The Texans appear to have learned from the mistakes made with Carr, who never recovered psychologically from the early beatings he took playing behind a lousy offensive line.
Houston coach Gary Kubiak said the team took steps to insure similar damage wasn't done to defensive end Mario Williams, the first player taken in 2006. Williams toiled through an injury-plagued rookie season and the Texans were criticized because the players chosen immediately behind him (New Orleans running back Reggie Bush and Tennessee quarterback Vince Young) made an instant splash.
Kubiak said it took a collective effort by the Texans -- including assistant coaches and the team's media relations department -- to help Williams "keep it all in perspective."
"There's so much pressure on No. 1 picks," said Kubiak, whose team signed Williams to a six-year, $54.5 million contract with $26.5 million in guarantees. "There's a lot of money in their pockets and lot of people tugging on them. They're probably going to a team that's not very good. Trying to get him to hang on until he becomes a complete pro is the responsibility of a lot of people."
Today, nobody is saying Bush or Young would have been a better choice after Williams registered 14 sacks in 2007.
"He took a lot of bullets playing when he wasn't 100 percent (healthy)," Kubiak said. "I just think in his mind he went through it all and came out of it very confident of who he is now. You don't ever know if they're going to come out of it because it's a hell of a battle."
It's also one the Texans hope they are never forced to wage again because of a poor record.
"Someone has to pick first," a laughing Smith said. "We do tons and tons of research, gather data, evaluate and do as much as we can do. But at the end of the day, it's still not an exact science."
