Johnny Utah
Rookie
Let's be clear: Bypassing Bush smacks of stupidity
By RICHARD JUSTICE
Copyright 2006 Houston Chronicle
Reggie Bush would have given the Texans a couple of things they don't have. Like excitement and credibility.
He would have made them dramatically better. He would have made them interesting.
Remember those empty seats at Reliant Stadium last fall? He would have filled them.
Even the people who wanted Vince Young saw Bush as something special. He changes games in an instant. He averaged 8.9 yards per carry last season at USC.
He would have been the face of the Texans the moment they called his name this morning. They'd no longer be Charley Casserly's team. Or Vic Fangio's. They'd have been Reggie's.
When the New York Jets the luckiest team on the planet thanks to the Texans take him, watch those highlights again.
He lights up a football field the way few players have. He makes defenders miss. He scores touchdowns.
Dozens of NFL scouts say he's among the best prospects they've seen. They say he's easily the best player in this draft.
Until about a week ago, the Texans seemed set on taking Bush. David Carr had outfitted his kids in Reggie Bush jerseys.
No matter what story they spin this morning, the Texans were having substantive negotiations with just one player Bush. And then they abruptly switched to Mario Williams. They announced Friday they had signed him.
After four months of focusing on one guy, they suddenly switched.
Why? First, there's the issue of money.
They turned to Williams only when negotiations with Bush stalled. In other words, this decision seemingly was about the money no matter what they say.
Even worse, Texans owner Bob McNair has this ridiculous notion that the No. 1 pick must be signed before the draft.
You're wrong, Bob.
Holdouts part of the game
The No. 1 pick is seldom signed before the draft. Yes, holdouts are part of the process with the top players. Yes, Bush wanted an obscene amount of money. Tough luck. Taking a hard line with Bush makes absolutely no sense.
You overpaid for Gary Walker, Todd Wade, Morlon Greenwood and others. Now you're going to play hardball with Bush? That makes you look incompetent and petty.
Franchises aren't destroyed by holdouts. Emmitt Smith twice held out. Would the Texans have passed on him?
Were the Texans scared off by Bush's family living in a house furnished by a sports agent? If that was an issue, why did they continue to negotiate with him until Thursday?
Or did the Texans change their mind about Bush? Did they decide he wasn't the best player available in this draft?
Maybe all those other teams, maybe all those other talent evaluators, aren't as smart as the Texans. The Texans decided their need for a pass rusher was more pressing than taking the best player on the board.
There's a word for this kind of logic in professional sports. It's called stupidity.
Most draft-day mistakes are made when teams attempt to draft for need instead of simply taking the best player. That's especially true of Bush, who has been compared to Gale Sayers.
Still plan to draft RB
Williams will be the 38th player the Texans have drafted. Among the previous 37, only two players are considered stars: Andre Johnson and Dunta Robinson.
Several others Charles Hill, Seth Wand, Benny Joppru and others have been busts. At least, McNair and Casserly have the odds working in their favor. They've got to be right sometime.
As for Casserly, let's be clear. This isn't his decision. He doesn't have the guts to make this call. Never has, never will.
His assignment today will be to put the Texans in position to draft Memphis running back DeAngelo Williams or Minnesota's Laurence Maroney. If he does that, the Texans will have added two impact players.
Neither is as good as Bush, but either would make the team better.
Let's be fair about personnel evaluations. No one can say for sure what a college kid is going to do five years from now.
If Mario Williams is as good as Dwight Freeney, if DeAngelo Williams is the next Edgerrin James, then the Texans can look back and tell us we were all wrong.
All we know for sure this morning is that they look dumb. And worse than dumb, they look cheap.
Decision hurts Carr
Perhaps more than anyone, Carr is the biggest loser in this deal. An offseason that was supposed to be about giving him a chance to succeed spun off the road on Friday.
Once the Texans are finished explaining their decision today, they can release one other bit of information: the phone number that fans can call to cancel season tickets.
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