Keep Texans Talk Google Ad Free!
Venmo Tip Jar | Paypal Tip Jar
Thanks for your support! 🍺😎👍

Steel B's Pre Combine Mock

steelbtexan

King of the W. B. Club
Contributor's Club
1. Christian Hackenberg QB, 6'4 223 Lbs, 9 in hands, Penal St.

Hack will sit for a yr and let Savage/Weeden run the team. He's got size, arm, knows BOB's offense. Student of the game, Coaches son. BOB loves him and his family. BOB's choice for the QB who will either make or break his career.

2. Will Fuller WR, Notre Dame 6'0 186 Lbs 8 1/4 in hands

Fuller is one of the fastest WR's in the draft. He runs great routes and can take the top off of a defense. He only drops this far in the draft due to tiny hands which leads to some drops. A true playmaker who is a perfect fit next to Nuk. Fuller can play outside or in the slot. He compares favorably to John Brown.

3. Graham Glasgow C, Mich 6'5 307 Lbs 33 5/8 arm length 23 BP

Glasgow was a team leader who is capable of stepping in and starting right away at C. He has the footwork/arm length to play anywhere along the OL. I was surprised that he only did 23 on BP. Harbaugh called Glasgow a 1st rd pick and that's good enough for me.

4. Fahn Cooper OT, Ole Miss 6'4 304 Lbs 33 3/4 arm length 19 BP

Cooper replace a suspended Tunsil for most of the yr at LT and the Ole Miss offense didn't miss a beat. 1st rd feet, able to wall off pass rushers and in the run game. Only reason Cooper lasts this long is he only BP 19 and will need to get stronger to combat NFL pass rushers. Best yrs are ahead of Cooper.

5.Devon Cajuste TE Stanford 6'3.6 234 Lbs 10 3/4 in hands

Cajuste was a WR at Stanford who I envision in a Jordan Reed role. Tall, fast (Should run in the 4.55/4.6 range) Tough in traffic/Not afraid to go across the middle as a WR. Speed to stretch the seam. He can contribute next yr in the Reed role and should improve as an in line blocker in a yr or 2 as he puts on another 10/15 Lbs. Reminds me of Niles Paul coming out of college. Smart

5. Keith Marshall- RB Ga. 5'11 219 Lbs 9 3/8 in hands

Marshall and Gurley split time as Frosh. Both injured their knees as Sophs (ACL) it took Marshall until this yr to get his speed and cutting ability back. He got passed up while rehabbing by recruits Nick Chubb/Sony Michel. When Chubb tore his ACL and Michel got ding in this yrs bowl game against Penal St.'s great defense Marshall took over in the 2nd half and sowed the speed and cutting ability that he had as a Frosh. He basically carried the ball every time on a long drive to run the clock out and win the bowl game. It showed me that Marshall is back to being a potential premier RB. If you miss on him there will be 4-5 stud RB's in the 2017 draft.

7. Kai Fairbain K UCLA 6'0 183 Lbs. Fairbairn has one of the biggest legs in College. No more Knile Davis 105 yd runbacks. He is also very accurate. If he lost accuracy I would keep him around as a kickoff specialist and cut a ST LB.

7. Marquez North WR Tenn 6'2.4 223 Lbs 10 1/4 in hands. Big, fast WR with great leaping ability. Developmental guy with great talent. Looked like a rising star as a Freshman/soph. Should be a great redzone weapon.

Feedback is greatly appreciated. I thought I would put this out before the combine and see how these guy perform at it.

I know this is a total offense draft, but if Smith was able to have draft like this he could spend all of his FA $$$$ to sign a top flight S/NT/DE on defense as well as a TE like Dwayne Allen with the 29 or more mil that they are under the cap.
 
I'd be pretty happy with the theory behind this draft; specifically at QB in the first and re-arming the offense with the rest of the draft.
I'll have to look into Keith Marshall. You've done a good job selling him.
 
He has Jacoby Jones size hands (sung to the tune of Betty Davis eyes)
 

Attachments

  • tiny-hands-thumb[1].jpg
    tiny-hands-thumb[1].jpg
    26.1 KB · Views: 4
Marshall ran a 4.31 today

I watched some clips of him and I was impressed. Why is he rated so low? Is it the injury he had?

Dude has good size, showed good vision, balance, awesome speed...and he was able to get yards after contact....
 
