Houston Texans 2011 NFL Draft: Ranking the Best Defenders for the 3-4 Defense

The Houston Texans are on a mission to make the playoffs in 2011. In fact, head coach Gary Kubiak's job likely depends on it.

To achieve their first playoff birth in franchise history, the Texans have brought in defensive coordinator Wade Phillips and his 3-4 defense. 

Moving from a 4-3 defense to the 3-4 requires an overhaul of talent, and quickly. Without free agency to rely on for adding experienced 3-4 system players, the Texans must hit on their draft picks.

Expect to see Houston using most of their eight draft picks on the defensive side of the ball.

Curious as to which defenders in the 2011 class best fit the Texans new defense? We have the answer for you.

3-4 Defensive End Rankings

Stephen Dunn/Getty Images

PASADENA, CA - JANUARY 01: Defensive lineman J.J. Watt #99 of the Wisconsin Badgers rushes the TCU Horned Frogs in the 97th Rose Bowl game on January 1, 2011 in Pasadena, California. (Photo by Stephen Dunn/Getty Images)

The Texans will need defensive ends who can line up directly across from the offensive tackle and control the edges in the run game, as well as keep the offensive tackle from stopping the outside pass rush coming from the outside linebackers.

The Texans currently have Mario Williams locked in at one defensive end position. Opposite him, they could use an infusion of youth.

Overall	Pos. Rank	Player	Position	School	Class	Ht.	Wt.	40 Time
3	1	Marcell Dareus	DT	Alabama	Jr	6-3	319	4.93
10	2	Cameron Jordan	DE	California	Sr	6-4	287	4.74
15	4	J.J. Watt	DE	Wisconsin	rJr	6-5	290	4.81
18	5	Adrian Clayborn	DE	Iowa	rSr	6-3	281	4.78
24	3	Corey Liuget	DT	Illinois	Jr	6-2	298	4.97
29	8	Cameron Heyward	DE	Ohio State	Sr	6-5	294	4.92
34	5	Muhammad Wilkerson	DT	Temple	Jr	6-4	315	4.96
47	6	Marvin Austin	DT	North Carolina	Sr	6-2	309	4.84
49	10	Christian Ballard	DE	Iowa	Sr	6-4	283	4.75
63	11	Allen Bailey	DE	Miami (Fla.)	Sr	6-3	285	4.71
74	10	Jarvis Jenkins	DT	Clemson	Sr	6-4	310	5.03
98	12	Lawrence Guy	DT	Arizona State	Jr	6-4	305	4.96
190	18	Cedric Thornton	DT	Southern Arkansas	Sr	6-3	309	5.25
255	22	Lazarius Levingston	DE	LSU	rSr	6-4	292	4.93
299	25	Karl Klug	DE	Iowa	rSr	6-3	275	4.81
342	27	Mike Blanc	DT	Auburn	Sr	6-3	286	4.95
378	30	Demarcus Dobbs	DE	Georgia	rSr	6-2	281	4.87
432	36	Zane Parr	DE	Virginia	rJr	6-6	275	4.95
450	37	Craig Marshall	DE	South Florida	Sr	6-5	276	4.79
452	36	Frank Kearse	DT	Alabama A&M	Sr	6-4	315	5.3

3-4 Nose Tackle Rankings

Joe Robbins/Getty Images

INDIANAPOLIS, IN - FEBRUARY 28: Defensive lineman Jerrell Powe of Mississippi runs through a drill during the 2011 NFL Scouting Combine at Lucas Oil Stadium on February 28, 2011 in Indianapolis, Indiana. (Photo by Joe Robbins/Getty Images)

Nose tackles play one of the most important roles in a 3-4 defense. They are tasked with controlling the flow of the offensive line, asked to draw double teams from the guard/center and to free up lanes for the two inside linebackers to blitz or make plays against the run.

Houston currently has no one on the roster who can fill this role.

