This one was hard as I'm still having trouble deciding what position and player to go with in the 1st round. It seems priorities keep changing. I've got us picking around #22.
1. Brandon Thompson-DT, 6'02" and 310 lbs. from Clemson. He's strong, good footwork for a DT, very athletic for a man his size, quick, and I think he fits Wade's 1 gap system perfectly. He can take on the double team blocks and can also penetrate on the pass rush. He's not a 2 down DT that would need to be replaced on 3rd down. Many mocks have him going earlier than this but I've seen others that have him going late 1st round as well. I previously had Alameda Ta'amu-NT here but he looks stiff, non-athletic, and slow, great against the run but no threat to the pass (2 down NT). Ta'amu needs to learn to bend his knees more and get better leverage and lacks explosiveness/quickness. If you want a huge 2 gap'r to plug the middle pick Ta'amu. I also think adding Thompson makes the Texans able to move Earl Mitchell to DE depth where his size works better for that position, thus improving 2 positions.
2. Juron Criner-WR, 6'04 and 210 lbs. from Arizona. He's tall, good body control, average speed, very athletic, good/great hands, runs good routes, great on the jump balls and in the red zone, and uses his body well to shield CB's. Very good possession receiver and can stretch the field as well. I previously had Dwight Jones-WR here but he's moving up draft boards and I think he could go in the 1st round.
3. Brandon Washington-OG, 6'04 and 320 lbs. from Miami. He's played OG, RT, and LT this year and is obviously very versatile on the O-line while having great size and agility for a big man. He's got good hand placement/punch and mean attitude. He played OG last year and hasn't been able to showcase his natural OG position much this year. I've seen mocks with him in the 2nd round and others with him falling based on what position he plays. Serviceable/Good as an NFL RT, but a stud OG.
4. Kevin Reddick-ILB, 6'03" and 240 lbs. from UNC. He's got good size and speed for the position along with good lateral agility and footwork. He lacks production numbers but has high round talent to compete with on his own defense (Coples, and Brown). Currently plays 4-3 MLB but should be very good at 3-4 ILB and could start if Demeco falls off but needs to add a little weight and experience, both of which are easy to do.
5. Neiko Thorpe-FS, 6'03 and 191 lbs. from Auburn. He's tall with average speed. Thorpe played CB in 2010 so he's got cover skills and should make a good backup to Manning. I previously had Guy here but he's moving up and possibly not available in the 5th round. I also wanted someone with better cover skills.
6. Tony Jerod-Eddie-DE, 6'05 and 300 lbs. from TAMU. He's got good size for the position and should provide decent depth at the position and/or training camp competition.
7. Marc Tyler-RB, 5'11" and 230 lbs. from USC. Big bruiser RB that should be good in the short yardage or goal line game. We released Obgyn and I think we'll let Derrick Ward go at the end of this year to save some money and give him the chance to start elsewhere. So we'll need another RB to fill out the roster. I previously had an OLB here but I think we'll re-sign Mario, even though I'd love to have the draft picks we'd get from trading him.
Ok, tear it up. Opinions?
1. Brandon Thompson-DT, 6'02" and 310 lbs. from Clemson. He's strong, good footwork for a DT, very athletic for a man his size, quick, and I think he fits Wade's 1 gap system perfectly. He can take on the double team blocks and can also penetrate on the pass rush. He's not a 2 down DT that would need to be replaced on 3rd down. Many mocks have him going earlier than this but I've seen others that have him going late 1st round as well. I previously had Alameda Ta'amu-NT here but he looks stiff, non-athletic, and slow, great against the run but no threat to the pass (2 down NT). Ta'amu needs to learn to bend his knees more and get better leverage and lacks explosiveness/quickness. If you want a huge 2 gap'r to plug the middle pick Ta'amu. I also think adding Thompson makes the Texans able to move Earl Mitchell to DE depth where his size works better for that position, thus improving 2 positions.
2. Juron Criner-WR, 6'04 and 210 lbs. from Arizona. He's tall, good body control, average speed, very athletic, good/great hands, runs good routes, great on the jump balls and in the red zone, and uses his body well to shield CB's. Very good possession receiver and can stretch the field as well. I previously had Dwight Jones-WR here but he's moving up draft boards and I think he could go in the 1st round.
3. Brandon Washington-OG, 6'04 and 320 lbs. from Miami. He's played OG, RT, and LT this year and is obviously very versatile on the O-line while having great size and agility for a big man. He's got good hand placement/punch and mean attitude. He played OG last year and hasn't been able to showcase his natural OG position much this year. I've seen mocks with him in the 2nd round and others with him falling based on what position he plays. Serviceable/Good as an NFL RT, but a stud OG.
4. Kevin Reddick-ILB, 6'03" and 240 lbs. from UNC. He's got good size and speed for the position along with good lateral agility and footwork. He lacks production numbers but has high round talent to compete with on his own defense (Coples, and Brown). Currently plays 4-3 MLB but should be very good at 3-4 ILB and could start if Demeco falls off but needs to add a little weight and experience, both of which are easy to do.
5. Neiko Thorpe-FS, 6'03 and 191 lbs. from Auburn. He's tall with average speed. Thorpe played CB in 2010 so he's got cover skills and should make a good backup to Manning. I previously had Guy here but he's moving up and possibly not available in the 5th round. I also wanted someone with better cover skills.
6. Tony Jerod-Eddie-DE, 6'05 and 300 lbs. from TAMU. He's got good size for the position and should provide decent depth at the position and/or training camp competition.
7. Marc Tyler-RB, 5'11" and 230 lbs. from USC. Big bruiser RB that should be good in the short yardage or goal line game. We released Obgyn and I think we'll let Derrick Ward go at the end of this year to save some money and give him the chance to start elsewhere. So we'll need another RB to fill out the roster. I previously had an OLB here but I think we'll re-sign Mario, even though I'd love to have the draft picks we'd get from trading him.
Ok, tear it up. Opinions?
