32-27 loss to Tennessee a week before for the team’s third loss in four games.
Those two interceptions brought his season total to nine, which are four more than he threw in 15 games a rookie. But the Texans aren’t worried about that statistic and believe he has grown in his second year.
“He’s made a lot of progress,” general manager Nick Caserio said. “There are some plays, like all of our players, that we probably wish he could have back, but happy he’s our quarterback, happy with what he brings to the table. ... Wouldn’t want anyone else leading this team.”
The Texans are in position to win their division for a second straight season despite dealing with several significant injuries on offense. Running back Joe Mixon missed three games early with an ankle injury and leading receiver Nico Collins was sidelined for five games with a hamstring injury.
They also lost four-time Pro Bowler Stefon Diggs for the season when tore an ACL in Week 8.
Mixon leads the team with 887 yards rushing and 11 touchdowns and has added four touchdown receptions. His work in his first season in Houston after a trade from Cincinnati has helped the team deal with those significant injuries to the receiving corps.
Mixon ranks third in the NFL by averaging 88.7 yards rushing a game and has had at least 100 yards rushing in seven games.
Stroud has continually raved about Mixon’s contributions on and off the field.
“He’s a servant, a helper,” Stroud said. “That’s ultimately what I want to be as well. Who can I serve and how can I help? That’s ultimately what the game of football is.”
While Mixon has been the team’s most important new acquisition on offense, Danielle Hunter has been Houston’s new defensive star. The defensive end spent his first eight seasons in Minnesota before joining the Texans this year.
He has helped Houston lead the NFL with 84 tackles for loss after piling up 15 this season, which is tied for third most in the league. He also leads the Texans with 10½ sacks to help them rank second with 42.
Hunter been a great addition to a team that already had defensive end Will Anderson Jr., last year’s AP Defensive Rookie of the Year. Anderson ranks second to Hunter on the team with 13 tackles for loss and 9½ sacks.
Ryans said this week’s break is much needed for a team that opened the preseason on Aug. 1 in the Hall of Fame game.
“It’s here and we’re going to take advantage of it,” he said. “We’ve been going at it for a long time.”
The Texans need to recharge this week with a brutal stretch of three games in 10 days when they return from their bye. Houston hosts Miami on Dec. 15 before a trip to Kansas City on Dec. 21 and a visit from the Ravens on Christmas Day.
“It’s Christmas and all that, but we can’t worry about that. All we can do is focus on Miami,” Caserio said. “And then when we get through the Miami game, then we kind of turn the page to the next. ... We’re either going to earn it or we’re not. Not to oversimplify it, but that’s the truth.”
The Texans will play those game without starting linebacker Azeez Al-Shaair after he received a three-game suspension for his violent hit to the head of Jacksonville’s Trevor Lawrence, which led to a concussion.
Al-Shaair will be eligible to return for Houston’s regular-season finale against Tennessee.