Texans Wideout Finds His Focus Andre Johnson's Adjustment

The Texans had the highest of hopes for rookie wideout Andre
Johnson when they selected him with the third pick in the April
draft, but receivers coach Kippy Brown did have one concern: lazy
hands. "He told me I was late getting my hands up when the ball
was coming," Johnson said last week. "The balls I'd drop or miss,
he'd tell me I had to get my hands up quicker." In fact, the
biggest knock on Johnson when he came out of Miami after his
junior season was that he dropped too many catchable balls. So
the team checked his eyes--and found a problem with his vision.

Now, for the first time in his career, Johnson is wearing
contacts, and the hands are no longer an issue. He sees the ball
earlier, and his hands are in position to make the catch. "I
needed them," Johnson says of the lenses. "David [Carr] throws
the ball so hard, and I have to have my hands ready because the
ball's right on me. Now I'm really confident I can be an impact
player."

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COLOR PHOTO: PAT SULLIVAN/AP His vision corrected, Johnson has his sights set on a big rookie season.