Coach Janky Spanky

Houston Chronicle

Green is too critical to the success of the Texans' running game for the team to take any chances with him. He is a big reason the Texans have tweaked much of their running game in the offseason to mix a Denver-style, zone-blocking scheme with Green Bay's gap scheme.

Green is well-versed in both from his days in Green Bay when he played under Mike Sherman. The Texans ran only zone until the final month of last season when they started incorporating the gap scheme as well. Their running game went from averaging 96.3 yards per game in the first 11 games to 125.2 yards per game in the final five.

"We did some gap scheme last year, and it was very good for us and it was a great complement," said Sherman, the assistant head coach/offensive coordinator. "The zone purists say, 'All zone.' And the gap purists say, 'All gap.' But we believe you can run both schemes with equal efficiency, and one scheme makes the other better."