I haven't posted much here over the past year. I'm a pretty new Texans fan who just moved to Austin, so I'm trying to jump in head first this year after a season in which I didn't have an opportunity to see many games.
In looking at the depth chart and the upcoming Draft, I've written up a little analysis of what I believe the Texans will do in the first round. Some may disagree with my basic premise that Houston has essentially been forced into taking a cornerback. If so, I'd welcome any feedback. I'm hoping that this post will get some Draft discussion going.
The Texans enter the 2010 Draft with a number of positions in need of attention. In the months leading up to the Draft, most analysts projected that Houston was likely to draft one of three positions in the first round-nose tackle, cornerback or free safety. However, my opinion is that the loss of starting CB Dunta Robinson to the Falcons, in addition to the failure to lure free agent Leigh Bodden from the Patriots, has subsequently forced the Texans’ hand.
Houston finds itself, following the loss of Robinson, with one of the weakest cornerback groups and secondaries overall in the entire NFL. In a division that features arguably the League’s best quarterback in Peyton Manning, the Texans’ top corner is second-year player Glover Quin-not exactly an enviable scenario. Veteran Jacques Reeves, the Texans' other projected starter, is merely average. 2009 sixth-round selection Brice McCain is a smaller corner who appears better suited to a nickel role, and back-ups Fred Bennett, Antwaun Molden and Mark Parson are not front-line NFL corners.
The Texans therefore seem to be in a position of having to draft for need instead of being able to focus on taking the best available player, as the team absolutely must conclude the 2010 Draft with a cornerback capable of starting immediately.
Taking a nose tackle like Brian Price or Dan Williams in the first round would force the Texans to have to find a starting cornerback in the 2nd or 3rd rounds, which, while not impossible, is a much more difficult proposition in a draft generally thought to include only 2-3 elite corners.
I felt that the Texans needed to find a minimum of two new defensive starters among the nose tackle, cornerback and free safety positions through a combination of free agency and the 2010 Draft. Their failure to be active and/or successful in the free agent market in any of those critical need areas likely means that those two new starters will have to be found in the Draft.
The 2009 Draft for the Texans was largely predictable, as Houston’s love for and need for strong-side linebacker Brian Cushing was certainly no secret. 2010 appears to be very similar in that a single player (CB Kyle Wilson of Boise State) has been projected almost universally by analysts to end up in Houston. Should Wilson fall to the Texans, I can’t see them passing on him, even if defensive linemen Dan Williams and Brian Price are still on the board at #20.
What do the Texans do if Wilson is off the board at #20? My feeling is that they would move to the next corner on their board (presumably Alabama’s Kareem Jackson). The burden on the Texans to land a starting cornerback in this Draft is immense, and failure to do so could have potentially catastrophic consequences for the team this season.
In looking at the depth chart and the upcoming Draft, I've written up a little analysis of what I believe the Texans will do in the first round. Some may disagree with my basic premise that Houston has essentially been forced into taking a cornerback. If so, I'd welcome any feedback. I'm hoping that this post will get some Draft discussion going.
The Texans enter the 2010 Draft with a number of positions in need of attention. In the months leading up to the Draft, most analysts projected that Houston was likely to draft one of three positions in the first round-nose tackle, cornerback or free safety. However, my opinion is that the loss of starting CB Dunta Robinson to the Falcons, in addition to the failure to lure free agent Leigh Bodden from the Patriots, has subsequently forced the Texans’ hand.
Houston finds itself, following the loss of Robinson, with one of the weakest cornerback groups and secondaries overall in the entire NFL. In a division that features arguably the League’s best quarterback in Peyton Manning, the Texans’ top corner is second-year player Glover Quin-not exactly an enviable scenario. Veteran Jacques Reeves, the Texans' other projected starter, is merely average. 2009 sixth-round selection Brice McCain is a smaller corner who appears better suited to a nickel role, and back-ups Fred Bennett, Antwaun Molden and Mark Parson are not front-line NFL corners.
The Texans therefore seem to be in a position of having to draft for need instead of being able to focus on taking the best available player, as the team absolutely must conclude the 2010 Draft with a cornerback capable of starting immediately.
Taking a nose tackle like Brian Price or Dan Williams in the first round would force the Texans to have to find a starting cornerback in the 2nd or 3rd rounds, which, while not impossible, is a much more difficult proposition in a draft generally thought to include only 2-3 elite corners.
I felt that the Texans needed to find a minimum of two new defensive starters among the nose tackle, cornerback and free safety positions through a combination of free agency and the 2010 Draft. Their failure to be active and/or successful in the free agent market in any of those critical need areas likely means that those two new starters will have to be found in the Draft.
The 2009 Draft for the Texans was largely predictable, as Houston’s love for and need for strong-side linebacker Brian Cushing was certainly no secret. 2010 appears to be very similar in that a single player (CB Kyle Wilson of Boise State) has been projected almost universally by analysts to end up in Houston. Should Wilson fall to the Texans, I can’t see them passing on him, even if defensive linemen Dan Williams and Brian Price are still on the board at #20.
What do the Texans do if Wilson is off the board at #20? My feeling is that they would move to the next corner on their board (presumably Alabama’s Kareem Jackson). The burden on the Texans to land a starting cornerback in this Draft is immense, and failure to do so could have potentially catastrophic consequences for the team this season.