Overall	Pos. Rank	Player	Position	School	Class	Ht.	Wt.	40 Time
26	4	Phil Taylor	DT	Baylor	rSr	6-3	334	5.09
67	8	Kenrick Ellis	DT	Hampton	rSr	6-5	346	5.19
125	13	Jerrell Powe	DT	Mississippi	rSr	6-2	335	5.25
140	14	Ian Williams	DT	Notre Dame	Sr	6-1	319	5.21
172	16	Sione Fua	DT	Stanford	Sr	6-2	308	5.28
187	17	Martin Parker	DT	Richmond	rSr	6-2	303	4.95
203	19	Chris Neild	DT	West Virginia	rSr	6-2	319	5.06
263	22	Sealver Siliga	DT	Utah	Jr	6-2	305	5.04
292	24	Anthony Gray	DT	Southern Mississippi	rSr	5-11	330	5.18
370	28	Ibraham Abdulai	DT	Arkansas-Pine Bluff	Sr	6-2	301	5.24
398	31	Cory Grant	DT	TCU	rSr	6-1	316	5.09
414	32	Adrian Taylor	DT	Oklahoma	rSr	6-3	311	5.22
422	34	Ricky Lumpkin	DT	Kentucky	rSr	6-4	313	5.35

3-4 Outside Linebacker Rankings

Ronald Martinez/Getty Images

WEST LAFAYETTE, IN - SEPTEMBER 20: Quarterback Dan LeFevour #13 of the Central Michigan Chippewas is tackled by Ryan Kerrigan #94 of the Purdue Boilermakers at Ross-Ade Stadium on September 20, 2008 in West Lafayette, Indiana. (Photo by Ronald Martinez/

For a 3-4 defense to be effective, the pass rush must come from the outside linebackers. Teams who successfully run the 3-4 defense, like Green Bay and Dallas, have All-Pro outside linebackers crashing the backfield from off the edge.

For Houston to make a playoff run in 2011, they must find an outside linebacker who can do this.

Overall	Pos. Rank	Player	Position	School	Class	Ht.	Wt.	40 Time
2	1	Von Miller	OLB	Texas A&M	Sr	6-3	246	4.42
5	1	Robert Quinn	DE	North Carolina	Jr	6-4	265	4.62
19	6	Ryan Kerrigan	DE	Purdue	Sr	6-4	267	4.67
23	7	Aldon Smith	DE	Missouri	rSo	6-4	263	4.74
30	2	Akeem Ayers	OLB	UCLA	rJr	6-3	254	4.81
32	3	Brooks Reed	OLB	Arizona	rSr	6-3	263	4.65
37	4	Justin Houston	OLB	Georgia	rJr	6-3	270	4.62
40	9	Jabaal Sheard	DE	Pittsburgh	Sr	6-3	264	4.68
64	6	Sam Acho	OLB	Texas	Sr	6-2	262	4.67
75	8	Chris Carter	OLB	Fresno State	Sr	6-1	248	4.58
104	13	Ricky Elmore	DE	Arizona	rSr	6-5	255	4.88
106	9	K.J. Wright	OLB	Mississippi State	Sr	6-3	246	4.75
109	10	Mason Foster	OLB	Washington	Sr	6-1	245	4.75
164	16	Ugo Chinasa	DE	Oklahoma State	rSr	6-5	264	4.63
200	16	Scott Lutrus	OLB	Connecticut	rSr	6-2	241	4.68
204	18	Markus White	DE	Florida State	rSr	6-4	266	4.86
231	19	J.T. Thomas	OLB	West Virginia	rSr	6-1	241	4.65
295	24	Cheta Ozougwu	DE	Rice	Sr	6-2	247	4.84
303	26	Steven Friday	DE	Virginia Tech	rSr	6-3	228	4.66
312	23	Jeremiha Hunter	OLB	Iowa	rSr	6-1	239	4.77
313	24	Bruce Miller	OLB	UCF	rSr	6-1	254	4.81
358	28	Wayne Daniels	OLB	TCU	rSr	6-0	260	5.03
375	29	Kenny Rowe	OLB	Oregon	Sr	6-2	244	4.9
388	32	Gabe Miller	DE	Oregon State	rSr	6-3	250	4.63
471	37	Brian Smith	OLB	Notre Dame	Sr	6-3	235	4.72

3-4 Defense Cornerback Rankings

Ronald Martinez/Getty Images

ARLINGTON, TX - DECEMBER 04: Wide receiver Cameron Kenney #6 of the Oklahoma Sooners runs the ball against Prince Amukamara #21 of the Nebraska Cornhuskers during the Big 12 Championship at Cowboys Stadium on December 4, 2010 in Arlington, Texas. (Photo

Most people do not consider the pressure placed on cornerbacks that play in the 3-4 defense.

Since the outside linebackers are generally crashing the backfield and rushing the passer, they are not helping in coverage on the flats as much.

You will see Houston use their strongside linebacker to do this, but the Texans' cornerbacks will also be asked to play off their man and cover deep.

Rookie Kareem Jackson struggled in 2010 due to inexperience, lacking pass rush and poor help from his safeties. In 2011, the Texans will team Jackson with an early-round draft pick.

