Sure from a playing perspective, but 2years of OTA's 2 preseasons and 8 months in between to focus on nothing but football helps. I went to ASU watched alot of Troy play 2 and 3 years ago, he is a magnet when the ball comes to him. Just glad he didn't try to take it to the house and fumble, like other safties have....
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Troy Nolan just became our starting FS
- Thread starter Texans34Life
- Start date
Sure from a playing perspective, but 2years of OTA's 2 preseasons and 8 months in between to focus on nothing but football helps. I went to ASU watched alot of Troy play 2 and 3 years ago, he is a magnet when the ball comes to him. Just glad he didn't try to take it to the house and fumble, like other safties have....
TheRealJoker
Hall of Fame
Or veteran CB Nate Clements did today...
Allstar
Bona fide
I just want to know if he's eligible for rookie awards and things like that, not trying to imply he's that good already, just want to know if he's officially a rookie.
my guess is no, but I am guessing
GuerillaBlack
Hall of Fame
Give the guy credit! With as many tipped balls there are in games that don't get caught, the fact that Nolan caught two in his first NFL regular season action is pretty good I think.
Im not taking anything away from him , dont get me wrong. Just pointing out that other than being in the right place at the right time he didnt do anything to create those turnovers - I believe it was Diles who tipped the first one and the reciever the second.
And being in the right place at the right time is part of the job description of the FS .... again , I much prefer Nolan to the laternatives.
I'd really like to see a statistic that gave the WR some accountability for an INT rather than the QB getting all the blame , there are so many times where the WR is the cause of an INT ....
Along those lines , OD saved Schaub from one today.
As did Walter.
beerlover
Hall of Fame
bottom line - Nolan is a ballhawk
TheMatrix31
Hall of Fame
Regardless of how you want to classify it, its nice to have a safety that holds onto the ball when its in his hands at any point.
The Pencil Neck
Hall of Fame
My definition of a "ball hawk" is a guy that goes out there and has those tipped balls bounce his way as well as reading the QB's eyes and jumping on routes. The thing about Troy is that he gets into the right positions to get those balls and when he gets the chance, he usually catches them.
I mean, Eugene has had a couple of those balls bounce off his hands this year. Troy in those same positions has those picks.
Troy may not win the starting spot because he may not be as consistent and as experienced as Eugene Wilson but he should be getting PT.
I mean, Eugene has had a couple of those balls bounce off his hands this year. Troy in those same positions has those picks.
Troy may not win the starting spot because he may not be as consistent and as experienced as Eugene Wilson but he should be getting PT.
TimeKiller
Guest
If it's only tipped balls...
....then why is Nolan the only one that can come down with one?
....then why is Nolan the only one that can come down with one?
Blake
MMQB
Agreed. But the talking heads sure gave Jarius Byrd a ****-ton of credit last year durring the DROY voting off all those tip interceptions.
At the very least he had the awareness to see the tipped ball and make a play on it.
On the 2nd one it looked like Zack Miller might have come away with the catch had Nolan not gotten his mits on it.
You need every advantage you can get. Wilson just doesn't have the ability to come away with the football. That means the drive continues and you could get burned on the next play. Whatever deficiencies Nolan has at FS he can probably get better with some playing time. I say throw him out in the fire with the KJ
It was Adibi, other than that sack & pressure on the QB, Diles was pitiful in pass defense. He kept breaking to the play side, and letting the TE run free. The one time I do remember him breaking with the tightend, he was late.
I still remember back to the Saints PreSeason game, when our LBs wouldn't move for almost a full second after the ball was snapped. I want to believe that was us trying to chip away at our propensity to attack the run.
This has been a big problem for us for a long time. They (because DeMeco & Adibi are just as bad) need to get better at recognizing plays, down & distance, passing/running situations.... etc
Barber started the game, not Nolan.
drs23
Veteran
jaayteetx
All Pro
Ya, Eugene Wilson sure couldn't last week.
