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

The Need For Speed

Texan in Japan

Texan in Japan

Rookie
With the shunning of Sharper and Foreman, the signing of Greenwood, the Texans have are looking to increase our team speed. Using that as a foundation, what players become our targets?

LB: DJ, Merriman, Ware, Burnett
CB: Rolle, PM Jones, Carlos Rogers, Junior Miller
WR: Williamson, Clayton

We could either move up, down or stay put with that group as our targets. If we don't trade up and a special player falls (RB, QB or someone who doesn't fit our system) we could trade down.

I have faith in our guys, this should be a fun draft to add some team speed. I feel the need.
 
All I kjnow is if we can't get to the QB it's going to be a long season. Last year the Texans showed the league how to slow down Peyton and that's pressure. That's why I hope we either draft Rogers so the secondary allows for more blitzes or another OLB who can plow through anything to get to the QB. I don't know if that is Pollack,Ware,Roth,Merriman etc. who knows maybe Peek. I doubt we would go ILB if we stayed at #13. If we trade down we could snag a OLB, ILB, and CB in first two rounds(if we picked up extra#2). That means no Rogers but there are a bunch of decent corners and I'd be surprised if we didn't pick one before the end of round 2. Preferably Move down 2-7 spots and snag Justin Miller before Jacksonville does. Then take your pick of DE/LB tweeners in 2nd.
 
Im liking the idea of us trading down and picking up Ware. Great size and athletecism at 6-4 256 and a 4.55 40, although if Merriman slides to use at 13, id rather him.
 
TigerBait said:
Im liking the idea of us trading down and picking up Ware. Great size and athletecism at 6-4 256 and a 4.55 40, although if Merriman slides to use at 13, id rather him.
Click to expand...

Merriman wont get past 11. I am starting to see both Ware and Blackstock climbing. I defiitely think we can move down and get one of the 2 and then get a WR in the 2nd. if we get a 2nd round pick then we can get a better CB to be Glenn's replacement.
 
Pollack may not have the straight ahead speed (4.79) but he is the QUICKEST LB in the draft. And quickness can lead to more sacks than speed if its used right.

Ware also looks pretty good too.

Every LB/Tweener in the 1st/2nd round look pretty promising.. so if we take one.. ill try our F.O. to make the right choice.

CB.. tempting but I dunno that we will go for one in the 1st. It all depends on how far our coaches feel that Glenn has slid.. I dont think they think he has slid as far as we do. He will have it a bit easier next season when/if Dunta takes the #1 CB spot.

WR just strikes me as unlikely.. but im not paid to make those decisions so what do i know?
 
a trade with the eagles to get #31 and #35 could land us Ware, Baas, and maybe Anntaj Hawthorne.

Thats 3 players who look very promising.. who all fill very important needs for us.
 
Funny how many people are now treating ROLB as a very important need while LT is almost entirely discounted as a need. Seems patience applies to Wand but not Peek--interesting.

Draft season should officially be renamed the NFL Fan Silly Season.
 
infantrycak said:
Draft season should officially be renamed the NFL Fan Silly Season.
Click to expand...


haha yes i agree, i say let peek have his shot, and i thought everyone agreed, i guess just the thought of us getting DJ makes some forget about peek ! But i also say give Wand some time to, i dont like to jump to conclusions, i think thats what we did with Posey and Foley.
 
I really like the idea of trading down with the Eagles. If one of the big 3 rbs are there at 13, do the Eagles jump up? I think they need a back to compliment Westbrook. For the Texans we should draft

Hawthorne, Marlin Jackson, or Ware at 31. Depending on who is there. At 35 i think we should draft Baas, Elton Brown, or Kevin Burnett.

I really think Ware and Burnett are promising players that we could possibly both pick up at 31 and 35.

We go dline at 47, hopefully Luis Castillo if not go C Chris Spencer.

CB, Ronald Bartell or Stanley Wilson at 73
WR, Courtney Roby or Terence Murphy at 78.

4th round Jason Brown or Ben Wilkerson

So in a perfect world we would get Ware, Burnett, Castillo, Bartell, Roby, and Wilkerson. Which i highly doubt that we are that lucky. We groom Ware and Burnett this year becuase Peek and Wong's contracts are up after this year. Basically all those 6 players are gonna be groomed with the exception of Ware.