Overall	Pos. Rank	Player	Position	School	Class	Ht.	Wt.	40 Time
1	1	Patrick Peterson	CB	LSU	Jr	6-0	219	4.31
7	2	Prince Amukamara	CB	Nebraska	Sr	6-0	206	4.38
28	3	Jimmy Smith	CB	Colorado	rSr	6-2	211	4.42
36	4	Brandon Harris	CB	Miami (Fla.)	Jr	5-10	191	4.46
44	5	Aaron Williams	CB	Texas	Jr	6-0	204	4.55
54	6	Curtis Brown	CB	Texas	Sr	6-0	185	4.51
55	7	Ras-I Dowling	CB	Virginia	Sr	6-1	198	4.4
56	8	Davon House	CB	New Mexico State	Sr	6-1	200	4.44
61	9	Brandon Burton	CB	Utah	rJr	6-0	190	4.5
79	10	Shareece Wright	CB	Southern California	rSr	5-11	185	4.41
89	11	Marcus Gilchrist	CB	Clemson	Sr	5-10	195	4.45
90	12	Chimdi Chekwa	CB	Ohio State	rSr	6-0	191	4.38
92	13	Johnny Patrick	CB	Louisville	rSr	5-11	191	4.59
108	14	Buster Skrine	CB	Chattanooga	Sr	5-10	186	4.37
110	15	Curtis Marsh	CB	Utah State	Sr	6-1	197	4.42
124	16	Jalil Brown	CB	Colorado	Sr	6-1	204	4.52
129	17	Chykie Brown	CB	Texas	rSr	5-11	190	4.49
139	18	Brandon Hogan	CB	West Virginia	Sr	5-10	192	4.43
144	19	Rashad Carmichael	CB	Virginia Tech	rSr	5-10	192	4.53
146	20	Kendric Burney	CB	North Carolina	rSr	5-09	186	4.71
157	21	Cortez Allen	CB	Citadel	rSr	6-1	197	4.5
168	22	Ryan Jones	CB	Northwest Missouri State	rSr	5-11	197	4.42
175	23	Chris L. Rucker	CB	Michigan State	Sr	6-1	195	4.55
197	24	Justin Rogers	CB	Richmond	rSr	5-11	180	4.45
207	25	Byron Maxwell	CB	Clemson	rSr	6-0	202	4.43
212	26	Anthony Gaitor	CB	Florida International	Sr	5-10	177	4.48
213	27	Ryan Hill	CB	Miami (Fla.)	rSr	5-11	202	4.6
219	28	Richard Sherman	CB	Stanford	rSr	6-3	195	4.54
237	29	Josh Thomas	CB	Buffalo	Sr	5-10	191	4.46
260	30	Loyce Means	CB	Houston	Sr	5-10	177	4.45
264	31	Korey Lindsey	CB	Southern Illinois	Sr	5-10	189	4.56
272	32	DeMarcus Van Dyke	CB	Miami (Fla.)	Sr	6-1	176	4.25
308	33	Devon Torrence	CB	Ohio State	Sr	6-0	199	4.68
319	34	Darrin Walls	CB	Notre Dame	rSr	6-0	188	4.47
322	35	Kevin Rutland	CB	Missouri	rSr	6-0	190	4.58
361	36	Josh Gatlin	CB	North Dakota State	Sr	6-1	196	4.39
366	37	Demond Washington	CB	Auburn	Sr	5-09	180	4.45
368	38	Mario Butler	CB	Georgia Tech	Sr	6-0	182	4.65
387	39	Jason Teague	CB	TCU	Sr	6-2	184	4.54
389	40	Andrew McGee	CB	Oklahoma State	Sr	5-11	195	4.71
402	41	Julian (Joonie) Posey	CB	Ohio	rSr	5-10	189	4.48
415	42	Talmadge Jackson	CB	Oregon	Sr	5-09	186	4.46
418	43	Brandyn Thompson	CB	Boise State	Sr	5-09	189	4.5
428	44	Mike Holmes	CB	Syracuse	Sr	5-10	182	4.5
433	45	James Dockery	CB	Oregon State	rSr	6-1	185	4.52
438	46	Vance Cuff	CB	Georgia	Sr	5-10	178	4.53
442	47	Vince Agnew	CB	Central Michigan	rSr	5-10	192	4.4
459	48	Bryant Nnabuife	CB	California	Sr	6-1	193	4.57
472	49	Jamal Robinson	CB	Houston	rSr	5-10	190	4.56
484	50	Carl Gettis	CB	Missouri	Sr	5-10	201	4.73

3-4 Defense Safety Rankings

Christian Petersen/Getty Images

TEMPE, AZ - NOVEMBER 26: Runningback Cameron Marshall #26 of the Arizona State Sun Devils carries the football for a 71 yard rushing touchdown past Ryan Sublett #10 and Rahim Moore #3 of the UCLA Bruins during the thrid quarter of the college football ga

The Texans' secondary was terrible in 2010, there's no other way to say it. Bernard Pollard will not be back in 2011, and the team will look to upgrade at free safety.

