tulexan said:
Well Ferguson, or Winston if he returns to his pre-injury form, is supposed to be one of the best LT's the draft has seen in a long time. Maybe it is just me not being a Texas guy and not being die hard about Vince Young, but I think that a LT that is at the level of Ferguson and Winston is too good to pass up. Vince Young is very exciting to watch and is vastly improved but he is still very raw at QB. The risk of taking Young is much higher than taking a proven LT like Ferguson and Winston and we don't have the option of taking a highly risky pick who may or may not pan out in the next few years. Young is extremely athletic, but athleticism only takes you so far in the NFL. On an NFL scale of 1-10 for passing, right now he is a 2 or 3. His running is a 7 or 8, but you have to be at least a decent passer in the NFL and right now I don't see it. That's not to say that he won't develop into a great passer, which he very well could, but I would rather have the LT who could be a perrenial pro bowler or at least solid pass protector for the next 10 years.
A number of thoughts about this post:
* VY college numbers compare very favorably to Vick's, but he has more of an NFL body type. I find it hard to believe his skills wouldn't translate to the NFL.
* His passing numbers compare very favorably to the passing numbers of his contemporaries (see e.g.):
http://www.statesman.com/horns/content/sports/stories/longhorns/10/27texfoot.html
If you have been watching his games this year, it seems like he is making all of the passes. And there is no concern with his arm strength. His delivery is unorthodox (like a number of the QBs in the NFL), but importantly his release is fast.
And he has been putting up passing stats having a receiving corp that was considered the weakness of the team because they were so green.
* His running average last year was 90 yards per game, an average better than Ronnie Brown and Carnell "Cadillac" Williams, who were the 2nd and 5th picks in last year's draft.
* He wins games and is a competitor and is just a hard man to bring down. Watching him is like watching Playstation. You know, it looks like he is gonna be wrapped up, and he does some sort of joystick waggle and he takes it home.
* The only way I would want to take a O-linemen with a top 5 pick is if they really were the second coming of Orlando Pace--the man who was the inspiration for the pancake stat. If you are gonna spend that much money on a rookie LT, someone who is going to have no mentors, somebody that has to learn on the job, you have to be totally convinced that the guy is a lock. I am not there yet.
I don't understand why you are stating unsubstatiated things about VY's game (no stats to back them up), yet completely ignore potential problems with the Oline guys you are talking about--e.g. maybe Brick might have trouble keeping weight or keeping skills after putting on more weight--if we are talking about college guys making the transition to the NFL, do you have any concerns at all about an ACC guy who would be extremely light for a LT meriting top 5 money to play LT on a team with few Oline mentors? (A number of the high Oline picks in recent years have gone to lines that already had stud Olinemen on them--and they weren't forced to play LT immediately).
I understand the belief that the Texans need a LT, but I don't at all understand folks who believe that VY won't succeed in the NFL. He's a winner, he has the body type, he is a stat buster and just watching him he is like nobody I have ever seen.
Don't get me wrong, if the stud of all stud LTs is in the next draft, let's go get him--but I just don't want our need of a LT make us believe someone is better than he is. I ball up in my seat and start crying "mommy" every 3rd and long situation, but the whole blanket statement, "we need to take a LT with the first pick we have" makes me nervous if the guy isn't really the stud we need.
But yeah, all of this talk is too early. I want more information about everybody.
Vince is not allowed to go to the Titans even though I bet that is up there on his list cuz of McNair. I would weep and gnash teeth.