Eric Winston fights to protect his teammates

HOUSTON — Eric the Enforcer is 6-foot-7, 317 pounds and prepared to make sure nobody steps over the imaginary line he has drawn that separates friends from enemies.

“You don’t worry about whether they like you or not,” offensive tackle Eric Winston said. “Your job is to protect your teammates.

“I’m never going to be a guy that’s going to start a fight, but if something presents itself, I’m never going to back down, either.”

The subject of fighting came up Monday when strong safety Bernard Pollard and Winston got into it after a running play.

Center Chris Myers thought Pollard tried too hard to rip the ball from rookie running back Ben Tate. Myers went after Pollard. Then defensive tackle Amobi Okoye came to Pollard’s aid. Winston ended it when he started going at it with Pollard.

“If he (Pollard) steps over the line, it’s up to us to put him back over there, and that’s what competition’s all about,” Winston said. “We’re going to go inside, and we’re going to go have lunch together, and we’re going to start laughing and making jokes, so it’s not something that’s carrying over. It’s left out on the field.

“Look, you’re practicing, and it’s hot out here. It gets competitive, and sometimes you go at it. It would be a problem if it filtered into the dressing room and there was some hatred involved, but when we step off the field, we’re friends again.”

Coach Gary Kubiak doesn’t condone fighting, but he also doesn’t want his players to back down as long as they avoid hurting the team by being penalized or ejected.

“Coach (Kubiak) told us, ‘Don’t fight,’?” Winston said. “?‘Don’t hurt the team. Don’t cost your team penalties.’ That’s where it is from a coaches standpoint — just don’t hurt the team.

“Maybe if this was a game situation, it might have played out a little bit different, and you’d try to keep your head on. But it’s a long camp, and we (offense) can’t let them (defense) push us around. We’ve got to be the guys taking it to them. When I think they’re stepping over the edge, we’re going to do it.”

Last season, the Texans were playing a close game at Tennessee. There were cheap shots, penalties and fights. Winston became so angry at defensive end Kyle Vanden Bosch that he took off his helmet on the field and challenged Vanden Bosch to a fight.

Winston had enough of what he thought were cheap shots by Vanden Bosch and a couple of teammates, who were going after tight end Joel Dreessen’s knees to settle a grudge.

Winston inspired his teammates, and they escaped with a three-point victory.

“If you can set standards and not get a penalty when you react, that’s good,” he said. “If you can get a penalty on them, that’s even better.”
“Hey, it's not just me, but all five of us will get involved.”

Going at it in practice sometimes preps players for opponents.

“We're all on the same team here,” Winston said. “We're all in this thing together.

“Right now, we're going after each other pretty good on the field. It's a case where we're all getting each other ready for Week One (Indianapolis).”

The Texans better be prepared for their three practices against the Saints in New Orleans. There have been a lot of fights during the Texans' practices with the Saints the past two years.

“What it comes down to is that we're going to protect each other,” Winston said. “If they're stepping across the line, we're going to go after them. Just like I'm sure they'll come after us like they did last year.”

Offensive assistant Bruce Matthews was an offensive lineman with the Oilers/Titans for 19 years and is a member of the Pro Football Hall of Fame. He played for coaches such as Jerry Glanville who encouraged fighting in camp.

“Yeah, I used to get into fights a lot, and then I realized they were ridiculous,” Matthews said. “One time, I almost lost the tip of my finger when I threw a punch and it got caught in a facemask. Finally, I realized how unnecessary that was.”

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(mysanantonio.com)