Doing so using the middle of the draft is the smart play for Houston head coach Gary Kubiak. The 2011 class is weak at safety, but value can be found in rounds four and five.

Free Safety

Overall	Pos. Rank	Player	Position	School	Class	Ht.	Wt.	40 Time
58	1	Rahim Moore	FS	UCLA	Jr	6-0	202	4.58
72	2	Quinton Carter	FS	Oklahoma	rSr	6-1	208	4.57
99	3	Chris Conte	FS	California	Sr	6-2	197	4.52
119	4	Jaiquawn Jarrett	FS	Temple	Sr	6-0	198	4.62
133	5	Robert Sands	FS	West Virginia	rJr	6-4	217	4.53
136	6	Chris Culliver	FS	South Carolina	Sr	6-0	199	4.36
163	7	Deunta Williams	FS	North Carolina	rSr	6-2	205	4.53
189	8	Jerrard Tarrant	FS	Georgia Tech	rJr	6-0	204	4.57
201	9	Eric Hagg	FS	Nebraska	Sr	6-1	209	4.62
209	10	Jermale Hines	FS	Ohio State	Sr	6-1	219	4.61
245	11	Mark LeGree	FS	Appalachian State	Sr	6-0	210	4.49
281	12	Chris Prosinski	FS	Wyoming	rSr	6-1	201	4.42
287	13	Will Hill	FS	Florida	Jr	6-1	202	4.64
320	14	Brian Lainhart	FS	Kent State	rSr	6-0	211	4.64
347	15	Tommie Campbell	FS	California (PA)	rSr	6-2	204	4.45
355	16	Colin Jones	FS	TCU	rSr	6-0	201	4.4
399	17	Jonathan Nelson	FS	Oklahoma	rSr	5-11	198	4.51
453	18	Javes Lewis	FS	Oregon	Jr	6-1	201	4.57
494	19	Jeremy Kellem	FS	Middle Tennessee	Sr	5-10	190	4.53

Strong Safety

Overall	Pos. Rank	Player	Position	School	Class	Ht.	Wt.	40 Time
88	1	DeAndre McDaniel	SS	Clemson	Sr	6-0	217	4.63
95	2	Tyler Sash	SS	Iowa	rJr	6-0	211	4.62
115	3	Ahmad Black	SS	Florida	Sr	5-10	184	4.7
150	4	Joe Lefeged	SS	Rutgers	Sr	6-0	210	4.42
156	5	Da'Norris Searcy	SS	North Carolina	Sr	5-11	223	4.55
182	6	Jeron Johnson	SS	Boise State	rSr	5-10	212	4.51
211	7	Shiloh Keo	SS	Idaho	rSr	5-11	219	4.74
227	8	Nate Williams	SS	Washington	Sr	6-0	211	4.68
249	9	Dom DeCicco	SS	Pittsburgh	Sr	6-3	232	4.64
270	10	DeJon Gomes	SS	Nebraska	Sr	6-0	208	4.5
306	11	David Sims	SS	Iowa State	Sr	5-09	200	4.5
310	12	Isa Abdul-El Quddus	SS	Fordham	Sr	6-0	200	4.52
341	13	Eugene Clifford	SS	Tennessee State	Sr	6-1	204	4.56
367	14	Johnny Brown	SS	Mississippi	Sr	6-0	212	4.57
371	15	Davonte Shannon	SS	Buffalo	Sr	6-0	211	4.64
397	16	Zac Etheridge	SS	Auburn	rSr	5-11	201	4.6
404	17	Jay Valai	SS	Wisconsin	rSr	5-08	200	4.74
435	18	Alex Ibiloye	SS	TCU	rSr	5-11	196	4.56
439	19	Mana Silva	SS	Hawaii	rSr	6-1	212	4.64
443	20	Andrew Rich	SS	Brigham Young	Sr	6-3	220	4.65
455	21	Kevin Brown	SS	Middle Tennessee	Sr	6-1	210	4.58
498	22	Davon Morgan	SS	Virginia Tech	Sr	6-0	194	4.7