Texans Mock v.1

[foozball]

I see us having a year around 7-9 and 8-8, so I'll put up 2 different mocks with us picking in each subsequent position with respect to last year's record and pick.

7-9 (Pick #11) 3 teams finished at 7-9 and had picks 10, 11, and 12. We'll meet in the middle and have pick #11 with this mock.

The Pick: DE Derrick Harvey (Florida)

A redshirt junior who wreaked havoc in the championship game. Measures in around 6'4 260lbs with room to grow and runs in the 4.65-4.75 area. I was not impressed with the pass rush, and Harvey gives us a true speed rusher opposite Mario. The OL class is very deep, so if we have a pick this early, we have to take a rarity in this class. No DB will worth the 11th pick besided Kenny Phillips, who will be a top 7 pick. However, if Michael Oher decided to declare, I would have a hard time passing him up. I think Oher stays for his senior year though. Also, if we have another losing season, I think it will be due to the defense, not the OL.

3rd round (Pick #75)

The Pick: FS Quintin Demps (UTEP)

We've been looking for a true free safety for years, and Demps could be the guy if he's there in the 3rd. Led the division in interceptions with 7, and measures in at 6'1 205lbs and runs in the 4.5-4.55 area. He's got good ballskills and can come up to support the run. Hopefully the amount of QB's, LB's, and OT's will push him down here in the 3rd.



8-8 (Pick #17) 9 teams finished 8-8 and had picks 13-21, so 17 fits right in the middle.

The Pick: CB Malcolm Jenkins (Ohio State)

Our secondary is not good at all. Jenkins is a big physical junior DB from a university known for sending DB's to the NFL. He measures in at 6'1 202lbs and runs in the low 4.4 area. Has the size and physicality to move over to safety if needed. I think Fred Bennett has done a fine job in the preseason, and he may be the CB who plays opposite Dunta next year. If that is the case, Jenkins could easily move to free safety and give us the playmaker we've always looked for at that position. In any case, we need to acquire talent in the secondary no matter the position.

3rd round (Pick #75)

The Pick: WR Mario Urrutia (Louisville)

Being 8-8 means we played quite well. The OLine sure could use some guys, but I think we could upgrade at other spots. We have the money to spend on OL this year as well. We can afford to upgrade at our weaker positions through the draft. One of them being WR even though Jacoby has come on strong. Urrutia would give us a big target in the redzone where we've been horrible in past years. If we're not going to pick up an offensive lineman to protect Schaub in the 3rd, then we have to give him another weapon. A WR corps of Andre, Jacoby, Walter, and Urrutia could cause matchup problems all day.

[Towlie]

another d line??? i dont think soo... how about kenny philips anyone

[Vinny]

You really think after all the work Kubiak and Smith have done in the off season, that THIS team is only one game better than last years team? Seriously? Please explain why...can't answer for them...but there are only 16 games and most of the NFL hovers around .500. Only a few teams win 10 games or more and only a few teams win less than 5 games...that puts most of us one or two games around .500.

[HuttoKarl]

another d line??? i dont think soo... how about kenny philips anyone

Please, sweet Baby Jesus...please let Kenny come to town.

[foozball]

Ok...i KNOW it's another DLine...but the fact is Kenny Phillips will not be available at pick 11!!! get it!!!

plus, our DLine is still a weakness. shouldnt we address weaknesses? dont be in denial...thats how Carr got a shot with us last year.

[foozball]

as far as the record is at 7-9 or 8-8...until the texans prove to me that they're playoff worthy, then im going to keep my estimates fairly conservative. we're not just all of a sudden gonna go to the playoffs overnight. there is still alot of room for improvement, specifically on the defensive side of the ball. we have 3 young DLineman, 2 average linebackers, and 3 shmucks in the secondary. the offense is gonna win the games for us, but the defense is gonna be our downfall.

you saw how teams creamed us with the pass...well, our secondary is largely unchanged. 8-8 is a pretty good guess IMO.

[TexansFan03]

as far as the record is at 7-9 or 8-8...until the texans prove to me that they're playoff worthy, then im going to keep my estimates fairly conservative. we're not just all of a sudden gonna go to the playoffs overnight. there is still alot of room for improvement, specifically on the defensive side of the ball. we have 3 young DLineman, 2 average linebackers, and 3 shmucks in the secondary. the offense is gonna win the games for us, but the defense is gonna be our downfall.

you saw how teams creamed us with the pass...well, our secondary is largely unchanged. 8-8 is a pretty good guess IMO.

Couldn't have said it better myself (claps hands)

[foozball]

Couldn't have said it better myself (claps hands)

thank you. just because we've drafted DLine 3 years in a row doesnt mean the DLine is fixed.

with the money we have this offseason, we can sign an OLineman, a veteran starting CB, or a safety.

