Does anyone think Lord will ever become a starter?

[WILLIEG]

I know Coleman has more experiene at the FS postion, however, Lord is a tremendous athlete that has great size and speed to become a sooner than later replacement for the aging veteran that isn't as fast as he once was.

[Vinny]

Coleman is primed for his biggest year and is one of the least likely guys to lose his position this year. Coleman is one of our more athletic players as well. Lord is still another year away (3 year project like Wand and Peek...even moreso really), and he isn't anywhere as good as Coleman is right now.

[Lucky]

Lord does look like a top athlete. But, the rookie CC Brown seems to be one as well. I didn't realize how tall Brown was (looked about 6'2"). CC looks like a young Coleman. His actions are very smooth and effortless. Though Brown is playing SS now, I could see Earl and Brown manning the safety spots for the Texans some day.

[keyfro]

vinny is right here...lord is atleast a year away before he's ready to push anybody for a starting position...personally i think he will always be a back-up here...i think he has a long hard road ahead of him...i think coleman's eventual replacement will be drafted next year or found in FA in a year or two...now C.C. Brown is an interesting prospect...he does have the size and speed to transfer over to FS if needed...i think that's the guy we should be looking at more closely

[Big B Texan Fan]

Not this year, Coleman is one of the least talked about players but has the potential to be our defensive MVP. He is destined to be a FS. With one year under his belt, he looks to be one of the best FS's in the AFC South.

[WILLIEG]

Yeah, experince counts for alot in the NFL. Hopefully he'll get his shot one of these days. I just thought the Texans upgrading from experinced veterans to youth and speed might carry over to that position as well.

[Grid]

Lord is there so that we dont have to draft a rookie in 2-4 years to replace Coleman.. we will have a player who already knows our system backwards and frontwards..ready to go.

Lord doesnt HAVE to push anyone for the starting job yet.. all he has to do is keep learning and improving..his day will come.

[Vinny]

Originally Posted by WILLIEG

Yeah, experince counts for alot in the NFL. Hopefully he'll get his shot one of these days. I just thought the Texans upgrading from experinced veterans to youth and speed might carry over to that position as well.

Actually we have replaced older slower veterans with younger faster veterans. We really haven't swapped any Vets with raw talent that hasn't proved themselves on the field or in practice over the years.

[WILLIEG]

Hopefully in the year to come we can focus more of our attention to an offensive sided draft and pick up what little we need defensively in free agency.

[Vinny]

Originally Posted by WILLIEG

Hopefully in the year to come we can focus more of our attention to an offensive sided draft and pick up what little we need defensively in free agency.

We have more of our drafts invested in the offense than the defense so far. We have 8 offensive first day picks and 5 first day defenders (after heavy editing..oye).

Year No. Round Pick Player Name Position College
2005 1 1 16 16 Travis Johnson DT Florida State
2 3 9 73 Vernand Morency RB Oklahoma State

2004 1 1 10 10 Dunta Robinson DB South Carolina
2 1 27 27 Jason Babin DE Western Michigan

2003 1 1 3 3 Andre Johnson WR Miami (FL)
2 2 9 41 Ben Joppru TE Michigan
3 3 3 67 Antwan Peek LB Cincinnati
3 24 88 Dave Ragone QB Louisville
*Tony Hollings supp pick (second round)

2002 1 1 1 1 David Carr QB Fresno State
2 2 1 33 Jabar Gaffney WR Florida
3 2 18 50 Chester Pitts G San Diego State
4 3 1 66 Fred Weary C Tennessee
5 3 18 83 Charles Hill DT Maryland

[WILLIEG]

This years roster is going to be very interesting with the talent rising compared to years past. So whats the need for N orris and Baxter if Wells is going to be used more in the system? He's already built like a FB.

[Grid]

Norris is one of the best blocking FBs in the league.. possibly THE best. Norris is needed for those tough running plays.

Wells.. i imagine.. will be in on first, and some second downs. An extra threat on offense to help us gain large chunks of yardage.

[Vinny]

Wells won't see the field much...except on special teams. I think everyone is reading WAY too much into that off-season fluff piece a month ago. Baxter and Norris are both more physical blockers than Wells is.

[Grid]

You dont think they will try and use him on offense Vinny?

I see where you are coming from.. i mean they never specifically said that they would move him to FB and USE him there.. just that he could be used as a backup fullback.

But, the whole REASON for moving him to fullback was to save a roster spot, right? It allowed them to move some of their RB depth to FB.. and basicly get more bang for their buck. In order for that to work though.. Morris or Baxter would have to go (obviously Baxter would), otherwise you didnt really help yourself in any way.. all ya did was change the RB in front of Wells' name to an FB.

[Vinny]

Originally Posted by Grid

You dont think they will try and use him on offense Vinny?

not really. I see him fighting for a roster spot although he may have gotten his edge on Hollings with his special teams work. When he runs the ball he is timid and has a maddening habit of doing a half-spin move and meeting the defender with his back.

[Grid]

Eh.. I saw that in his first two years too.. but I thought he looked a good deal more polished this last season. He didnt spin near as much and he looked like he was hitting the holes faster to me.

I think he showed alot of improvement last season, and I think he earned the chance to show if he can continue to improve. I could see us lining him up at FB once or twice per drive, and seeing if he can make things happen.

[Vinny]

Wells is a lifetime 3.0 ypc guy and he ran 82 times for 3.6 last year (still not an impressive figure). I am not sure he is going to be much more than that in his career.

[Grid]

Well, all im saying is that he showed improvement last year, and I personally would like to see if he can continue to improve.

Hopefully the coaches feel the same way.. you can never have too many good RBs.. or at least we cant, considering all the injuries :P

[BornOrange]

Has anyone actually seen Wells line up at fullback in a practice? He needs to show an ability to be a lead blocker before anyone thinks of him lining up at fullback.


Back to the main point of the thread, Lord is a tremendous athlete who will take some time to adjust to playing safety. If he is able to make the transition I think he has the tools to be an outstanding safety. He has the strength to be a big hitter and the speed to cover a lot of territory.

Coleman's weakness as a safety is that he isn't physical enough. Having been a corner for most of his career, Coleman is great when he is in single coverage and did pretty well when playing deep zone. He should be even better this year when playing "center field". However, he isn't much of an intimidator when trying to break up passes or when defending the run.

Lord has the potential to be that kind of physical intimidator while also being able to keep up with receivers in the passing game, but it will take a few years. Coleman has the advantage of playing safety in college and then playing corner in the NFL, so he has a ton of experience. For now, look for Lord to make an impact on special teams and possibly spot duty as a safety.