THE WRESTLING REPORT
WWE is making changes on the eve of the big move
Oct 2, 2019, 5:13 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. Check out the podcast replay of the FM radio shows www.nerdthugradio.com!
NXT kicked off singing its own praises, letting everyone know how good they did last week. They opened with a good match featuring a large guy by the named of Keith Lee, who has some moves for a big dude. NXT has stayed consistent with WWE's devotion to promoting the women athletes with the second match being a great women's match where Dakota Kai coming back from an injury. Finishing up with a great street fight where Matt Riddle came out on top, the thing you notice about NXT that you don't see in the rest of WWE is they're delivering matches and not promos. This is the way to sell a new brand.
WWE launched into their new season with Brock Lesnar going to the old bag of tricks of throwing around people smaller than him. It's one of my least favorite bits, attacking the son of Rey Mysterio, adding an extra dramatic element to things. I know they needed to build up Sasha Banks but having her beat Alexa Bliss one on one without interference is annoying. Heavy Machinery losing to Roode and Zigler is a surprise considering how they've been building them up but maybe this is the start of a new rivalry. Watching Ric Flair and Hulk troll the fans before announcing their 5 on 5 match at Crown Jewel, was painful, these guys are done although they did finally give Randy Orton something to do. Also, quick question, is Seth Rollins the only guy who works here?
With Smackdown moving to Fridays on Fox Sports there isn't as much on this week to talk about yet although Raw's new looks were pretty sweet. It's always interesting to see what changes get made season to season and it'll be more interesting to see the tone that Smackdown goes for this Friday on its new home FS1.
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The Houston Texans have a big challenge in store as they look to start the season with a win against the Colts this Sunday. When these two teams met in Week 2 last year, the Colts dominated the Texans, despite losing their QB Anthony Richardson to a concussion after the first quarter.
Keeping Richardson contained on Sunday will go a long way in increasing the Texans' chances of coming home with a win. The Texans defense will have their hands full containing the Colts backs and tight ends in the passing game.
Scoring touchdowns with their wide receivers could prove difficult, as the Texans allowed the second-fewest TDs (10) to the receiver position in 2023.
Limiting running back Jonathan Taylor will also be a top priority. While the Texans had an elite defense against the run last season, they struggled with Taylor in Week 18 as he almost rushed for 200 yards.
Houston's D allowed only four carries to running backs in 2023 that went for 20 or more yards. Two of which were to Taylor in the final game of the regular season.
Finally, DeMeco Ryans and company have to find a way to get pressure on the QB. They only had one QB hit and zero sacks on Richardson and Garner Minshew the first time they faced off last year.
On offense, the Texans have two big x-factors to watch for on Sunday. The offensive line that suited up to play the Colts in Week 2 last season is completely different from this year.
The o-line was ravaged with injuries to start the 2023 campaign, so we expect a big jump in productivity in the trenches this year.
Another big addition in 2024 is the presence of running back Joe Mixon. The running game only produced 2 yards per rush in Week 2 against Indy last year, so there's clearly room for improvement.
Be sure to watch the video above for our in-depth preview of Texans-Colts!
And catch Texans on Tap (a Texans podcast) live on our SportsMapTexans YouTube channel following every game this season!