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First-year coaches meet as Jets host Texans

Nov 21, 2006 - 10:36 PM Houston (3-7) at NY Jets (5-5) Sunday 1:00 pm EST

EAST RUTHERFORD, New Jersey (Ticker) -- The New York Jets and Houston Texans both feature first-year coaches heading into Sunday's matchup at the Meadowlands.

However, the rebuilding process for the Jets under Eric Mangini is coming along a bit quicker than the Texans' under Gary Kubiak.

After winning just four games last season, the Jets already have surpassed that total in 2006, giving them legitimate playoff aspirations.

Including this contest, the Jets' remaining games are all against teams with losing records. New York is two games behind first-place New England in the AFC East.

Last week, the Jets endured a 10-0 loss here against Chicago, which is tied with Indianapolis for the NFL's best record. Chad Pennington struggled, completing 19-of-35 passes for 162 yards with two interceptions.

The Texans also have surpassed their win total from last season, but have been quite inconsistent.

With a chance to put together back-to-back wins for the first time this season last week, the Texans surrendered a late lead in a 24-21 loss to Buffalo.

David Carr was one of the bright spots against the Bills, tying an NFL record with 22 straight completions. He finished 25-of-30 for 223 yards with an interception.

This is the Texans' second visit to the Meadowland in less than a month following a 14-10 loss to the New York Giants on November 5.