The Pencil Neck
Hall of Fame
michaelm
vox nihili
Ole Miss Texan
Hall of Fame
I've been a big fan of Troy Nolan and have been hoping he comes around into being an answer for us at that spot. While many people on here are quick to rush these type of players into the starting lineup, I'm a lot more hesitant. I am so so glad he got a lot of snaps yesterday and I hope that continues. I'm more of thinking of "easing" him into that role than flat out giving it to him. He needs to first show in practice that he's capable of defensive adjustments and an all the x's and o's (consistently) before he gets the starting nod. Getting him plenty of reps is one way to do that vs. throwing him into the fire (which sometimes I am a fan of too). If Kubes/Bush/Gibbs think he's ready to go againt the Giants, and the rest of the season... I will be thrilled. But if they don't make him the starter immediately it's not going to hurt my feelings.
Nolan and Pollard sure could be a nasty nasty Safety duo!!!!
Nolan and Pollard sure could be a nasty nasty Safety duo!!!!
beerlover
Hall of Fame
Texans rotate other positions like RB/OL/DT to keep players fresh see no reason why they don't use him at least in 3rd down situations regardless of reps which would accomplish about the same thing.
Ole Miss Texan
Hall of Fame
Agreed. Sometimes a player can be out of position and just get lucky by a pass thrown to him, or one deflected out to him. In the case of Nolan yesterday, it looked to me that he was exactly where he needed to be as a safety - tipped balls are a part of the game, and the teams that can capitalize on them are teams that can win.
Ole Miss Texan
Hall of Fame
That's a really good idea. I'll be willing to bet that's what they end up doing.
I agree.
OzzO
.. and then?
b0ng
Bad Hombre
Goddamnit make him the ****ing starter Kubiak. THE ANSWER IS STARING YOU DIRECTLY IN THE FACE WHEN YOU WATCH GAME FILM FROM PRESEASON AND SUNDAY!
Ole Miss Texan
Hall of Fame
Obviously it's still too early to make any concrete statements. BUT if Nolan keeps up the good work and Dickerson can contribute, check our our 7th round picks!
2006 - David Anderson
2007 - Zac Diles
2008 - Alex Brink (flyer pick, missed)
2009 - Troy Nolan
2010 - Dorin Dickerson
Anderson and Diles have very defined roles on this team and are huge contributors. The backup QB pick was a flyer that didn't work out. Could Nolan be for the Safety position what Diles is at LB!?!? Now we just need Dickerson to keep watching how AJ does his thing.
2006 - David Anderson
2007 - Zac Diles
2008 - Alex Brink (flyer pick, missed)
2009 - Troy Nolan
2010 - Dorin Dickerson
Anderson and Diles have very defined roles on this team and are huge contributors. The backup QB pick was a flyer that didn't work out. Could Nolan be for the Safety position what Diles is at LB!?!? Now we just need Dickerson to keep watching how AJ does his thing.
I really dislike this argument...
How many of Cushings INT's last season were NOT tipped balls????
One.
And the one he caught that wasn't tipped was in a must pass situation against the Bengals where he was in a deep zone.
If you look at the top INT guys around the league, most of their INT's com off of tipped balls. Very seldom do you have guys just jumping routes and catching picks. I'm not saying jumping routes and catching picks rarely happens, but normally if a guy has a lot of picks it's because he has caught several tipped balls.
Several factors go into that. Consistently being around the ball in good position is a key factor. A lot of the time these guys are in good position to make big hits or at least stop the receiver when/if he catches it.
If you are consistently in good position and around the ball then it makes sense that you'd be a player most often benefiting from tipped balls.
Another obvious factor is hands.
Troy has very good hands which he demonstrated on both of the picks.
The first pick he came from a distance and made a diving catch for the ball. If a receiver makes a diving catch for a ball it's a great feat...Same for a DB....
On the second INT, he had to make a reach back one handed corral to snag it.
I've seen way too many a Texan player drop INT's that have come right to them to complain about tipped INT's.
This is why I said to temper the excitement about Nolan on page 1.
I kind of understand Kubes not just thrusting him into the starters role but rather easing him into more playing time and making him earn his play.
He's going to really make Nolan earn his position as a starter. To earn his position he is going to have to prove that he can do what he did on a consistent basis while at the same time proving that he's not going to make too many mistakes that are going to cost us big.
NitroGSXR
Super Sic #58
Nasty? C'mon now... Gradkowski had almost 300 yards in the air. Let's be honest... they're swiss cheese. If anybody patches it up, it'd be Cushing.
