Houston Texans Draft Rant

            Well, we’ve all been anxiously awaiting the draft since the end of last season, in anticipation of next season.  A lot of speculation has floated around about what the Texans will do and who they’ll draft and whether or not Kiper will actually physically attack Mcshay on national television.  Every sports writer and analyst has come out with their own projections in about 5 mock drafts per analyst.  So, here we are, through another Smith and Kubiak draft and again a lot of jaws are on the floor and a lot of heads are being scratched.

            As I understood it going into the draft, there were 4 pressing needs for the team.  A cornerback to replace the loss of Dunta Robinson, a running back to establish some sort of running game, a pass rushing defensive tackle to supplement Okoye, and a free safety to legitimize the position after alternating Wilson, Barber and Busing in any number of combinations throughout last season.  So now that the primary needs are established, let’s delve into the draft.

            In Round 1, with the 20^th pick the Texans select cornerback Kareem Jackson out of Alabama.  I’m actually all right with this pick.  I felt it was a little high in the round considering only 1 cornerback had been taken prior and he was rated a little further back among the top corners.  I would have liked to see the Texans trade back some and pick him up later in the round, to which some claim they tried but were unable.  I’m not sure if that’s an indictment on the Texan’s relationships with other teams or their inability to make a deal but I did see other teams trading up in the round behind them.  However, I can not really argue with secondary out of the SEC and some felt Jackson was the most NFL ready corner in the draft.  So I digress.

            In Round 2, the Texans for some reason decided to wheel and deal.  They traded their 19^th pick of the round to Minnesota, who took running back Toby Gerhart.  Blindsided by this, the Texans who had interest in Gerhart, panic, trade back up in the round and select running back Ben Tate.  Not much to say about this debacle.  Tate I’m also alright with but not overly enthused.  I would say mismanagement characterizes the first 2 rounds.

            Round 3 is where the Texan’s draft starts to slip into the bizarre state, it ends up.  With the Texan’s 3^rd round pick, they select defensive tackle, Earl Mitchell.  Yes, the Texans fill a need at defensive tackle but who is Earl Mitchell?  Of course, after the fact, all the experts new all about Earl Mitchell… Sure.  Earl Mitchell was not rated as high as some of the defensive tackles available when he was drafted but did impress scouts with his numbers at the combine i.e. his 4.74 40 yard dash.  I’m just gonna put it out there that this is the second player drafted out of Arizona in the last two years.  Another trend to keep an eye on…  Let’s move on.

            The 4^th Round is where my jaw hit the floor.  With the Texan’s first pick of the round, they select Darryl Sharpton, a line backer out of the ACC’s Miami.  With the 2^nd pick in the 4^th round, the Texans select Garret Graham, tight end out of Wisconsin.  So, why draft a line backer and tight end, arguably two of the strongest and deepest positions on the team?  This is when the genius, Rick Smith, dawns his philosophy on us that they are drafting based upon the best athlete available.  How they somehow arbitrarily decided that these two players are better athletes then Dominique Franks or Perrish Cox, two premier cornerbacks available at the time, is beyond me.  Not to mention, does anyone else have a problem with the philosophy of drafting based on athleticism?  How many great collegiate athletes and workout warriors never translate their supposed potential into the NFL?  I can think of plenty.

            Round 5.  So, after passing up on Franks and Cox, the aforementioned premiere cornerbacks, in the 4^th round for their athletes, what do the Texans do?  With their 5^th round pick the Texan’s select Sherrick Mcmanis, a cornerback out of Northwestern.  Now, this is a hunch but something tells me if the Texans had drafted Franks or Cox, or both for that matter, both of their actual picks, Sharpton and Graham, would still be there in the 5^th and 6^th…  Call me crazy.

            Round 6 the Texans draft offensive guard Shelby Smith out of Colorado State.  Now I have no problem with drafting O-line, the lack of a running game is as much a reflection of the O-line as it is the running backs.  I do however have a problem with Shelby being the 5^th Colorado State player on the team.  Spencer Tillman hit the nail on the head when he called the pick a brother in law pick for Kubiak.  The Texans doing more favors, at the detriment of the team.  What a shock.  Enough Said.

            To round out the draft, the Texans decide to play with a couple picks and select Trindon Holliday, a kick returner out of LSU and their 6^th tight end, Dorin Dickerson out of Pittsburg, who will supposedly be converted to wide receiver, another strongpoint of the Texans.  A couple of interesting projects for a team vying for the playoffs, with holes to fill, to undertake. How many times have we heard recently the Texans are a good draft away from making the playoffs?  Was this that draft?  I don’t think so…