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Practice report: Decision on Sunday

By Drew Dougherty
November 6, 2009 Comments (0) | Avg. Rating
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Kubiak still waiting to announce starter Embedded Video

The Texans practiced outside at the Methodist Training Center on Friday, their final day before leaving for Indianapolis and their Week 9 showdown with the Colts.

Split decision?: Head coach Gary Kubiak stayed consistent in his plans for the running back position on Friday, echoing what he said throughout the week by not naming a starter for Sunday's contest in Indianapolis.

"I'm going to go back and look at the film and make a decision probably sometime tomorrow," Kubiak said. "I'm going to play them all, and they're going to all be a big part of what we're doing."

Ryan Moats, Steve Slaton and Chris Brown, according to Kubiak, will all see time versus the Colts, and the head coach continues to stand behind Slaton despite his fumbling problems.

"I got a lot of confidence in Steve, you all know that," Kubiak said of Slaton, who has lost five fumbles this season. "I'm trying to work him through this the right way. We're going to need him to win this week."

Moats came off the bench in Slaton's place Sunday against the Bills and exploded for 126 yards on 23 carries witg three touchdowns. He'll certainly play some against the Colts, but Slaton will also get some chances even though he's struggled.

"You have a 1,200 yard rookie season, that's not easy in this league," Kubiak said of Slaton. "I told him before the season, I said ‘Steve, the next 1,200 yards you gain will be the toughest you ever gain. That's just the way it is."

Kubiak said it's been a group effort in trying to help Slaton correct the fumbling and that Slaton ultimately will be the one to solve the problem.

"He's going through a tough period of time right now, but to be a great player he'll work through this, and we're helping him work through it. But he's got the biggest piece of the puzzle, and he's got to protect the football."

-Gary Kubiak
"He's going through a tough period of time right now, but to be a great player he'll work through this, and we're helping him work through it. But he's got the biggest piece of the puzzle, and he's got to protect the football. He'll get a chance to do that this week," Kubiak said.

Familiar foe: Kubiak and Colts defensive coordinator Larry Coyer were on the same Broncos coaching staff from 2000 through 2005, when Hoyer was a linebackers coach his first two seasons and the defensive coordinator the final four. Hoyer is in his first season in charge of the Indianapolis defense, and so far, the Colts lead the NFL in scoring defense and have allowed just 13 points per game.

"I spent a lot of time and got a lot of respect for Larry," Kubiak said. "They changed just a little bit on defense. They're a little bit different cover team, but they're still the same effort team. Very sound, don't give up big plays."

Trojan tandem: A pair of former Southern California defensive players in linebacker Brian Cushing and defensive tackle Shaun Cody missed practice time this week because of injuries, but both players took part in Friday's session and appear able to play against the Colts.

"Shaun looked good," Kubiak said. "I think Shaun will be ready to go. He practiced today, and obviously Cushing practiced today, so we got them all in line and we'll go up there and take our shot."

Cody didn't practice Wednesday or Thursday, and Cushing was limited in what he did both days. Cody was nursing a back injury, while Cushing is fighting through a foot injury.

For the official injury report, click here.

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