Big, big win for the Rockets. On to Game 6!

One Man’s (Belated) Breakdown of the Texans’ Draft Picks

Let me just preface this by saying that I love the job Rick Smith did in the draft this year. If I were to meet Rick in person, I’d give him a Roger Goodell-esque hug. 

Anyhow, on to the picks:

DeAndre Hopkins, WR, Clemson

Yes, yes, YES, HOLY HELL YES. Hopkins is my favorite WR in this draft class, so I could hardly contain my excitement when the Texans picked him up with pick #27. He has great hands, great route-running, and an incredible amount of discipline. He may not have as much upside as say, Justin Hunter, but he’s the most complete receiver in the 2013 class and should be ready to start opposite Andre immediately. If you’re not already sold on Hopkins, watch him tear up LSU in the Chick-Fil-A Bowl. 

D.J. Swearinger, S, South Carolina

This guy can hit. If you search him up on Youtube, you’ll find plenty of videos of him making bone-crushing hits and talking trash. I worry about D.J.’s ability to cover wide receivers, though. Luckily, Swearinger will mainly come in on Dime packages and will probably be asked to cover tight ends, something that he should be able to handle quite well.

Brennan Williams, OT, North Carolina

I can’t tell you how glad I am that Kubiak isn’t satisfied with hoping that Newton can miraculously improve. B. Williams should provide fantastic competition for Newton. I’ve seen Brennan compared to Eric Winston due to his fantastic play against the run and questionable footwork when attempting to protect the QB. Williams has the natural talent to be able to learn how to properly play in pass coverage, so it isn’t a huge concern. Honestly, I can see him starting over Newton at some point during the upcoming season.

Sam Montgomery, DE/OLB, LSU

Many people around the NFL think that Montgomery is a head case, but after I reviewed various articles, quotes, and videos, he just seems like a guy that operates on a different wavelength from everyone else. And hell, there’s nothing wrong with that. The only crime Montgomery has ever committed is being a bit too honest, such as when he admitted to taking a few plays off in interviews with teams at the combine. Still, this guy has a ton of talent. Sam has some issues with reacting slowly to the snap of the football, but the move he’ll be making to OLB means he’ll get to stand up, likely allowing him to get off to a quicker start.

Trevardo Williams, DE/OLB, Connecticut

The Texans lacked speed on defense last year, which makes the addition of Williams a huge plus. This guy is pretty damn fast- if I’m remembering correctly, he ran a faster 40 time than DeAndre Hopkins. Since the Texans didn’t draft a true ILB, it’ll be interesting to see how they utilize their personnel. Will T. Wiiliams move inside, or will it be Brooks Reed? Will they leave both guys on the outside and stick with Sharpton as the starter at ILB? I’m not even sure the Texans know quite yet what the hell they’re gonna do.

David Quessenberry, OT/OG, San Jose State

This pick was a steal, if you ask me. Quessenberry has the opposite problem of Brennan Williams- he can pass block well, but his run blocking is lacking. He could fill in well as the Texans’ new swing tackle, or they could move him inside and try him out at guard.

Alan Bonner, WR, Jacksonville State

Who? What? Bonner was the first guy the Texans’ took in the draft of whom I had never heard of before. Reports say that he’s quick… but not fast. What? It seems as though Bonner could compete with Martin for kickoff return and slot receiver duties.

Chris Jones, DT, Bowling Green State (pictured above)

This is probably my favorite pick in terms of value. Jones was known as the “Beast of the MAC”, won MAC Defensive Player of the Year, was a 1st-team All American, and had 12.5 sacks in his senior season. The knock on him coming out of college, however, was that he’s too short and too small to play in the middle. Luckily for us, Wade loves to utilize smaller DTs for his one-gap system, meaning that Jones is a great fit for Houston’s defense. I’m REALLY hoping that Jones is good enough to come in and compete with Earl Mitchell for a starting job in the middle of the line, ‘cause, you know…. Mitchell ain’t that great.

Ryan Griffin, TE, Connecticut

According to one report (by CBSSports, I think), Griffin is comparable to… Garrett Graham. Oh. But that may not be such a bad thing after all. Griffin is faster than you’d expect from a guy with his kind of frame, and he’s a good blocker by all accounts. He should be able to compete with Supernaw for the 3rd TE spot.

Is there something wrong with Sharrif Floyd? I can’t believe he’s fallen this far.

Texans Draft Day: You Might Be Better Suited Drawing Names Out of a Hat

You win, Rick Smith. 

Last year I gobbled up as much pre-draft information as possible, fell in love with several prospects, and eagerly awaited for Rick Smith to draft one of my favorite guys.