[YoungTexanFan]

If you look around at various other mocks, you will find plenty of instances of Phillips falling to around pick #13.

Regardless of if we need pass rush help, we won't go 1st round d-line. Speed rushers can be found later in the draft, a perfect example is Mark Anderson. We have more pressing needs. Other guys to look at would be Aquib Talib, Justin King, Heferney from Tenn.

[foozball]

trust me, kenny phillips will not fall to 11. if laron landry went 5, then there is no way kenny falls out of the top 10, let alone top 7.

as far as DB's, none are worth the 11th pick outside of kenny, hence the DE pick. there are 2 BIG problems on our team. pass rush and secondary. now, we've got fred bennett, who seems to be our #2 CB of the future. so if there is no CB available, even though it isn't a need, then why not address a need at DE with a very talented one in Derrick Harvey? he definitely compliments Mario's game with his speed and agility, and we just traded away our best pass rusher (believe it or not) in Jason Babin.

as far as late round pass rushers, theyre a needle in the haystack. we found bennett in the 4th round...get what im saying? the mark andersons of the world are not the norm. if there is one to look at, it would be Chris Ellis of VATech. 6'5 260lbs and runs in the 4.75-4.8 range, but isnt a true speed rusher. he's probably a 3rd rounder right now, but he may go higher since this is a relatively weak class of DE's. if guys like Tyson Jackson and Vernon Gholston declare, maybe he falls.

in any case, you cant ignore the hole we have at DE just because we've been drafting DLine for the past few years and because we have Mario. if we have the chance to grab a dominant pass rusher, we have to take him so we can complete our DLine. now, if we could get Harvey in round 1 and Quintin Demps in round 3, that would be a best case scenario. i'd love for Kenny Phillips to fall to 11, but it wont happen. would you want to reach for a DB this year and try your luck on finding a DE later in the draft (which is a weak DE class as previously mentioned).

[foozball]

i might as well profile the DB's as well.

Talib- Good size and ball skills. Might profile best at FS because of his 4.55 speed. Is he physical enough to play FS?

King- A shutdown corner. But do we really need a CB at 11 with Fred Bennett waiting in the wings?

Heffney- Not even a 1st round guy. Most likely an early 2nd rounder.

Jenkins- Physical corner with size and speed. May not have the ballhawking skills of Talib, but has better raw tools.

Jack Ikegwuonu- Good size and average speed. Bigtime character concerns.

Now, we need to look at guys who can play FS. Jenkins, Talib, and Ikegwuonu have the size. Each over 6 foot and around 200lbs. Jenkins has the best tools, Talib the best instincts, and Ikegwuonu may have the best blend of both tools and instincts.

However, are any worth the #11 pick? It's similar to last year with Hall and Revis, and both went a bit later than expected. If I'm at 11, I'm going for the DE. If I'm at 17, then the DB's available may hold more value than the DE's available.

[bsofa04]

None of the DE's in this draft impress me. If Kenny isn't available, we could be looking at OT Sam Baker, Gosder Cherilus or Barry Richardson. Too early to tell though, considering we haven't gone through the offseason free agency transactions. There's just too many variables that go into drafting a player, speculation is all we have to work with at this point. Come tommorrow we could be needing a RB due to injury(knock on wood). But if I had to fix any position at this point in time, the LAST position I would choose is D-line. OT and FS are a much bigger need, but we will cross that bridge when we get to April. Right now I'm pumped about KC.

[Whiskeyrbl]

None of the DE's in this draft impress me. If Kenny isn't available, we could be looking at OT Sam Baker, Gosder Cherilus or Barry Richardson. Too early to tell though, considering we haven't gone through the offseason free agency transactions. There's just too many variables that go into drafting a player, speculation is all we have to work with at this point. Come tommorrow we could be needing a RB due to injury(knock on wood). But if I had to fix any position at this point in time, the LAST position I would choose is D-line. OT and FS are a much bigger need, but we will cross that bridge when we get to April. Right now I'm pumped about KC.

Agreed, lets get this season done before we decide who we are wanting to draft next year. I'm hoping when we do it will be around the 20th pick at worst.