I see our draft looking like this though

Williamson, 2nd round ????, Bartell, Roby, and Jason Brown.
 
personally, I'd rather have Castillo over Hawthorne. I think Castillo would be great in our 3-4 defense at NT or even at any of the DE positions.

I don't know if Roth can convert over to OLB in our system, but if he can, I would like to have him over Ware, Blackstock, or any of the others tweeners I have heard about.

WR is such a deep postion in this draft that we can get a good one in the 2nd, 3rd, and probably even the 4th round and later. I just don't see that big of a dropoff from the top 2 or 3 WR's to the rest of the bunch. Of course I don't really see any of the top 3 being as good as A.J. or some of the other top WR's in past drafts.

Barron may be the best OT in the draft, but I don't think he would be any better than Wand, so I would pass on him. I wouldn't mind getting Baas if we trade down, but not at the 13th spot.

the other positions, I'm not really up on, though I would still like to have D.J. if he falls to us at 13, but I hate the thought of giving up picks to trade up. I know people are gonna hate me for saying this, but if QB Leflors is still around in the 4th or 5th where he is projected, I think the Texans will take him.

Just my opinion.
 
only problem with that... is the Eagles want Mike Williams. If they decide that Troy Williamson is good enough it might happen.
 
infantrycak said:
Draft season should officially be renamed the NFL Fan Silly Season.
Click to expand...

Thats true, but keep in mind that no football and no interesting football related news tends to drive alot of us crazy. I know I can't wait till the draft just to have a tiny football fix even if it's going to have to last me till Training Camp.
 
I like castillos atleticism and feel it would be a good fit. what about Matt jones? hed be an interesting pick up as well since he might beable to play TE or WR kinda of shockey like how he can split out into a WR slot.
 
texasguy346 said:
Thats true, but keep in mind that no football and no interesting football related news tends to drive alot of us crazy. I know I can't wait till the draft just to have a tiny football fix even if it's going to have to last me till Training Camp.
Click to expand...

Sure, natural void to fill and I certainly like learning about the potential players. Sometimes though I just get this image of a bunch of cows standing in foot high grass looking over a fence into a field with wolves and one turns to the others and says, hey I think that grass is greener. Of course, that may just be a personal issue.
 
my reasoning for LB over OT:

Wand has been playing for ONE season.. Peek has had 3 seasons to win a starting spot.

Wand got the nod to start. Peek.. despite his production.. was limited to passing downs.


Wand is an olineman and olinemen need time, not only to develop, but to mesh with the rest of the line. Peek is playing at an "immediate results" position.. and apparently he hasnt been giving the results that the coaches want.

Pollack could possibly play ILB in our system... given time to learn the position.

We still need immediate impact players from the draft.. and OT is not an immediate impact position. Where is the logic in using our first or even second rounder on an OT when, not only will that player not start for us anytime soon, but we also need interior olinemen more than tackles.. and this is a VERY deep interior olineman draft.


This draft is not sporting alot of high quality tweener prospects in the middle rounds. But has a handful of VERY nice prospects in the 1st and 2nd.




SO.. call me a cow if ya want but LB is a logical 1st round selection to me :). We are rebuilding our LBs.. we released our biggest playmaker in the front seven.. and now we need talent at LB.. quickly... there just happen to be a buttload of very promising LBs in the first too :P. In the words of T.O. "If it smells like a rat..."


I wouldnt be disappointed if we got Benson either :)
 
Grid said:
SO.. call me a cow if ya want but LB is a logical 1st round selection to me :). We are rebuilding our LBs.. we released our biggest playmaker in the front seven.. and now we need talent at LB.. quickly... there just happen to be a buttload of very promising LBs in the first too :P. In the words of T.O. "If it smells like a rat..."
Click to expand...

