BL 1st First Round Mock Draft of 2014

[beerlover]

If Cassel wins the starter spot .... You are in trouble and will likely be picking very high again next season. Yeah , I know everyone is hyped over next years possible QB choices but , we were hyped about this years until recently .... but that means throwing away another year with a scrub QB.



I wouldn't mind him being brought back as a backup / mentor to a young guy but that's about it. That line was bad ..... but it wasn't the cause of Schaub's issues , that had more to do with his body breaking down than anything else. He couldn't plant to throw and couldn't evade .... a pop warner defense. Top that off with making poor decisions and what we saw was what we got.

He is .... no longer a starter in this league.


I could see Kupper , White & Newton gone , two of the three are highly likely to be gone. Could see Newton retained as depth as he makes very little and does have NFL ability .... just doesn't play like it all that often.


Doubt Ryan Harris is brought back unless its for a vet min deal.

Wade Smith was very poor last year , is he washed up or was he hurt ? Hard to see him coming back unless its at a significant discount. Probably time to move on.

Brennan Williams , I wouldn't count on ever playing a down. I'd cover my losses .... if he makes a liar outa me .... good for him and for the team.


Brown , Myers & Brooks have the makings of a solid OL. Jones sticks because he can play multiple positions. Quessenberry is a guard who can play tackle in a pinch , maybe he takes over that LG spot .... but Im not counting on him at any tackle position.

Brown starts at LT
Myers starts at C
Brooks at RG
Jones backs up at both G spots and C.
Quessenberry could be the starter at LG or just further depth.
RT is a black hole.

That leaves 4-5 OL roster spots up for grabs with a definite need at RT under the best conditions.


No to any of the following starting at QB for the Texans next year - Schaub , Keenum , Any of the FA QB's. Give me one of Manziel or Bridgewater. You likely get one of them even if you move back to #4.

Lot of good stuff corrosion. I did a poor job of is explaining my idea of a stop gap QB's role in transitional year under a new first time NFL Head Coach & staff. All fans have their own expectations, same is true of this draft. Free agency will play role in fans/team draft psychology. I'm out on Schaub. He cannot return under any circumstances, even if it means bringing in lesser talent in Cassel or whoever off that FA list. O'Brian needs a low cost QB with NFL experience that is familiar with his system, who can protect the ball & just keep it together while developing a young, talented rookie until he is ready.

So it's really a two part piece to this QB puzzle. If Texans select any QB from this class he needs to sit & learn otherwise you risk damaging long term development of that pick. Throwing them out there too early would be a mistake. Maybe O'Brian decides TJ Yates or Case Keenum can run his system? wish I knew for sure, that would be best Case, save cap space for other needs, really see what Texans have on roster, so ideally I'm looking for an O'Brian type QB prospect, later than sooner given I'm not sold on Bortles who seems to fit best among big three (I'm out on Manziel due to his decision not to throw @ both combine & his pro day, really).

In this first round mock, which has held up pretty well for a whole week old, lol, I have Vikings selecting Bortles #8. That does give Rick Smith some wiggle room to work out a trade down with one of those seven teams who may target a specific player not named Bortles. My major concern with this is not whether Blake will still be there or not its fact that Texans will lose out on getting one of the top offensive tackles to protect his right side & then transition to his long term blind side protector. Robinson, Matthews & Moses all would have immediate impact. My personal inflated opinion of Moses was meant to trigger my self preservation instinct to protect a developing franchise capable rookie QB. Without that facet to aid in his development I would just as soon take my franchise OT first, which I have Robinson currently #2 but will see after combine if he moves up in scouts eyes to #1 overall. That would make it simple, bpa & foundation pick for future developmental QB later.

 

[beerlover]

this is dated a bit but first time I read ourlads impression of Greg Robinson this is a paid scouting site but some information is free for public viewing, like this one so thought I would share. By the way they graded out Duane Brown as a 4th/5th round prospect, so they can be a little harsh at times as well have their share of misses.

Third year sophomore. Unfortunately Robinson did not receive the public recognition until halfway through the year because most had no idea he was three years removed from high school. Robinson caught my eye last year when I was scouting opposing players. He is enormous but carries minimal bad weight. He is light on his feet but can anchor himself in to the ground and stone a bull rusher. Robinson may be THE left tackle of this class if he comes out. While I think he is a bit raw and will need some balance/core/stability work, Robinson has two years of starting experience in the SEC with game tape just as, if not more, impressive as Kouandijo. If he comes out, he could really go anywhere from #1 to #15 overall. Dave Syvertsen, Ourlads' Draft Analyst

 

[Mr teX]

Do not want clowney. I am almost sure that he will be a five year rental. No way that the Texans are able to keep both watt and Clowney after his rookie contract.

Very valid point noone wants to talk about. The waters get even more muddied if Mercilus winds up turning the corner & start to thrive in Crennel's defense.

 

[Playoffs]

I like Robinson but if I'm going T I'd rather trade down and take either Matthews/Cyrus Kouandjio/Taylor Lewan from this good T class. Maybe even Morgan Moses in second. Like the player, don't love the value. Matthews would step in day 1 at RT, has Robinson played any RT?

