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[Pick 195] Roy Lopez DT: Arizona

Dejaview

All Pro
DJ Reader was the starting center on his HS basketball team.

New England hit on a college wrestler 15 or so years ago, and people still make it out like it's a big deal. Most of the wrestlers coming into the league are stiff and nonathletic. A lot of these guys aren't close to 300 in high school. If they aren't playing roundball, I look for guys that threw the shot or discus. The league is about movement. Not playing in a phone booth.
Also there is more than the physical attributes. It’s that mental toughness too. Here’s an experiment I’d like to see in TC. Find a 7’ - 7’2” guy with long arms, perhaps European league or semipro and try him on ST’s to see if he can block a few field goals or perhaps distract the kicker enough to change the trajectory of his kicks. I’d even see if he could go after a lob pass on a first and goal type situation. Don’t know if it’s ever been tried.
 

steelbtexan

King of the W. B. Club
Contributor's Club
Also there is more than the physical attributes. It’s that mental toughness too. Here’s an experiment I’d like to see in TC. Find a 7’ - 7’2” guy with long arms, perhaps European league or semipro and try him on ST’s to see if he can block a few field goals or perhaps distract the kicker enough to change the trajectory of his kicks. I’d even see if he could go after a lob pass on a first and goal type situation. Don’t know if it’s ever been tried.
There was a guy named Stroud on the 70's Chiefs team that used to stand under the goalposts and reject long FG attempts.

Also Harold Carmicheal a 6'8 WR who was a HOF type guy in his era was the WR you're describing. Made a SB with the Eagles.
 

Dejaview

All Pro
There was a guy named Stroud on the 70's Chiefs team that used to stand under the goalposts and reject long FG attempts.

Also Harold Carmicheal a 6'8 WR who was a HOF type guy in his era was the WR you're describing. Made a SB with the Eagles.
A seven footer with long arms and some jumping ability may be hard to defend. Conversely Yao Ming standing seven yards in front of me waving his arms and jumping around would bother my ass, especially on longer, lower trajectory FG’s And low angles to work with.
 

JB

Innocent Bystander
Contributor's Club
Also there is more than the physical attributes. It’s that mental toughness too. Here’s an experiment I’d like to see in TC. Find a 7’ - 7’2” guy with long arms, perhaps European league or semipro and try him on ST’s to see if he can block a few field goals or perhaps distract the kicker enough to change the trajectory of his kicks. I’d even see if he could go after a lob pass on a first and goal type situation. Don’t know if it’s ever been tried.
Ed Jones was 6'9" and blocked 9 kicks
 

beerlover

Hall of Fame
Lopez sounds very promising and everything you could hope for in the 6th rd. selection. Work ethic spot on, size/athletic ability measureables up to NFL profile. Usually however, these developmental prospects need a couple years of seasoning, but Roy Lopez appears to be on a fast track to meaningful rotational snaps.

Houston’s final draft pick has been one of the team’s best rookies in camp. Based on the way the team has divvied up reps in camp, the sixth-round pick out of Arizona could be part of coordinator Lovie Smith’s frequently rotating defensive line this season.

“He’s jumped into a group of guys as a rookie with some veteran guys that know how to practice and know how to play,” Culley said of Lopez. “There are times when I don’t even know that he’s a rookie with that group when he’s out there. Again, coming from where he comes from, the way he played when we drafted him, we knew what we were getting when we got him, and he’s been everything that we wanted him to be from that standpoint. He’s just falling right in with those guys. He never says a word. I like the fact that he’s tough, aggressive. He’s a grinder. He’s grinding every play, every play that he’s out there.”

Lopez, an interior defensive lineman, has served as a three-technique and nose guard during camp. He said he feels equally comfortable at both spots.

“It doesn’t matter,” Lopez said. “Try to give back to my teammates as much as they put into me. The way the old guys have invested in me … they are coaching just as much as everybody else. They truly care. They truly worry about us and how we feel. So you know, just being able to grow with them is probably the biggest thing that I’ve loved throughout this whole camp.”