The problem is that there are no real LB in the #13 spot. Thats one reason why i think we should trade down take a natural OLB. Move Wong inside. Get a passrusher that can cover the RB. I think we could trade into the 20's pick up a 2nd or 3rd or even a 4th prob a combination. That is a prime area to add depth. I admit after the 5th round the chances of the player making it arent good. if we trade further back into the teen we can get 1st and 3rd. If we go into the 20's we can get a 1st and 2nd or even 1st, 3rd and 4th. Either way we can add good talent and depth at the positions we need.
 
the more I look at it.. unless a really good player falls in our laps.. trading down seems the best option. The picks at 20-50 may not be as good as those at 1-20.. but they are still really good value for where they are at. getting another pick in that range would be better than taking Alex Barron IMO.
 
Grid said:
the more I look at it.. unless a really good player falls in our laps.. trading down seems the best option. The picks at 20-50 may not be as good as those at 1-20.. but they are still really good value for where they are at. getting another pick in that range would be better than taking Alex Barron IMO.
Click to expand...

I agree. I actually think 1-20 are good but the talent in this draft isnt as good as other drafts. 20-50 i think are gonna be the studs of this draft. I dont think there are many starters in this draft. This draft is going to be a depth and special teams draft until we see who will blossom. Other drafts we knew 1-20 were going to be stars. I see 5-8 stars 1-20 thats about 10-12 short to me.
 
I am convinced we are taking a LB on the 1st day. Peek has yet to prove he can last half a season and we just lost both our ILB's. It's going to be another transition year.
 
royce1054 said:
The problem is that there are no real LB in the #13 spot. Thats one reason why i think we should trade down take a natural OLB. Move Wong inside. Get a passrusher that can cover the RB.
Click to expand...

Sounds like a definitional problem to me. What is a natural LB?--a guy who played LB in college, or a guy who very likely has been aimed at playing LB as his career in the NFL? A lot of natural NFL LB's play DE in college (1) because there simply aren't enough fully mature big guys to fill out all the DL's and (2) because very few colleges play 3-4 D's. Seems silly IMO to charactize natural ability by college position although I guess we could be consistant and not worry about natural position because we are running an unnatural 3-4 D.
 
I wouldn't mind us going for BPA out of OT, WR, ILB, OLB, or CB with the 13th pick (or wherever we end up). Then if we haven't added an ILB or OLB then we could "pull a Babin" and trade into the end of the 1st to fill that need. If worse comes to worse, we start Wong at ILB and Peek at OLB. That is a gamble for sure, but how else will we see if Peek is anything more than potential?
 
If we think speed for OLB...

DJ, Merriman or Ware have the potential to be the kind of pass-rusher we need.

If not...

Then one of the CBs could be. If Williamson is not there, I wonder if we'd look at any other WRs?

Wild card: RB drops
 
infantrycak said:
Sounds like a definitional problem to me. What is a natural LB?--a guy who played LB in college, or a guy who very likely has been aimed at playing LB as his career in the NFL? A lot of natural NFL LB's play DE in college (1) because there simply aren't enough fully mature big guys to fill out all the DL's and (2) because very few colleges play 3-4 D's. Seems silly IMO to charactize natural ability by college position although I guess we could be consistant and not worry about natural position because we are running an unnatural 3-4 D.
Click to expand...

Well we need a OLB that can cover a running back as well as rush the passer. I think drafting a DE and moving him to OLB would hurt us severely. I think we should go Ware, Blackstock, or Burnett in 1st round. I do however think the 1st 2 are better than Burnett.
 
Texan in Japan said:
If we think speed for OLB...

DJ, Merriman or Ware have the potential to be the kind of pass-rusher we need.

If not...

Then one of the CBs could be. If Williamson is not there, I wonder if we'd look at any other WRs?

Wild card: RB drops
Click to expand...

If merriman or DJ falls stay and take 1 of them... else trade down. get the xtra picks and add depth to our roster. There is excellent depth through the 1st 4 rounds..
 
royce1054 said:
Well we need a OLB that can cover a running back as well as rush the passer. I think drafting a DE and moving him to OLB would hurt us severely. I think we should go Ware, Blackstock, or Burnett in 1st round. I do however think the 1st 2 are better than Burnett.
Click to expand...