Adding this little nugget...

Louis Riddick ‏@LRiddickESPN

These two kids are not in the same zip code as far as future projection in the NFL from what I know about Robinson at this point.

Greg Robinson vs Eric Fisher = why referencing draft round to describe prospect skill level is pointless in many ways.

 

[beerlover]

I like Robinson but if I'm going T I'd rather trade down and take either Matthews/Cyrus Kouandjio/Taylor Lewan from this good T class. Maybe even Morgan Moses in second. Like the player, don't love the value. Matthews would step in day 1 at RT, has Robinson played any RT?

copy that. good point. one factor that's constraining doing a mock draft, is doing one without trades.

notice I have Moses selected top 10? doubt it too, but wanted to dispel any notion that you can still get him in the 2nd, but guess I failed. let's say Texans draft Bridgewater #1 overall. first thing I would do is attempt to trade back up into the first round to draft Moses if he slips into mid twenties, without question.

 

[beerlover]

Louis Riddick ‏@LRiddickESPN

Quote:
These two kids are not in the same zip code as far as future projection in the NFL from what I know about Robinson at this point.

Greg Robinson vs Eric Fisher = why referencing draft round to describe prospect skill level is pointless in many ways.

back tracked to twitter but still lack enough content to understand without hesitation exactly what he meant by that statement. If you know, please enlighten me. in general like his stuff, anybody with his background is worth a listen

 

[bah007]

Louis Riddick ‏@LRiddickESPN


back tracked to twitter but still lack enough content to understand without hesitation exactly what he meant by that statement. If you know, please enlighten me. in general like his stuff, anybody with his background is worth a listen

Seems to me that he is saying Fisher wasn't in Robinson's league as a prospect, which I would agree with.

I have Robinson rated as the best OL of the last two drafts. Last year there were nine OL taken in the first round:

#1 Eric Fisher
#2 Luke Joeckel
#4 Lane Johnson
#7 Jonathan Cooper
#10 Chance Warmack
#11 D.J. Fluker
#19 Justin Pugh
#20 Kyle Long
#31 Travis Frederick

I see seven OL in this year's class with the potential to go in the first round:

Greg Robinson
Jake Matthews
Zack Martin
Cyrus Kouandijo
Morgan Moses
Antonio Richardson
Taylor Lewan

Combined, I had them rated in this order, for now:

1. Robinson - Franchise LT
2. Joeckel - Franchise LT
3. Cooper - All Pro OG
4. Matthews - All Pro OG
5. Warmack - All Pro OG
6. Fisher - Potential Franchise LT
7. Martin - All Pro RT/OG
8. Fluker - All Pro RT
9. Johnson - Potential Franchise LT
10. Kouandijo - Potential All Pro RT
11. Long - Potential All Pro OG
12. Moses - Potential All Pro RT
13. Richardson - Potential All Pro LT
14. Lewan - Potential All Pro RT
15. Pugh - Solid RT
16. Frederick - Solid C

 

[Playoffs]

back tracked to twitter but still lack enough content to understand without hesitation exactly what he meant by that statement. If you know, please enlighten me. in general like his stuff, anybody with his background is worth a listen

Robinson has markedly greater upside, better prospect.

 

[Playoffs]

Combined, I had them rated in this order, for now:...

Great stuff there.

 

[beerlover]

Great stuff there.

Agreed simply great work. For minute there thought I was seeing something others didn't, thanks guys! I remember Ryan Clady pancaking guys at Boise and of course Ogden UCLA so when a player flashes like that it gets me pumped. Brown & Robinson would give a QB an excellent shot of success (even Carr/Schaub but they would probably find a way to **** that up too).

 

[thunderkyss]

this is dated a bit but first time I read ourlads impression of Greg Robinson this is a paid scouting site but some information is free for public viewing, like this one so thought I would share. By the way they graded out Duane Brown as a 4th/5th round prospect, so they can be a little harsh at times as well have their share of misses.

I can see why a QB would like this guy.

 

[thunderkyss]

copy that. good point. one factor that's constraining doing a mock draft, is doing one without trades.

notice I have Moses selected top 10? doubt it too, but wanted to dispel any notion that you can still get him in the 2nd, but guess I failed. let's say Texans draft Bridgewater #1 overall. first thing I would do is attempt to trade back up into the first round to draft Moses if he slips into mid twenties, without question.

If we did this, I wouldn't care what Bridgewater weighed.

I'd do my happy dance down Kirby.

 

[steelbtexan]

copy that. good point. one factor that's constraining doing a mock draft, is doing one without trades.

notice I have Moses selected top 10? doubt it too, but wanted to dispel any notion that you can still get him in the 2nd, but guess I failed. let's say Texans draft Bridgewater #1 overall. first thing I would do is attempt to trade back up into the first round to draft Moses if he slips into mid twenties, without question.

Yep, I've got Moses ranked as my #3 OT. I think he can play either OT spot.

Robinson
Lewan
Moses