I’m working away on my SBNation Houston weekend duties. Obviously I cannot (and would not want to) post the same entry here and over there… but I’ll give you the stripped-down version here, and you can head over to my entry at SBN to get full comments and analysis.
Please feel free to comment here or at SBN. We’re getting dangerously close to the Draft, my friends. Dangerously close.
Here’s the quick and dirty version, but please – hit that link above for the full story.
1. Carolina – Cam Newton, QB
2. Denver – Marcell Dareus, DL
3. Buffalo – Von Miller, OLB
4. Cincinnati – Blaine Gabbert, QB
5. Arizona – Patrick Peterson, CB
6. Cleveland – AJ Green, WR
7. San Francisco – Da’Quan Bowers, DE
8. Tennessee – Nick Fairley, DT
9. Dallas – Tyron Smith OT, or Anthony Castonzo, OT
10. Washington – Jake Locker, QB or any remaining QB.
11. Houston…
1. (tie) Robert Quinn, OLB
1. (tie) Trade down
Possible mid-to-low first round targets for this scenario:
Phil Taylor, NT
Aldon Smith, OLB
Muhammad Wilkerson, DL
Akeem Ayers, OLB
Stephen Paea, DT
Aaron Williams, DB
3. (tie) Cameron Jordan, DE
3. (tie) Julio Jones, WR
5. Phil Taylor, NT
6. Prince Amukamara, CB
7. JJ Watt, DE
As I said, further explanation is up and running over at my weekend gig. Please check it out! Gonna be a better week for me next week, so I’ll be back with you. I truly appreciate you guys keeping the discussion going in the comments. Much appreciated.
Apr 9, 2011 at 15:16:35
Im not to sold on anyone at the 11 spot i wouldnt mind trading down to the 20th spot and snatching up phil taylor.
Apr 10, 2011 at 20:52:15
I agree with The Don
Apr 10, 2011 at 21:11:42
I like Cameron Jordan alot too and if Quinn, jones, and prince are gone he could definetly be the BPA … Chris why do you see such a big difference between Jordan and Watt?
Apr 10, 2011 at 21:46:04
I like Cameron Jordan. Nice solid player. But I’m not sold on drafting someone in the 1st Rd. and not start (because Smith And Mario r not going anywhere this year). Not at this point for the Texans.
Apr 10, 2011 at 21:59:00
Yea I completely agree with KD. Though Jordan is a solid player, I dont like the fact that our #11th pick is not on the field most of the time… I would rather have a player who “starts” and not coming in on 3rd downs or however they try to use him.
And Call me crazy, but even with all the holes we have on defense, I wouldnt be mad at all if they drafted Julio… If we dont get Andre a LEGIT receiver to take the pressure off of him, then how long do we expect Andre to be as productive as he is? We saw countless times Andre go down with an injury last season. So with an addition of a rare receiever like Julio, we not only extend the productivity of Andre for years to come, but also have a replacement when Andre’s time finally comes to an end. So if Quinn aint there, I say pull the trigger on Julio if he’s there and hope(crosses fingers) we hit a home run with the rest of our draft picks and Free Agency
Apr 11, 2011 at 10:24:26
as long as we dont end up with aldon smith, Phil Taylor, or prince….
those three all have high bust potential, and I wouldnt want any of them in the first round. Id honestly rather reach for a brooks reed or brandon harris
Apr 11, 2011 at 11:44:13
I want Julio jones to fall to us too I see the redskins drafting a QB so it’s a possibility he’ll be there at 11 … But the texans probably won’t do it … If we can’t stop em might as well have the best offense and outscore them. With Jones the Texans offense would be unstoppable!
Apr 11, 2011 at 12:10:23
To expand on what Curtis said: Julio would help Andre but it will also help the running game. Andre in single coverage, Julio with the #2 CB and/or no one cheating in the box on Foster. Defenses wouldnt know who to stop….OD back healthy too. I’m completely sold on Julio.
Apr 11, 2011 at 12:36:59
@KD:Exactly!
Apr 11, 2011 at 13:09:22
and thats why even if he is there, ric smith in all his glory would go on and select ryan kerrigan, with julio jones and robert quinn still on the board
Apr 11, 2011 at 20:17:07
@ allenou no ric smith is going to find what ever DE or LB that is not even rated and claim he is the most “nfl ready”
Apr 12, 2011 at 01:19:02
Lance Z said a few scouts have said that Cam Jordan has the athleticsm to play the OLB in the 3-4 as well as the DE. Jordan would be an excellent addition to our team, and I think we would kick ourselves if we passed on him and the Jags got him. As you can tell Im a big Jordan fan.
Apr 12, 2011 at 09:06:07
@AllenOU,
Do you really think Phil Taylor has a higher bust potential than Brandon Harris? I’ve got one foot on the Phil Taylor bandwagon.
Apr 12, 2011 at 09:46:51
@ T williams i am getting on the phil taylor bus for the simple fact that we can get him in the mid to late 20′s the only thing that worries me is oh well every other DT draft pick the texans have ever had
Apr 12, 2011 at 10:26:23
Im not convinced from stuff Ive read and tape Ive seen, that Phil Taylor loves football. He will have trouble controlling his weight, and if you combine that with a lack of maturity, which Im just guessing on, thats too high of a bust potential for a first rounder.
11 for harris is a HUGE reach, but I feel like he is going to be a solid number one
Apr 12, 2011 at 16:11:58
I can agree that Taylor has bust potential but he has great upside with his size and speed to play NT. However, Harris is 5’9″ with mid 4.5 speed even with his great cover skills he’s at most a #2 most likely a nickel aka Kareem Jackson who ran a 4.4 but the scouts said he had game apeed of 4.5. Harris shouldn’t be drafted higher than the mid 2nd even with this poor db draft.
Apr 13, 2011 at 11:43:30
I haven’t read much about character concerns with Taylor, other than the frat fight. Generally speaking, any dude who weighs 330 when he’s 20 is going to have weight issues. My thinking with him (maybe Wilkerson or Fua) is that DeMeco and Cushing have injury issues. Having someone who absolutely had to be double teamed would free them up to move to the ball without having to take on a guard or center every play. Wilkerson would have the ability to play nose or end, but it would still be nice to trade back.