Ware is a DE. He played some at both DE and LB in the Senior Bowl, but he's in the same mold as all of the other DE that would convert to OLB in the 3-4 (i.e. Merriman, Pollack, Goddard, etc.). If we do draft an OLB in the first round it will likely be a DE converted to OLB because the guys will have to be big enough and have experience with taking on big OTs.
 
royce1054 said:
Well we need a OLB that can cover a running back as well as rush the passer. I think drafting a DE and moving him to OLB would hurt us severely. I think we should go Ware, Blackstock, or Burnett in 1st round. I do however think the 1st 2 are better than Burnett.
Click to expand...

Peek, Wong & Babin, all former DE's, all have the speed to cover RB's. The issue is faster TE's and WR's. OLB's will always have a problem with that.

Get used to frustration with this draft and other Texan drafts if you want to look for college OLB's to actually play OLB (some like DJ might get drafted to play ILB). One may slip in every once in a while, but most will be former DE's. Look at who they have tried so far--Wong (DE), Babin (DE), Posey (DE), Clemons (not sure but would bet money on DE), Peek (DE), Anderson (DE), Cheatwood (DE). Noticing a trend? Frankly, I don't know how you can purport to predict the Texans' draft picks if you are trying to force your thoughts on their system rather than understanding their system.
 
While we could PROBABLY be able to trade up if we wanted to (something I am against doing) it is very likely we will have alot of difficulty trading down. As everyone has indicated, after the first 5 spots (ten at the most) the talent is VERY even until at least the third round. It takes someone who loves the player at our spot to want to trade, and if the talent is equal, it will be unlikely. Could happen, but unlikely IMO. I suspect we will just exercise our 13th pick. I like the idea of trading down and getting picks, but this year, it will be easier said than done.
 
well there is a good chance that one of the "top" prospects could fall to us.

Cedric Benson
Troy Williamson
Shawne Merriman
Alex Smith/Aaron Rogers

All of these guys could potentially fall to us.

Alex Barron could fall to us too and ive already stated my reasons for not wanting him.

I think.. if Philly hasnt traded down already by the time we get to #13.. that they would be interested in trading out of the bottom of the first and into #13 to get one of these guys.

Its also possible that Dallas or Minnesota would be willing to trade up to get Williamson.. or Merriman.. because they arent likely to get past Carolina, KC, or the Saints or Bengals.
 
Hes shooting up draft boards.. going in the high 20s/low 30s usually.

Considering all the talk we have been doing about most of the prospects from 15-50 being of similar talent.. then I dont see why Ware at 13 would be that huge of a reach.. especially if we considered him to be "our guy"

I could SEE us taking Ware at 13.. but if possible I think we would be more likely to trade down and grab him late in the first.. and get another draft pick in the process.

Like edo said though.. what if we cant trade down? If you knew who you wanted in the first.. but could not trade down to get him where he is "projected" to go.. would you prefer to take him at #13.. or would you take one of the players that is projected to go around #13?

Personally.. id rather we take the guy we think will fit us best.
 
edo783 said:
While we could PROBABLY be able to trade up if we wanted to (something I am against doing) it is very likely we will have alot of difficulty trading down. As everyone has indicated, after the first 5 spots (ten at the most) the talent is VERY even until at least the third round. It takes someone who loves the player at our spot to want to trade, and if the talent is equal, it will be unlikely. Could happen, but unlikely IMO. I suspect we will just exercise our 13th pick. I like the idea of trading down and getting picks, but this year, it will be easier said than done.
Click to expand...

I disagree i think alot of teams want to trade up and get a better player. I seriously think Seattle, Green Bay, Atlanta, Philly (if not traded higher) all could want to trade up and get the player they want. Also i know some poeple dont think GB will but i think Alex SMith will slip and they will jump to get him. Thats a what if. Also maybe the Ravens might want to trade up, and what about Denver, Minnesota, STL... i just dont see how you think no teams want to move up.
 
im surprised to have made it this far into the post and not read any mention of thomas davis as an ilb...a month or two ago i thought that was outrageous speculation....but since the greenwood signing i think im changing my mind just a bit.

consider...

