CloakNNNdagger
Hall of Fame
Some very interesting numbers, indeed.
Grades are included along with positional rankings based on players playing more than 25% of snaps:
T Derek "The Ghost" Newton. Overall grade of -17.0. Ranks #73 out of 79 Offensive Tackles. The only positive score he achieved in the PFF grading system is his ability to avoid penalties. Based on the PFF assessment, it's amazing that Derek is a starting Tackle in the NFL and gets the number of plays that he does. He's whiffed on a several blocks in critical passing situations throughout the season. Largely ineffective in blitzing situations. Newton lacks any real quickness necessary to match up against good defensive lineman. I call him "The Ghost" because his poor play has haunted the Texans QBs all season long. On the bright side, he's outplayed the Chiefs top pick Eric Fisher.
G Wade "The Mannequin" Smith. Overall grade of -14.3. Ranks #65 out of 75 Offensive Guards. The worst run blocker on the line and only marginally better in pass blocking. Remarkable degradation in his technique and can't sustain blocks for any length of time. He gets moved around by defensive lineman like a clerk moves around department store mannequins.
T Duane “Body Armor” Brown. Overall grade of +11.3. Ranks #19 out of 79 Offensive Tackles. Solid performance overall. Among the best in the league in pass protecting. Struggled a bit in pass blocking on Thursday against the Jags, allowing two sacks – first sacks allowed since the Chargers game.
T Ryan Harris. Overall grade of +0.3. Ranks #43 out of 79 Offensive Tackles. Should play more than he does. Major upgrade over Newton.
C Chris “Hercules” Myers. Overall grade of +19.2. Ranks #1 out of 35 Centers. You won’t find anyone in the league better at run blocking. No QB sacks on his watch. Only minor flaw is he has allowed 14 QB hurries. Amazing performance overall.
QB Matt “Captain Check Down” Schaub. Overall grade of -11.3. Ranks 34 out of 38 QBs graded. Agree with Maylock, the Texans have three back-up QBs on the roster. Schaub sure is one expensive back-up QB. Only so much blame can be placed on the offensive line. The QB is the general on the field and largely responsible for the success of the offense. Matt Schaub, along with Geno Smith, Mike Glennon, and Brandon Weeden have negative scores in several key areas. Schaub is the worst graded QB on the Texans roster. Struggles in just about every aspect of the game and makes poor decisions when the pocket breaks down. Has a grade of +1.8 when there is no pressure and has a solid pocket. He has a -12.7 grade under pressure and a -8.5 grade when blitzed. I believe he should be inactive the remainder of the season. How in the world he can pass up open receivers and then throw into heavy traffic is beyond me. Inexcusable and unacceptable performance by a veteran QB.
QB Case “I’m Blitzed” Keenum. Overall grade of -2.0. Ranks 24 out of 38 QBs. Consistency is an issue. He’s just ahead of RGIII and Colin Kaepernick and just behind Carson Palmer. He has a low completion % (ranks 36th) accompanied by several poor throws. Timing with his receivers is an issue. A highlight of his short tenure as QB is he has tossed all 5 of Andre Johnson’s TDs in 2013. Keenum ranks 11th in average yards per attempt so he has the ability to spread the field. He ranks #2 in the league deep passing accuracy. One of the biggest criticisms of Keenum by some of the fans is his inability “to pick-up the blitz”. Now, according to PFF Keenum grades out at +0.8 when he is blitzed. Case’s problems stem from poor decision-making when the pocket breaks down. He doesn’t throw the ball away when he should which contributes to his -1.4 grade under pressure.
TE Garrett Graham. Overall grade of -9.2. Ranks 55 out of 62 TEs. If you count all 126 TEs that have seen action this year, he ranks 120. Among all TEs that have played more than 750 snaps, Garrett is the worst TE in the NFL. Some dropped passes, poor route running, poor pass blocking, poor run blocking, etc. Garrett Graham is an extremely abysmal pass blocking TE. Not that Kubiak expected his TEs to actually line-up and block. Owen Daniels get well soon. In the interim Texans, please let Ryan Griffin play more.
WR Andre “The Legend” Johnson. Overall grade of +23.2. Ranks #2 out of 112 Wide Receivers. Future Hall-of-Famer. Team will probably erect a statue in front of Reliant when he retires.
WR DeAndre Hopkins. Overall grade of -0.1. Ranks #71 out of 112 Wide Receivers. Penalties hurt his grade. Only one dropped pass. Really not that good at blocking. Needs to develop more consistency in his play overall.