(Posted from the Texans athletic Reporter Aaron Reiss)
 

Texian

Hall of Fame
Lopez sounds very promising and everything you could hope for in the 6th rd. selection. Work ethic spot on, size/athletic ability measureables up to NFL profile. Usually however, these developmental prospects need a couple years of seasoning, but Roy Lopez appears to be on a fast track to meaningful rotational snaps.

Houston’s final draft pick has been one of the team’s best rookies in camp. Based on the way the team has divvied up reps in camp, the sixth-round pick out of Arizona could be part of coordinator Lovie Smith’s frequently rotating defensive line this season.

“He’s jumped into a group of guys as a rookie with some veteran guys that know how to practice and know how to play,” Culley said of Lopez. “There are times when I don’t even know that he’s a rookie with that group when he’s out there. Again, coming from where he comes from, the way he played when we drafted him, we knew what we were getting when we got him, and he’s been everything that we wanted him to be from that standpoint. He’s just falling right in with those guys. He never says a word. I like the fact that he’s tough, aggressive. He’s a grinder. He’s grinding every play, every play that he’s out there.”

Lopez, an interior defensive lineman, has served as a three-technique and nose guard during camp. He said he feels equally comfortable at both spots.

“It doesn’t matter,” Lopez said. “Try to give back to my teammates as much as they put into me. The way the old guys have invested in me … they are coaching just as much as everybody else. They truly care. They truly worry about us and how we feel. So you know, just being able to grow with them is probably the biggest thing that I’ve loved throughout this whole camp.”


(Posted from the Texans athletic Reporter Aaron Reiss)
This kind of blows a hole in the 5th, 6th and 7th RD draft picks are nothing more than UDFA Caserio argument.
 

Dejaview

All Pro
This kind of blows a hole in the 5th, 6th and 7th RD draft picks are nothing more than UDFA Caserio argument.
lol. NC used late round picks to trade up to get the players he wanted. Everybody does this. Lopez‘s pick came from the Patriots. I don’t think the Texans had their own sixth rounder. But late round gems (and we don’t know if he is one yet) are exceptions as much as earlier round busts are. In the end all draft picks are chips to get the players you want. The real test is to see how well you drafted, not boldface assumptions that you will fill your roster with quality late round picks.
 

beerlover

Hall of Fame
This kind of blows a hole in the 5th, 6th and 7th RD draft picks are nothing more than UDFA Caserio argument.
Don’t need to remind you but of course many casual fans will never invest the time in the draft process to understand there is reasoning and research behind every pick.

I believe Caserio tried his best to fill priority needs with limited resources left to him from former Texan GM.

Only pick that strikes me as questionable was double move up for Grant Wallow, converted Safety, to linebacker. Most definitely special teams ace, who’s best fit will be transitioning back to specialized DB role.

Chargers took similar LB prospect few picks later, Nick Niemann, more of ILB who might be placed on non pouch practice squad status? A few rankings down from these two Chargers signed undrafted free agent out of Oklahoma State, Amen Ogbongbemiga. He should crack the 53 man roster and is an explosive 3-4 OLB.

Three different LB prospects, each with own skill set, niche, to carve out and all contribute on special teams.
 

Speedy

Former Yeller Dweller
I believe Caserio tried his best to fill priority needs with limited resources left to him from former Texan GM.
Hmm, that must be why he gave up 4 picks in this draft (one next year), and not including the one he wasted on Ryan Finley. Yeah, he started with limited resources, but he, himself, made it even more limited.

Only pick that strikes me as questionable was double move up for Grant Wallow, converted Safety, to linebacker. Most definitely special teams ace, who’s best fit will be transitioning back to specialized DB role.
Right, moving up twice to grab a guy in the 5th round? Would love to know the reasoning and research behind that.
 

steelbtexan

King of the W. B. Club
Contributor's Club
Hmm, that must be why he gave up 4 picks in this draft (one next year), and not including the one he wasted on Ryan Finley. Yeah, he started with limited resources, but he, himself, made it even more limited.