we've drafted how many players to convert them to other postions? we show a tendency to move players all over the place...pitts...mckinney...peek...wong (de to olb to rolb and now possibly inside? ) coleman...lord...b miller was once a tightend...etc...the list goes on and on.

greenwood and davis inside allow us to stay in a 3-4 rather then a nickle package far more often. ever notice how often our ilb's were mismatched on wr's ,faster tightends, and running backs? superior coverage and speed from the inside linebackers allows this defense to do just what it was meant to...blitz the outside linebackers.

maybe regergitating another "davis at ilb" post is a bad idea ,but i thought i'd throw it out there. if you want speed...that would insure it.
 
powda said:
maybe regergitating another "davis at ilb" post is a bad idea ,but i thought i'd throw it out there. if you want speed...that would insure it.
Click to expand...

What I think TD would bring most is sure tackling. We missed a lot of tackles last year. Anyone remember when Coleman attempted to stop LT on third down? Davis would easily be the best tackler on the Texans. He never misses a tackle, it's freakish.

thomasdavis1.jpg
 
royce1054 said:
I disagree i think alot of teams want to trade up and get a better player. I seriously think Seattle, Green Bay, Atlanta, Philly (if not traded higher) all could want to trade up and get the player they want. Also i know some poeple dont think GB will but i think Alex SMith will slip and they will jump to get him. Thats a what if. Also maybe the Ravens might want to trade up, and what about Denver, Minnesota, STL... i just dont see how you think no teams want to move up.
Click to expand...

If, and I think it is a VERY big if, Smith drops past the ten spot, then GB MAY be one that would seek to move up and grab him. The price would be high and they haven't historically shown that they are willing to spend the amount of picks it would require to move from where they are to around the ten pick. They also have a seriouse issue with a lake of talent on defense and I would think they would hesitate to give up picks when they need players. That is what I was talking about, there aren't a boatload of super talents, but there are a pretty good group of good solid prospects after the ten spot. Even the ones above the ten spot are NOT super prospects when compared to previouse draft talents. I think there will be a fair amount of teams wanting to bail out of the top 5-10 spots, but not many hot to trade up. This year is a buyers market IMO.
 
edo783 said:
If, and I think it is a VERY big if, Smith drops past the ten spot, then GB MAY be one that would seek to move up and grab him. The price would be high and they haven't historically shown that they are willing to spend the amount of picks it would require to move from where they are to around the ten pick. They also have a seriouse issue with a lake of talent on defense and I would think they would hesitate to give up picks when they need players. That is what I was talking about, there aren't a boatload of super talents, but there are a pretty good group of good solid prospects after the ten spot. Even the ones above the ten spot are NOT super prospects when compared to previouse draft talents. I think there will be a fair amount of teams wanting to bail out of the top 5-10 spots, but not many hot to trade up. This year is a buyers market IMO.
Click to expand...

i dont see how Smith will go top 10.
No Trades ok
1. Rodgers
2. brown
3. johnson
4. edwards
5. c. williams
6. Pac-man
7. m, williams
8. rolle
9. williamson or james or C. Rodgers.
10. merriman
11. James or Spears
12. Spears williamson or James.
He will be there
trades i think
1. San Francisco 49ers - Aaron Rodgers, QB California | A QB they hope can be lead them like Montana did

2. Miami Dolphins - Ronnie Brown, RB Auburn | They need to replace the pot smoker known as Ricky Williams.... if i was his teammate and he pulled that i would pull a Romanowski on him

3. Minnesota Vikings - Braylon Edwards, WR Michigan | Replace Moss It will cost both of their 1st rounders but hey i think it will work, They dont want Philly to get him

4. Chicago Bears - Braylon Edwards WR Michagan | I have heard WR in Edwards than again i have heard RB in Benson. I do however think Benson will be the pick.

5. Tampa Bay Buccaneers - Carnell Williams, RB Auburn | Gruden gets his man

6. New Oreleans Saints - Derrick Johnson, LB Texas | This will solitify their defense.

7. Cleveland Browns - Shawne Merriman, LB Maryland | A good LB to fit into 3-4 system. Crennel will be happy.

8. Arizona Cardinals - Antrel Rolle, CB Miami (FL) | A CB to help their Defense out. I cant even name 1 of their CB\'s and thats bad.