Marshall ran a 4.31 today

I watched some clips of him and I was impressed. Why is he rated so low? Is it the injury he had?

Dude has good size, showed good vision, balance, awesome speed...and he was able to get yards after contact....

I think injury is the biggest negative on his sheet. he just did not get the exposure again. I seem to remember he was the "Gurley's sister is almost as attractive" hype in his freshman year. it would not be surprised if we see him go earlier than SB has here.
 
Marshall ran a 4.31 today

I watched some clips of him and I was impressed. Why is he rated so low? Is it the injury he had?

Dude has good size, showed good vision, balance, awesome speed...and he was able to get yards after contact....

Chronically injured. Has missed 20 out of 39 games over the last 3 years.

Physical ability is there but he can't stay healthy despite being platooned with beasts like Gurley and Chubb who should have taken the burden off of him physically. The fact that he played in a committee his entire career and still couldn't stay healthy is not good.
 
Chronically injured. Has missed 20 out of 39 games over the last 3 years.

Physical ability is there but he can't stay healthy despite being platooned with beasts like Gurley and Chubb who should have taken the burden off of him physically. The fact that he played in a committee his entire career and still couldn't stay healthy is not good.

I just looked at his injuries and it looks like he had an ACL and a couple of sprains....I wouldn't consider those wear and tear injuries....But I'm not doc Jean either...

He probably is injury prone, but I'm not sure being in a committee or being a lead dog would have helped him not be injured or be injured more often considering the injuries he had...
 
He probably is injury prone, but I'm not sure being in a committee or being a lead dog would have helped him not be injured or be injured more often considering the injuries he had...

Funny, one of the things I loved about Ricky Williams coming out of Texas was his ability to dish out punishment but remain healthy week after week. Then his NFL career started about lime Clowney's.
 
Chronically injured. Has missed 20 out of 39 games over the last 3 years.

Physical ability is there but he can't stay healthy despite being platooned with beasts like Gurley and Chubb who should have taken the burden off of him physically. The fact that he played in a committee his entire career and still couldn't stay healthy is not good.

Ga. is loaded at RB and it took Marshall a yr to come back from the ACL injury. (Typical.) I believe Marshall's best football is ahead of him. Marshall would add much needed speed to the Texans offense.

BTW, WF is showing Marshall just ripped off a 4.29. If the Texans really want him they need to take him in the 3rd because he wont be there when the Texans are picking in the 4th after being the fastest/strongest RB at the combine. He's Chris Johnson fast and is a true RB not just a track guy.
 
Chronically injured. Has missed 20 out of 39 games over the last 3 years.

Physical ability is there but he can't stay healthy despite being platooned with beasts like Gurley and Chubb who should have taken the burden off of him physically. The fact that he played in a committee his entire career and still couldn't stay healthy is not good.

Ga. is loaded at RB and it took Marshall a yr to come back from the ACL injury. (Typical.) I believe Marshall's best football is ahead of him. Marshall would add much needed speed to the Texans offense.

BTW, WF is showing Marshall just ripped off a 4.29. If the Texans really want him they need to take him in the 3rd because he wont be there when the Texans are picking in the 4th after being the fastest/strongest RB at the combine. He's Chris Johnson fast and is a true RB not just a track guy.
 
How many "fast" guys are in the Hall? I want a guy with moves, fast hand play, extra yardage.

Emmitt Smith was "too slow" and "too small" but he had a masterful talent for small space movement and off hand use.
 
I don't think anyone doubts Marshall's ability. I like him quite a bit too. But the injury stuff is scary. He spent literally half his college career recovering from injuries. If we weren't the Texans then I would love to pull the trigger on a guy like this, because his talent is higher than his likely draft slot would suggest.

But we are the Texans. And we f*ck up these medicals every year it seems.
 
Ga. is loaded at RB and it took Marshall a yr to come back from the ACL injury. (Typical.) I believe Marshall's best football is ahead of him. Marshall would add much needed speed to the Texans offense.

BTW, WF is showing Marshall just ripped off a 4.29. If the Texans really want him they need to take him in the 3rd because he wont be there when the Texans are picking in the 4th after being the fastest/strongest RB at the combine. He's Chris Johnson fast and is a true RB not just a track guy.
and he also had to play behind Gurley and Chubb. He had his most carries as a freshman. I don't think anyone knows just how good or average this guy may be. A long conversation with Mark Richt should be in order before taking a chance on this guy.
 
and he also had to play behind Gurley and Chubb. He had his most carries as a freshman. I don't think anyone knows just how good or average this guy may be. A long conversation with Mark Richt should be in order before taking a chance on this guy.