Right, moving up twice to grab a guy in the 5th round? Would love to know the reasoning and research behind that.
The question is did Caserio get the guys he wanted in the draft. Not how many late rd picks did he have.

I dont really care, with no high draft picks is Caserio going to be able to find 3 contributors with the picks he did have. Looks from camp that he's found 2 in Lopez/Collins.
 

Dejaview

All Pro
The question is did Caserio get the guys he wanted in the draft. Not how many late rd picks did he have.

I dont really care, with no high draft picks is Caserio going to be able to find 3 contributors with the picks he did have. Looks from camp that he's found 2 in Lopez/Collins.
Exactly. And since NC traded up to get Collins, and if he turns out to be a gem, I promise you that you won’t hear a word from the “draft capital” whiners. I’m not for ravaging a draft order as a rule, but we didn’t have a pick until the third round. It was pretty incumbent to come out of this particular draft with the best players NC could find since our “first rounder” was a third. NC needed some viable young bloods.
 

Dejaview

All Pro
Don’t need to remind you but of course many casual fans will never invest the time in the draft process to understand there is reasoning and research behind every pick.

I believe Caserio tried his best to fill priority needs with limited resources left to him from former Texan GM.

Only pick that strikes me as questionable was double move up for Grant Wallow, converted Safety, to linebacker. Most definitely special teams ace, who’s best fit will be transitioning back to specialized DB role.

Chargers took similar LB prospect few picks later, Nick Niemann, more of ILB who might be placed on non pouch practice squad status? A few rankings down from these two Chargers signed undrafted free agent out of Oklahoma State, Amen Ogbongbemiga. He should crack the 53 man roster and is an explosive 3-4 OLB.

Three different LB prospects, each with own skill set, niche, to carve out and all contribute on special teams.
I agree with Wallow, but now we know he has a very high football IQ and is said to be doing well at getting the backfield set before the play. Also I see now that Lovie is all about speedy LB’s so a 230# LB in his defense is not unusual.
 

Dejaview

All Pro
How many times have we seen someone look good in camp but not in the regular season? I wouldn't count on any of these guys until we see them in action in the regular season games. Then we'll know.
Couldn’t agree more. Us homers fully understand the dynamics, we are just positive by nature. Positive attitudes are great for the immune system and probably help in the fight against cancer and other diseases more than we know…
 

steelbtexan

King of the W. B. Club
Contributor's Club
Exactly. And since NC traded up to get Collins, and if he turns out to be a gem, I promise you that you won’t hear a word from the “draft capital” whiners. I’m not for ravaging a draft order as a rule, but we didn’t have a pick until the third round. It was pretty incumbent to come out of this particular draft with the best players NC could find since our “first rounder” was a third. NC needed some viable young bloods.
Exactly, if you can come out of each draft with 3 or 4 starters then that draft was a win. Caserio will have done a great job if he finds 3 starters out of this draft.

How has Collins looked?
 

IDEXAN

Hall of Fame
Contributor's Club
It was pretty incumbent to come out of this particular draft with the best players NC could find since our “first rounder” was a third. NC needed some viable young bloods.
But shouldn't the positive correlation be the lower the pick the more emphasis on need, i.e., 1st round picks should be BPA while
6th & 7th should be based mostly on need ?
 

TheRealJoker

Hall of Fame
Agreed, they should be used to move up in drafts to make sure you get the players you really want.
I’d rather the team maneuver around to pick a player they target with an ideal role in mind than throw darts.

It seems like the players the team maneuvered around for in this draft have specific roles the coaching staff has in mind for them to fill.

That’s not to say ADD OB maneuvering around was a good thing. Its pretty well established that his plan was throw stuff at a wall and see what sticks!
 

