BARRY WARNER'S VIEW
Off the top of my bald head: Welcoming back the cheater Brian Cushing
Dec 5, 2017, 6:25 am
Brian Cushing had help building those arms. Tim Warner/Getty Images
Whippee dipppee doooooo.
The return of the Prodigal Son.
With a straight face at his Monday press conference, Bill O’Brien was asked ”How can ILB Brian Cushing add value to the defense? Specifically, with all the injuries, can he be an impact player?”
O’Brien’s answer: “Absolutely. His leadership, number one, his knowledge of our defense, his experience playing in our defense, his toughness. All of those things could definitely help our defense.”
No doubt the defense will be introduced, with the last player being No. 56, ten-year veteran Brian Cushing, coming off his 10-game PED suspension, the second of his career. There is no question, when healthy, he was one of the top inside linebackers in the NFL.
But one question always came up, from his high days at Bergen Catholic in New Jersey to freshman USC and the Texas. Like one of the Beatles Classics was he doing it with a classic from Sgt. Peppers Lonely Heart Club Band:
Oh, I can get by with a little help from my friends
Mm, I get high with a little help from my friends
Mm, going to try with a little help my my friends
In his case, steroids.
Let me refresh your memory.
Cushing put himself in exalted territory after his rookie season when he first got popped.
With the blessing of Texans naive owner Bob McNair, the linebacker declared himself a victim of a previously unknown medical condition:
Overtrained athlete syndrome.
I am not making this up!
Cushing failed a drug test, played the entire NFL season, was named NFL Defensive Rookie of the Year and then -- and only then -- was suspended by the NFL for the first four games of the following season.
He tested positive for Human Chorionic Gonadotropin, and yes, the first two syllables of the last word indicate he was trying to get some testosterone buildup going after a cycle of steroid use. That's what the NFL thinks, anyway.
I keep waiting for an athlete to use the addiction defense. Why hasn't this happened? It's foolproof and way more plausible than the fantasies we're being fed. Addiction is way more socially acceptable -- and medically backed -- than OTAS.
For one, Cushing is the only guy in the world who has been diagnosed with OTAS, so that might work against him in the arena of public opinion.
How did the commissioner keep a straight face? McNair sat across from Goodell and asked that Cushing's suspension be lifted because of the previously unknown condition OTAS.
In the process of defending and believing Cushing, McNair issued one of the most ill-informed statements on steroid use in the history of bloated athletes: "His weight hasn't changed appreciably since he's been with us," McNair told Peter King of Sports Illustrated.
Other owners and league suits just laughed behind McNair’s back.
I’ve always admired Cushing and his work-ethic but I have to admit that I’ll definitely view him a bit differently as time goes on. I won’t go to the extreme and say that he’s a fraud because you still have to be talented to get into this league. However, in a sport that’s so hinged on being the utmost of competitive, he may have cheated a bit to get to where he was.
Due to his numerous surgeries, he was never the same three down linebacker. Watching him in pass coverage was hard, as he lost a couple of steps.
In this day and age of sport, where teams have multiple trainers and interests, there is no excuse for any player to put anything into their body without first checking.
There is a specific list of banned substances.
Period.
Even in a league with many semi-literate former “student athletes,” there should never be any excuse.
Treating Cushing like some hero coming back from multiple injuries is disingenuous. Taking reps away from rookie inside backer Zach Cunningham is just plain stupid.
He let his team down, again, costing himself close to $4 million in salary.
Bill O’Brien is forced to parrot the party line.
Welcome home cheater.
Soak it all up.
You will not be a Texan next year.
Chirp!
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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.