We need more turnovers. Yesterday was a great start but we still need more!
I totally agree with this. I like Nolan, but he was a 7th rounder for a reason.
And, we rushed Barber & Busing into starting roles out of necessity. Didn't work out to well.
I understand every win is important & everybody is wanting to win now... But I think we'll be okay easing Nolan into the starting lineup. We're already young in the secondary, we are already short on playmakers, but let's not rush into anymore decisions we don't have to.
gary
Hall of Fame
Gary has a chance to start the hot hand just like Reid has now done by starting Vick. The way I view the INT by Nolan is yhea, the football was tipped but not everyone gets the chance for an INT and takes advantage of that chance. Even if the football was tipped Nolan still has to have the eyes and awareness to locate the football and make a play on it. The one thing to remember is the just one week prior against Romo and the Cowboys Wilson had the exact same chance as Nolan but he did not catch the footballl if you recall. That might have been turning point in the game. If the truth is that Troy has better skill and alertness over an aged vet who is past his good stage then Gary should follow in the football of coach Andy Reid. Kudos to Troy Nolan on a great heads up play on the football. Good luck to Troy Nolan he seems hungry for a chance I hope he continues to play very well.
infantrycak
Hall of Fame
Where does this assertion come from other than as a made up reason to criticize Kubiak because folks want the latest fan favorite rookie to start?
Started as rookies:
Williams
DeMeco
Spencer
Winston
Daniels
Lundy
Okoye
Bennett
Brown
Slaton
Cushing
Caldwell
Quinn
Jackson
That's just folks who started as rookies much less others who received substantial playing time like McCain.
pbat488
gig 'em
We all knew when we picked him up and throughout the past (well, that was his 16th game with us) two seasons that Pollard is not a great coverage safety. We sacrifice his coverage abilities for his mentality and physical toughness. Just putting Gradkowski's yardage out there doesn't mean they won't be a good safety tandem.
Most of the yards came on short throws that became long gainers; a couple being screens to McFadden and also most of Miller's receptions. I can only remember that long seam route to Miller in the 3rd or 4th where Gradkowski had a perfect throw as the only completion over 20 yards in the air; all the others were dropped by the Raider's "receiving" corps.
There's also the fact that we had their run game shut down in the 2nd half, albeit largely due in part to McFadden going out injured, as well as a large lead that necessitated the Raiders to throw the ball.
Now I'm not claiming they're going to be great, but just saying that because Gradkowski got 300 yards passing without Cushing and with Nolan not even playing the whole game due to splitting time with Barber, it's kind of hard to say they don't have a chance to be good just because of those facts. I for one am excited about the future with these two as the return of the Cush will only open up more options for turnovers in the future.
Either way we see it..
GO TEXANS!!!
Texan_Touchdown
Noob
Wolf you just got proved wrong bad man. Best advice in my opinion is just think before you type, a biased opinion that has no factual relevance.
Kubiak is a great coach. If you think otherwise, that's your opinion. But you better get used to the guy, because he's not going anywhere.
Kubiak is a great coach. If you think otherwise, that's your opinion. But you better get used to the guy, because he's not going anywhere.
I just think Kubiak kind of plays it by ear.
He has pretty much stated that his philosophy is to have 1st round picks come in and start from day one. I don't know if that is because the talent on the team has been lacking, or if he just feels that 1st rd picks should start no matter what.
It'll be interesting to see what happens next year if all of our starters remain solid and healthy and if Nolan or Barber can solidify the FS spot.
A lot of those guys started because they were 1st rd. picks. Kubiak has stated that he wants 1st rd. picks to come in and start. The 1st rd. picks were anointed starters before even going through 1 day of camp.
Several of the others are actually prime examples of what has happened with Nolan. They were second string until the vets in front of them got hurt or completely sucked.
I don't agree that Kubiak refuses to play rookies that have flashed talent, but he does tend to give the benefit of the doubt to vets.
TimeKiller
Guest
I don't think Kubiak will outright give a job on one game and an injury to Nolan so I'm sure we'll see Wilson, at least in a rotation but I'm doubting the bulk of the snaps goes anywhere but Nolan.