Agreed, one thing is for sure. He worked hard to come back from injury. I like hard workers who have shown they can overcome adversity.

This mock adds much needed speed at skill positions. It would solve alot of the redzone issues.

Marshall 4.29
Fuller 4.33
North 4.49 at 223 Lbs.
 
Agreed, one thing is for sure. He worked hard to come back from injury. I like hard workers who have shown they can overcome adversity.

This mock adds much needed speed at skill positions. It would solve alot of the redzone issues.

Marshall 4.29
Fuller 4.33
North 4.49 at 223 Lbs.
Fuller has tiny hands, a big reason why he has so many drops at ND.
 
Fuller has tiny hands, a big reason why he has so many drops at ND.

Which is why he would be available late in the 2nd rd. Fuller is a weapon though I foget how many 72 + TD's he scored last yr but there were a bunch. Fuller's game is a perfect compliment to Hopkins and I can live with a few drops for the amount of big plays he produces.

Another WR I like in the 2nd rd is Sterling Shepard. He's a player and I think he can become what Ryan Broyles would've been if he hadn't gotten injured.
 
Agreed, one thing is for sure. He worked hard to come back from injury. I like hard workers who have shown they can overcome adversity.

This mock adds much needed speed at skill positions. It would solve alot of the redzone issues.

Marshall 4.29
Fuller 4.33
North 4.49 at 223 Lbs.

That would add a lot of speed. Problem is...

Marshall has injury concerns.
Fuller is a drop machine who is a one-trick pony.
North has the tools but has yet to put it all together.

All 3 of those guys have a good shot at busting and you're risking an entire draft looking for just one quality (speed).

Does this team need to add speed? Absolutely. But you gotta look for more than just one quality.
 
Which is why he would be available late in the 2nd rd. Fuller is a weapon though I foget how many 72 + TD's he scored last yr but there were a bunch. Fuller's game is a perfect compliment to Hopkins and I can live with a few drops for the amount of big plays he produces.

Another WR I like in the 2nd rd is Sterling Shepard. He's a player and I think he can become what Ryan Broyles would've been if he hadn't gotten injured.
If the guy could catch he would go much higher. Were you happy with all the Jacoby Jones drops? The NFL the ball is bigger, comes with more RPMs and MPHs and harder to catch. I like Shepard, Mitchell even more but in Rds 3 or 4.
 
If the guy could catch he would go much higher. Were you happy with all the Jacoby Jones drops? The NFL the ball is bigger, comes with more RPMs and MPHs and harder to catch. I like Shepard, Mitchell even more but in Rds 3 or 4.

Difference is Fuller runs much better routes and isn't afraid of being hit like Jacoby. Fuller is also faster than Jacoby was. Plus I seriously doubt you will find Fuller falling asleep in meetings, missing flights, falling asleep at the wheel at 2am on Westheimer
 
Difference is Fuller runs much better routes and isn't afraid of being hit like Jacoby. Fuller is also faster than Jacoby was. Plus I seriously doubt you will find Fuller falling asleep in meetings, missing flights, falling asleep at the wheel at 2am on Westheimer
This is all true BUT he still has very small hands which equates to more drops and fumbles. There are better options on the board. Malcolm Mitchell is the best route runner I have seen in this class. I didn't see anyone who got in and out of his breaks faster than Mitchell did today. If this was a track meet today then yeah maybe Fuller would be my guy.
 
Do you have a study to back that up?

I'm not sure if there's been a study or not. It's a bit of a general idea or consensus among the scouting community that small hands lead to drops for WR's, fumbles for RB's, and QB's not being able to spin the ball in bad weather. I have no idea if any of that is true and I doubt it could be proven. Personally I don't care for all that anyway.

What I do know is that Will Fuller led college football in drops over the last 2 years (with 21). He has the highest drop percentage among the higher rated receivers in the draft. Whether that has to do with small hands I have no idea. I do know that he doesn't consistently catch the football.
 
By all means please provide me with that equation. Seems they didn't cover that when I got my PHYSICS degree.