Dejaview

All Pro
But shouldn't the positive correlation be the lower the pick the more emphasis on need, i.e., 1st round picks should be BPA while
6th & 7th should be based mostly on need ?
the positive correlation to your positive correlation is that the lower round “need” picks should be traded up to get your BPA When you don’t have a pick in the first two rounds.
 

Speedy

Former Yeller Dweller
It is all a game of chance with luck playing a big role.
Sure it is, but the more lottery tickets you buy the better your odds to get lucky. Trading a potential big winner in for an uncashed $3 winner doesn’t do much. Especially when that $3 winner accidentally gets thrown out with the trash.
 

TexansBull

Hall of Fame
Sure it is, but the more lottery tickets you buy the better your odds to get lucky. Trading a potential big winner in for an uncashed $3 winner doesn’t do much. Especially when that $3 winner accidentally gets thrown out with the trash.
We are going to run into each other’s hypotheticals to the point we both can be right, but you are wrong because I am always right.

There is something called diminishing returns that I would argue.

What you are going to get for a 6th round draft ain’t much. A solid special teams contributor for a few years that you will eventually forget about. A Bryan Brahman type. That’s why those picks are treated as such.

Not saying you can’t have success. But you don’t want to spend an entire paycheck on six round picks and expect to get a Tom Brady when you can leverage that for a greater and immediate need.

A good counter argument is that it can happen and GMs/coaches have said that in the late rounds if you have success you can build a championship team. I forget who said though it was someone important like a Parcells, Belicheck type of GM/Coach.

At the end of the day it’s luck more like a roulette wheel. You are more often going to lose than win. There are exceptions to the rules but the odds aren’t in your favor. And with anything “it depends.”

 

Speedy

Former Yeller Dweller
We are going to run into each other’s hypotheticals to the point we both can be right, but you are wrong because I am always right.

There is something called diminishing returns that I would argue.

What you are going to get for a 6th round draft ain’t much. A solid special teams contributor for a few years that you will eventually forget about. A Bryan Brahman type. That’s why those picks are treated as such.

Not saying you can’t have success. But you don’t want to spend an entire paycheck on six round picks and expect to get a Tom Brady when you can leverage that for a greater and immediate need.

A good counter argument is that it can happen and GMs/coaches have said that in the late rounds if you have success you can build a championship team. I forget who said though it was someone important like a Parcells, Belicheck type of GM/Coach.

At the end of the day it’s luck more like a roulette wheel. You are more often going to lose than win. There are exceptions to the rules but the odds aren’t in your favor. And with anything “it depends.”

That's fine, but if you don't have those picks, it doesn't really mean much now does it?
 

TexansBull

Hall of Fame
That's fine, but if you don't have those picks, it doesn't really mean much now does it?
And that’s fine too.

I guess there is some sort of balance that should be maintained between keeping picks and trading them away.

Full disclosure - I am a fan of keeping picks. I can look at Kubiak’s draft who rarely traded picks and would rather be on that side and being mad about never making moves than OB’s style of trading picks away for the Jalen Strong types.

There has to be some way of trading a pick for the right player and maintaining picks you have for the right players…

Also - this one event of trading away the 6th round pick doesn’t bother me as much as it would a year or two from now. No matter how much “experience” NC is said to have - he was never the GM in NE. Belicheck was the man making the decision. When NC got here he was making decisions as the Titanic was sinking. It turns out it is not sinking as fast as first thought and we have a little more time. So his impetuous decision (before his seat could get warm) can be looked over as that first move was rookie mistake that you only get one mulligan on.

If he keeps doing stuff like that I will get concerned.
 

Dejaview

All Pro
And that’s fine too.

I guess there is some sort of balance that should be maintained between keeping picks and trading them away.

Full disclosure - I am a fan of keeping picks. I can look at Kubiak’s draft who rarely traded picks and would rather be on that side and being mad about never making moves than OB’s style of trading picks away for the Jalen Strong types.

