Robaire Smtih the best thing that's happened in the offseason IMO...

[phan1]

Besides beefing up our O-line, I think this is the best move we have made. With the 3-4 defense, Robaire Smith contributes a whole lot to this team IMO. Plus, he's not a person that is prone to getting unjured. One of the major problems last year was when Payne got injured, which left a huge hole in our defense. Our defense pretty much sucked after we lost him. But now, we've got a good linebacking core, and we finally have depth at D-line.

Now, the only thing that we're soft on is our secondary IMO. We don't have anybody besides Coleman and Glenn, and if they get injured, than we're in trouble. Our safties were pretty bad last season too. Here's hoping Robinson picks up the corner position fast, because we really need him.

 

[blockhead83]

I don't think we're doing terribly in the secondary now. Faggins sounds like he's become a competent back up, and if Wright can get healthy then he makes a pretty good nickel back, IMO. But as far as Smith goes, I agree he was an awesome pick up. He might not have been the most glamorous off-season acquisition in the NFL, but I think he'll turn out to be one of the most beneficial.

 

[beerlover]

The key to signing Robaire Smith was first coming to terms with free-agent(at the time) Gary Walker. If negoiations would have dragged we might have lost not only Walker but Smith as well. So to me Gary Walker was the key off season move.

If you mean new to the Texans then I could agree, however I think that Todd Wade was the biggest pick-up of the newest Texans, because he allows the offensive line to solidify, tackles & guards no longer out of position.
This will greatly benefit the BIG 3 Carr, Johnson & Davis (statistics & health) which should along with a much improved defense thanks to Gary, Robaire & Seth up front translate into 3-4 more wins in 04.

 

[BornOrange]

Adding Smith to the defensive line is going to improve the entire defense. He is a better pass rusher than Deloach and is going to demand more attention from the opposing team. That extra attention should help free up the LB's (especially on the right side) making them more effective rushing the QB. The secondary will end up looking better with an improved pass rush since they will have to cover for less time.