[foozball]

None of the DE's in this draft impress me. If Kenny isn't available, we could be looking at OT Sam Baker, Gosder Cherilus or Barry Richardson. Too early to tell though, considering we haven't gone through the offseason free agency transactions. There's just too many variables that go into drafting a player, speculation is all we have to work with at this point. Come tommorrow we could be needing a RB due to injury(knock on wood). But if I had to fix any position at this point in time, the LAST position I would choose is D-line. OT and FS are a much bigger need, but we will cross that bridge when we get to April. Right now I'm pumped about KC.

i understand. this draft is deep, but it lacks top tier talent (besides mcfadden and kenny). i also think sam baker will go in the top 10, although he'd be very hard to pass up. but if spencer is healthy, do we need another OT? draft sites are all over the place on richardson, and i dont think he'd be worth the #11 pick. there are many 1st round OT's, but only 2 are worth top 11 picks (long and baker).

i disagree with your statement on the class of DE's...well, at least the top 2 DE's. Calais Campbell and Derrick Harvey. Campbell could be a very dominant DE and is pretty much a lock for the top 5. Harvey is a better prospect than his teammate in Jarvis Moss, who went 17th last year. He's 6'4 255lbs and runs in the 4.65-4.75 range. he has great technique (which is what Mario lacks) as well as great athleticism and room to get even bigger. he dominated the OSU lineman, who were considered the top OLine in the country.

we might be able to get a very good DB in the 3rd, and we might be able to get an OL in the 3rd. i dont think we could get a starting DE in the 3rd.

its just a v.1 draft, i'll adjust it from week to week after the games.

[bsofa04]

i understand. this draft is deep, but it lacks top tier talent (besides mcfadden and kenny). i also think sam baker will go in the top 10, although he'd be very hard to pass up. but if spencer is healthy, do we need another OT? draft sites are all over the place on richardson, and i dont think he'd be worth the #11 pick. there are many 1st round OT's, but only 2 are worth top 11 picks (long and baker).

i disagree with your statement on the class of DE's...well, at least the top 2 DE's. Calais Campbell and Derrick Harvey. Campbell could be a very dominant DE and is pretty much a lock for the top 5. Harvey is a better prospect than his teammate in Jarvis Moss, who went 17th last year. He's 6'4 255lbs and runs in the 4.65-4.75 range. he has great technique (which is what Mario lacks) as well as great athleticism and room to get even bigger. he dominated the OSU lineman, who were considered the top OLine in the country.

we might be able to get a very good DB in the 3rd, and we might be able to get an OL in the 3rd. i dont think we could get a starting DE in the 3rd.

its just a v.1 draft, i'll adjust it from week to week after the games.

Cool. Hopefully we're not picking at 11.....say 15-19 =) I agree that Richardson is up in the air at this point. If I had to pick today around 11-15, it'd be Terrell Thomas CB USC, Gosdner Cherilus OT BC or Limas Sweed WR Texas. Philips wouldn't be available.

Hopefully we get some surprises this year (Fred Bennett, Michael Boulware, Charles Spencer) that step up and make our draft in 2008 a little clearer. It should be intresting to see how this changes from week to week.

[foozball]

the thing is, if Spencer is healthy, we really don't need an OL. if we do, itd be much more beneficial to pick one up in FA, where we have the money to spend on a good OT. a veteran OT will be ready to step in right away instead of a rookie. if we can get the defense going, we should be ready to win right away with the addition of a good veteran OT.

limas sweed would be nice, but i think Jacoby has earned his spot. if we need a WR, we can get one later in this very very deep WR draft.

terrell thomas can play FS, but is he worth the pick at #11? i think he's gonna go in the 18-24 range. this DB draft is pretty weak unless underclassman declare.

[bsofa04]

the thing is, if Spencer is healthy, we really don't need an OL. if we do, itd be much more beneficial to pick one up in FA, where we have the money to spend on a good OT. a veteran OT will be ready to step in right away instead of a rookie. if we can get the defense going, we should be ready to win right away with the addition of a good veteran OT.

limas sweed would be nice, but i think Jacoby has earned his spot. if we need a WR, we can get one later in this very very deep WR draft.

terrell thomas can play FS, but is he worth the pick at #11? i think he's gonna go in the 18-24 range. this DB draft is pretty weak unless underclassman declare.

nflraftcountdown.com has him listed as the #1 senior CB in this draft, project to go mid first round. As far as him playing FS, I'm not sure but I'll take your word for it.

[foozball]

nfldraftcountdown also has him going #29...i think malcolm jenkins is a better talent and would make a better FS than thomas. im pretty sure Fred Bennett will be given every opportunity to be the future #2 CB. thomas did play FS earlier in college i believe, and was recruited to play safety out of highschool. in any case, drafting a player to be our CB wouldn't be the best idea IMO.

IMO, our needs are in this order...

FS- We have nobody

DE- Traded Babin, Weaver isn't a true rush DE, we get no consistent pass rush

OT- Spencer is injured, but we have some depth, which is why it takes a backseat to DE

LB- We lack a playmaking WLB to pair up with Demeco. Tavares Gooden would be a nice pickup in the 4th.

WR- Jacoby has stepped up big, but we have been terrible in the redzone and we need TD's, not FG's. A big 6'5 WR for different situations could really help. Mario Urrutia in the 3rd if Quintin Demps isn't there.

RB- Ahman is getting older, Dayne has a limited game, and Gado isn't a primary back. However, we can probably grab a RB next year in a loaded class.