There has to be some way of trading a pick for the right player and maintaining picks you have for the right players…

Also - this one event of trading away the 6th round pick doesn’t bother me as much as it would a year or two from now. No matter how much “experience” NC is said to have - he was never the GM in NE. Belicheck was the man making the decision. When NC got here he was making decisions as the Titanic was sinking. It turns out it is not sinking as fast as first thought and we have a little more time. So his impetuous decision (before his seat could get warm) can be looked over as that first move was rookie mistake that you only get one mulligan on.

If he keeps doing stuff like that I will get concerned.
The pick for Lopez came from the Patriots. NC got a sixth for Crossen who was going to be cut. It’s all a mix. Gotta save them to spend them wisely either by draft or trade. The only thing that matters is they find the right player. Funny Speedy making his point with a lottery analogy which really represents later round picks. But if you trade up to get the player you want you probably increased your odds to win far more than hoping to get lucky with a sixth or seventh, but only if the right player is available to do so. Every draft is different. Probably your better odds than a sixth or seventh is to sign a butt load of players on one year deals, later extending the keepers.
 

Speedy

Former Yeller Dweller
The pick for Lopez came from the Patriots. NC got a sixth for Crossen who was going to be cut. It’s all a mix. Gotta save them to spend them wisely either by draft or trade. The only thing that matters is they find the right player. Funny Speedy making his point with a lottery analogy which really represents later round picks. But if you trade up to get the player you want you probably increased your odds to win far more than hoping to get lucky with a sixth or seventh, but only if the right player is available to do so. Every draft is different. Probably your better odds than a sixth or seventh is to sign a butt load of players on one year deals, later extending the keepers.
What are the chances someone is grabbing a late round player you really really want? I mean I suppose it happens, but if those kind of players are there at the back end, then maybe you shouldn't be so willy-nilly about giving those late picks away.
 

steelbtexan

King of the W. B. Club
Contributor's Club
That's fine, but if you don't have those picks, it doesn't really mean much now does it?
Those picks should be combined with say a 4th rd pick and move up into the 3rd rd where you have a better chance of landing a difference maker in the 3rd rd. Or they could even be useful in a DB/Flacco type trade.
 

Dejaview

All Pro
What are the chances someone is grabbing a late round player you really really want? I mean I suppose it happens, but if those kind of players are there at the back end, then maybe you shouldn't be so willy-nilly about giving those late picks away.
Someone grabbing a late round player you really want is a player you didn't want in earlier rounds. They are late round for a reason and you only want them in the context of the round you pick them in. A player you really want in the third round is worth a couple of late round picks…and NC often makes swaps, not trades of some of those picks… to improve your chances of finding a starter. This isn’t a draft philosophy to execute every year but only in those instances when it makes sense.
 

Dejaview

All Pro
We
With the Texans having the worst set of NT candidates in the league I fully expect Roy Lopez to take over the starting job based on what we’ve seen and heard throughout camp so far.

And if he’s a productive starter that’s a big win!
Well if you‘ve seen and heard about Lopez in camp you should have caught wind that the DL may not be so bad After all. The players talk about how deep it is. Green Bay knows. And no, that wasn’t starters playing four quarters by any stretch. DC has many instructive comments at his pressers for those who care to listen. I’ve heard him say several times that the Texans identity will come from their OL and DL. Good thinking. So expect an emphasis going forward for additions to those two groups.
 

TheRealJoker

Hall of Fame
We

Well if you‘ve seen and heard about Lopez in camp you should have caught wind that the DL may not be so bad After all. The players talk about how deep it is. Green Bay knows. And no, that wasn’t starters playing four quarters by any stretch. DC has many instructive comments at his pressers for those who care to listen. I’ve heard him say several times that the Texans identity will come from their OL and DL. Good thinking. So expect an emphasis going forward for additions to those two groups.
I like Blacklock at his more natural position. And Collins if he can play like he did in Dallas (as a pass rush specialist only).

But the vet NTs are not going to be establishing any identity for this team that we would want.
 
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