But of course, Smith didn’t conform to anyone’s expectations. By the end of the draft, the Texans had picked up a bunch of mid-round guys I had never even heard of (See: Posey, Martin, Brooks).

Thus, we can conclude that mock drafts serve no true purpose, other than to entertain us as we wait for draft day to roll around. It’s impossible to truly predict what’s going to happen, because no two teams have the same Big Board. One team may hate a player, but another team may love him. 

This year, I’ve decided to hold off on learning about a ton of prospects. I plan on waiting until after the draft to learn about the guys that the Texans draft. Still, it’s fun to speculate, so under the Read More I’ll take a look at the Texans’ positions of need and the players in the draft that can fill them.

Read More

Wow, the Selection Committee really hates the Pac-12…

Glover Quin signs 5-year deal with Detroit Lions

Damn it.

There are still plenty of quality safeties left on the market, such as Michael Huff and Charles Woodson, but will the Texans go after one of them, or fill the hole at starting safety through the draft?

Delving into Day 2 of Free Agency (Houston Texans)

The news from Day 1, as you may already know, is that Kevin Walter was cut and James Casey signed a 3-year deal with the Eagles worth nearly $15 million. You can find my thoughts about the Kevin Walter cut here. As for Casey… I would have loved to have him back, but not for what the Eagles gave him. That’s a crazy deal for a little-known TE/FB and Rick Smith was right in not trying to compete for him.

Moving on to today, here are some things to look for:

• Quin is currently in Detroit being courted by the Lions, which scares me quite a bit. But it’s been reported that Quin is looking for $5 million a year, which, if true, is an affordable deal that Rick Smith needs to make right away. Like, right now. Do it Rick.

• Though it was reported that up to 6 teams were interested in Connor Barwin, no other news about him surfaced. I’m definitely getting a sinking feeling that there’s little to no chance that the Texans will be able to retain both Barwin and Quin, so the question is this: Which player do the Texans covet more? We may be finding out the answer soon enough.

• It’s being reported that Brice McCain is looking for somewhere between $3.5 and 5 million a year… which is completely insane. See ya, Brice. Honestly it wouldn’t concern me at all to lose McCain, because I feel as though Brandon Harris will eventually be better than him at the job of slot corner.

I’m keeping my fingers crossed that something good happens today. After the horrifying free agency period that the Texans had last year, I want to at least keep some of our starters this time.

Breaking News: Texans Release Kevin Walter

Early Reaction: This was an obvious move for Rick Smith to make, as cutting Walter saves roughly $3 million in cap space. It’s also now very apparent that the Texans will use an early pick in the draft on a WR (DeAndre Hopkins, please?).

Even though this was the right move (Walter was getting old and slow, after all), I’m still gonna miss him. Thanks for the solid seasons, Kevin. I salute you.

The Texans have been eerily silent this offseason.

Obviously, re-signing Glover Quinn has to be the top priority. Get it done, Rick.

I’d like to see Eric Winston make a return to Houston, since he’d be an upgrade over Newton. Plus, I think the idea that he’s a liability in pass coverage is totally overblown. He’ll probably be too expensive though. Meh.

I wouldn’t be too upset if we don’t bring back Barwin. It seems, thought, that there aren’t very many teams lining up to sign him, so maybe the Texans can get him back on the cheap /pipedream

The Texans don’t have a ton of cap room, but they haven’t restructured/cut anybody yet, so hopefully they’ll have plenty of room to make the moves they want.

Defending Gonzaga

I’m pretty tired of seeing all of the hate directed toward Gonzaga from people who think that the Zags aren’t deserving of a #1 seed in the tournament. So, I’ll offer a retort.

The first thing that impresses me about the Zags is the fact that both of their losses are to teams that have an RPI in the top 50 (Illinois and Butler have RPIs of 34 and 27, respectively). Now, you might tell me that there are plenty of other top teams without sub-50 losses, but the fact of the matter is that Gonzaga has had more of an opportunity to rack up bad losses. The Zags have played 15 games against teams with an RPI over 150, and won all 15; against teams with an RPI of worse than 100, the Bulldogs are 17-0. This proves that Gonzaga never takes a game off and plays with amazing consistency. What also needs to be considered is that Gonzaga’s two losses came against two teams that Indiana, the team that many people believe should be the #1 overall seed, lost to as well. Additionally, the Zags went 5-0 vs. the Big 12, including 3-0 vs. Oklahoma St., Kansas St. and Oklahoma. For reference, Kansas went 4-2 vs. those same three teams.

I don’t believe that Gonzaga is the best team in the country, but I have no problem with them being #1, and their body of work is certainly enough to merit a top seed. Of course, with the way that this season has played out, having a #1 seed may not even matter. This will definitely be one heck of a tournament and I’m pretty damn excited to see how it’ll turn out.