Just admit you have nothing other than assumption. We all know that's where this ends.
I'm going to pass on doing snarky with snarky. Once again we have a situation where because you are not aware you don't think it to be true. Contraire. Basic physics, a 20" catching radius will catch more passes or have less drops or fumbles than a 16" catching radius or in other words it's much easier for Nuk Hopkins to make a 1 handed catch with a 10" hand than it is for Jacoby Jones or Will Fuller with only 8" hands.
 
By all means please provide me with that equation. Seems they didn't cover that when I got my PHYSICS degree.

Just admit you have nothing other than assumption. We all know that's where this ends.

Ah what the heck, let's return the snark with some snarky..... So you got you a Physics degree. Best you ask them for a refund. You got a physics degree, Law degree and History degree and yet you spend most of your time day and night chit chatting on a message board. Got 60,000 messages to show for it. Get out much? What's got a burr up butt today? Mom didn't put your Hot Pockets in the Microwave?
 
Didn't Cris Carter cover this hand size myth last year? I remember him talking about it the interview w Nuk. It's about hand dexterity and strength and not how big you your hands are (his hands only being a XXL). But what the hell does he know? He's not a message board genius.
 
Move Marshall up to rd 3

Make Joe Thuney in rd 5.

I expected Marshall to be in the upper tier of RB's at the combine. (He's a track star who is a RB 1st. Kinda Gurley light.) But he blew up the combine. (Fastest offensive guy there. Unbelievably faster than every WR) What really surpriped me is he lead all RB's in the BP, which is basically an endurance test.

If he can stay healthy he will be a star, IMHO and ACL injuries aren't as career hampering as they used to be.
 
Small hands doesnt mean drops, thats concentration. The problem with guys who drop ball or fumble is routine. In the nfl, there is always someone in the way of you catching the ball. Whether its a d-lineman jumping trying to knock the ball down at the los or a cb sticking his hands in at the last minute. All in all, its focus and concentration, not hand size. Peterson has some of the biggest,strongest hands in the history of the nfl, yet he's a known fumbler. Marshall Faulk had neither, and he rarely fumbled.
 
Move Marshall up to rd 3

Make Joe Thuney in rd 5.

I expected Marshall to be in the upper tier of RB's at the combine. (He's a track star who is a RB 1st. Kinda Gurley light.) But he blew up the combine. (Fastest offensive guy there. Unbelievably faster than every WR) What really surpriped me is he lead all RB's in the BP, which is basically an endurance test.

If he can stay healthy he will be a star, IMHO and ACL injuries aren't as career hampering as they used to be.

What if the Texans came out of free agency with say Ronnie Hillman, how would you feel about drafting marshall then?
 
What if the Texans came out of free agency with say Ronnie Hillman, how would you feel about drafting marshall then?

I probably wouldn't because I the 2017 RB class is loaded.

Right now I see Marshall as a good investment in the 3-4th rd range and I would add one of the top 4 RB's in the 2017 draft (Who are better than every RB in this draft including Elliott) and have a dynamic RB by committee in 2017.

As for 2016 I'm just trying to upgrade the RB position without having to spend premium draft capital. Adding speed to the offense should be the Texans #1 priority. (I typed that same line this time last yr) Adding either Marshall or Hillman would accomplish this.
 
I probably wouldn't because I the 2017 RB class is loaded.

Right now I see Marshall as a good investment in the 3-4th rd range and I would add one of the top 4 RB's in the 2017 draft (Who are better than every RB in this draft including Elliott) and have a dynamic RB by committee in 2017.

As for 2016 I'm just trying to upgrade the RB position without having to spend premium draft capital. Adding speed to the offense should be the Texans #1 priority. (I typed that same line this time last yr) Adding either Marshall or Hillman would accomplish this.
During the lockout yr is the only yr I feel every team stayed true to their board. Why? The draft was before free agency. I've been talking about team speed for 8 yrs , especially at the skill position. I'm not a strictly track type guy is in need ,but just speed in general. Texans have some money for free agency and there's guys who didnt fare well with thier current teams,but will do better with Texans.
 
Move Marshall up to rd 3

Make Joe Thuney in rd 5.

I expected Marshall to be in the upper tier of RB's at the combine. (He's a track star who is a RB 1st. Kinda Gurley light.) But he blew up the combine. (Fastest offensive guy there. Unbelievably faster than every WR) What really surpriped me is he lead all RB's in the BP, which is basically an endurance test.

If he can stay healthy he will be a star, IMHO and ACL injuries aren't as career hampering as they used to be.
I could root for a MARSHALL on the Texans.
 
Back
Top