"One guy tweets a lot. One guy doesn't have Twitter." Gipson aims to prove he's different
Tashaun Gipson not aiming to fill departed Mathieu's role
Apr 16, 2019, 6:02 pm
Cody Stoots/SportsMap
The Texans may have let Tyrann Mathieu walk and replaced his starting spot with free agent Tashaun Gipson. They both play the same position but that's where Gipson wants to make clear the similarities end.
"I'm big on everybody is different," he said. "What he brought to the table, I respect his game. I truly do...I'm a different guy."
Gipson is indeed. Mathieu is infamous for his back and forth's on Twitter with fans and media. Gipson made it clear he doesn't have Twitter. The former Jaguars defender wanted to be clear he isn't coming to Houston to be compared to the current Chiefs defensive back.
"I might not be as rah-rah or as vocal as he is about certain things," Gipson said. "Certain things might push his buttons different than mine. The biggest thing is I don't want anybody to compare me to him, especially with things that the naked eye can't see."
One of the things that is easy to see is Gipson's success against tight ends in his career. He promises more of the same with the Texans.
"Obviously, we're just getting our feet wet and we haven't cemented a role, but just know the best tight ends that are coming into NRG (Stadium), I'm going to put the clamps on them."
Gipson on Justin Reid: "Oh man, the first thing that you realize is that he's definitely a smart guy. I sit next to him in the meetings and I try to pick his brain. Other people had said he's almost too smart. He's a guy who knows everything."
On the team welcoming him: "Obviously, they don't know anything about me besides the stuff they've heard about me or seen whether we watch crossover film and things of that (nature), but I think the one thing I can say about here – and I'm not one to compare – but, it's just a bunch of guys that just want to have fun, go out there, play football and win games. I was accepted with open arms. It's a little different. A lot of teams have guys with egos and things like that."
On playing in Texas where he now lives: "Just being home, I'm a Texas boy. I love the state of Texas. I love the offseason. I love coming home, so for me to be able to be back here in my home state of Texas, I'm three hours up the street. My house is literally three hours and 10 minutes. I GPSed it, trust me. It's three hours and 10 minutes, so for me to just be straight up 45, I can't express how excited I am about this opportunity. You have no idea. I'm going to give this organization everything I got."
"I'm excited. My son is my protégé. He's a good football player. If you haven't checked out my Instagram, you might need to. He's that nice."
He wasn't lying.
Kalil aiming to prove worth and health
The Texans signed oft-injured left tackle Matt Kalil this offseason. He represents a bargain option for the offensive line that struggled last season. Kalil has played in just 30 of the 48 possible regular season games the past three seasons. He's aiming, on his only year of his contract, to prove he still belongs in the NFL.
"I kind of like being on a one-year deal," he said. "I think you learn a lot about yourself when your back's against the wall. All the cards are against you, but at the same time here, I've put good film on tape. It's always been everyone always knows what kind of player I can be."
Kalil said he believed in the Texans to take care of his body and get the most out of him this season.
"I feel like here, with everything they have going with their weight lifting, their sport science side of it, their training staff – kind of all that accumulated together, I think, it was going to keep me healthy and get the results that I want on the field."
Watt's Fun Offseason
J.J. Watt was thrilled to be healthy this offseason. The first time he has had an healthy offseason in three years.
Watt on his non-injured offseason. #Texans pic.twitter.com/fNrNwoXXCt
— Cody Stoots (@Cody_Stoots) April 16, 2019
He's also been hanging out this summer with his brothers Derek Watt, the Chargers fullback, and T.J. Watt, the Steelers outside linebacker.
.@JJWatt on the chance to work out with his two bros @_TJWatt and @DerekWatt34 recently in Los Angeles. @espn975 #Texans pic.twitter.com/Cf61qdMYNK
— Jake Asman (@JakeAsman) April 16, 2019
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With the Astros now officially ten games under .500 for the season, manager Joe Espada is taking a lot of heat from the fanbase for the team's struggles.
While we don't agree with the sentiment, we even hear fans clamoring for the return of Dusty Baker and Martin Maldonado, thinking the Astros wouldn't be in this mess if they were still here.
Which is ridiculous. First of all, Maldonado has been awful for the White Sox, hitting .048 (even worse than Jose Abreu's .065). And for those of you that think his work with the pitching staff justifies his pathetic offense. Let me say this: Where was Maldy's game calling genius for Hunter Brown, Cristian Javier, and Framber Valdez last year? All of them regressed significantly.
And as far as Baker is concerned, we have no idea how much a difference he would make, we can only speculate. Baker would also be dealing with a pitching staff ravaged with injuries. And let's not forget, Baker was the guy that refused to move Jose Abreu down in the batting order, even though he would finish the regular season with the ninth-worst OPS in baseball.
The reality of the situation is managers can only do so much in baseball. Which leads us to something else that needs to be considered. Is Espada being handcuffed by the front office? Espada and GM Dana Brown both said recently that Jon Singleton was going to get more at-bats while they give Abreu time off to try to figure things out. Yet, there Abreu was in the lineup again in the opening game of the Cubs series.
It makes us wonder how much power does Espada truly have? The Astros have some other options at first base. Yainer Diaz may only have eight games played at the position, but how much worse could he be than Abreu defensively? Abreu already has four errors, and Diaz is obviously a way better hitter. Victor Caratini isn't considered a plus offensive player, but his .276 batting average makes him look like Babe Ruth compared to Abreu. Let him catch more often and play Diaz at first. Starting Diaz at first more often could also lengthen his career long-term.
Maybe that's too wild of a move. Okay, fine. How about playing Mauricio Dubon at first base? I understand he doesn't have much experience at that position, but what's the downside of trying him there? If he can play shortstop, he can play first base. He's driving in runs at a higher rate (11 RBIs) than everyone on the team outside of Kyle Tucker and Yordan Alvarez. And he's producing like that as part-time player right now.
The other criticism we see of Espada is his use of Jon Singleton to pinch hit late in games. Let's be real, though, who else does Espada have on the roster to go to? Batting Abreu late in games in which you're trailing should be considered malpractice. Espada can only use who he has to work with. This all really stems from the Astros poor farm system.
They don't have anyone else to turn to. The draft picks the club lost from the sign-stealing scandal are really hurting them right now. First and second rounders from 2020 and 2021 should be helping you in 2024 at the big league level.
Maybe they go to Astros prospect Joey Loperfido soon, but after a hot start he has only two hits in his last six games.
Finally, we have to talk about what seems like a committee making baseball decisions. Lost in a committee is accountability. Who gets the blame for making poor decisions?
As time continues to pass it looks like moving on from former GM James Click was a massive mistake. He's the guy that didn't sign Abreu, but did trade Myles Straw (recently DFA'd) for Yainer Diaz and Phil Maton. He also built an elite bullpen without breaking the bank, and helped the club win a World Series in 2022.
The reality of the situation is Dusty Baker and James Click are not walking back through that door. And all good runs come to an end at some point. Is this what we're witnessing?
Don't miss the video above as we hit on all the points discussed and much more!
Catch Stone Cold 'Stros (an Astros podcast) with Charlie Pallilo, Brandon Strange, and Josh Jordan. We drop two episodes every week on SportsMapHouston's YouTube channel. You can also listen on Apple Podcast, Spotifyor wherever you get your podcasts.