9. Washington Redskins - Troy Williamson, WR South Carolina | WR to replace Gardener who will be traded

10. Detroit Lions - Erasmus James, DE Wisconsin | To me he is the 2nd best Defensive player in the draft Lions will love this pick.

11. Dallas Cowboys - Marcus Spears, DE LSU | parcells will love having an athletic DE for him to use in a rush for the QB. They signed a DT so their D-line should be much improved.

12. San Diego Chargers (From NYG) - David Pollack, DE Georgia | They need a D-end that can play 3-4 i think Pollack could do either DE or OLB in their system.

13. Philadelphia Eages - Mark Clayton, WR Oklahoma | They are disappointed they couldnt move up to #3 and get Williams. Vikings had to much better of picks to offer. Mark Clayton should be a very good #2 to T.O

14. Carolina Panthers - Alex Barron, OT Florida State | Will be thrilled that the best OL in this draft will still be here. They will go dancing in the night.

15. Seattle Seahawks - Chris Benson RB, Texas | With Alexander leaving it makes good since.

16. Green Bay Packers - Alex Smith, QB Utah | They want to trade up to get their next great QB if they protect him he will as good as Farve

17. Cincinnati Bengals - Dan Cody, DE Oklahoma | They need a good DE to help their D-line... they should have a very good D. esp since i think Sharper will sign there.

18. Cleveland Browns - Thomas Davis, S Georgia | I am not totally sure... i am sure it will be a defensive pick though. This is my guess

19. St. Louis Rams - Jammal Brown, OT Oklahoma | Their Tacke opposite Pace. Their QB should be well protected.

20. Dallas Cowboys (from Buf) - Roddy White, WR UAB | With Clayton going #13 they are disappointed. They might trade up and make sure they get him but thats alot of picks to lose. I think they will stay put and take White groom him to be a #3 right now and as soon as their 2 old men move along.



21. Jacksonville Jaguars - Pac-Man Jones, CB West Virginia | I would of said DE but since they have signed a FA DE they wont draft DE. Pac-man will help their secondary alot.

22. Baltimore Ravens - Channing Crowder, LB Florida | They need another LB and it looks as if they will go this way since they have snubbed Jamie Sharper

23. Kansas CIty Cheifs - Carlos Rodgers, CB Auburn | They need another CB. maybe a WR or RB in 2nd

24. Tenneessee Titans - Matt Roth, DE Iowa | Tenneessee trying to cut their payroll i should know from Bud Adams and the Oilers. This is his 2nd trade down. They are full of picks to fill their now half epmty roster. Should replace Carlos Hall with this pick.

25. Denver Broncos - Darryl Blackstock... Should be a great OLB for the Broncos. I know they wont go DL since they signed the whole Browns D-line or TE.

26. New York Jets - Travis Johnson, DT Florida St. | they lost Jason Ferguson to Dallas and get their replacement

27. Atlanta Falcons - Kaliff Barnes.. should help protect Vick. He was most sacked Qb in the league

28. San Diego Chargers - Matt Jones... Is climbing the board very quickly. Chargers will be very happy with him

29. Indianapolis Colts - Justin Miller CB Their D needs so much help it isnt even funny

30. Pittsburgh Steelers -Heath Miller TE | Rothlesberger needs a TE to throw to.

31. Houston Texans - Demarcus Ware......Texans are happy to trade down and get depth. They need depth at so many positions. With Williamson, DJ, and Merriman all gone there is no option but to trade down. We will get Eagles #31 and #35 pick. The Texans will be very happy with Demarcus Ware he can be a pass rusher and can cover the RB out of the back field. This trade also allows them to get a CB & and a WR in the 2nd round. The Texans will be one of the teams with a smile on their face at the end of the day

32. New England Patriots - Odell Thurman, ILB Georgia | LB is a big need with the release of 1 LB and the injury of another. Belicheck wont take a chance on his precious LB core. Its the reason he is 1 of my favorite coaches

a couple of my opions with trades. I know a couple of teams are wrong bc i dont know their needs. What do you think? This is why i dont think Alex Smith will go in top 15
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top