Battle Red Blog

2009 in Review: The Secondary

2010-02-08T11:51:06Z

Cincinnati Bengals receiver Chad Ochocinco (85) makes a diving catch in front of Houston Texans cornerback Dunta Robinson (23) in the second half of an NFL football game, Sunday, Oct. 18, 2009, in Cincinnati. Why he felt the need to dive when he was being covered by Dunta Robinson is up for interpretation. (AP Photo/Ed Reinke)

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Hit the jump if you're familiar with the series because the next couple of lines are review.

I'm going to look at every player who played more than 100 snaps for the Texans from a number of different angles. I'll give their regular statistics from this year and last year. Similarly, I will bring in Pro Football Focus and Football Outsiders numbers for the last two years and compare them. A glossary of FO terms can be found here, and Pro Football Focus operates on a strict +/- system. Finally, I'll give my impressions on each of them as someone who has spent probably 100 hours each year watching the game tapes and filling in charting numbers for FO. For players with less than 100 snaps, I'll just give a brief summary. From this, I hope to give a balanced reading of each player's ability and relative value to the team.

There's not much to glean from the stats versus the number one and two wide receivers. All of the Texans cornerbacks seem to have played roughly below average the last two seasons--at least on the surface. The Texans improved drastically on passes in three-wide sets, which I think can be explained by the phrase "not employing DeMarcus Faggins". Tight ends were a major problem. Eugene Wilson not playing some of the season and DeMeco Ryans trying to cover Vernon Davis on go-routes would rank among my main culprits for that one. The one thing Frank Bush deserves an awful lot of credit for this year was that everyone up front sniffed out screens impeccably. In fact, the only screens that really were successful against the Texans were quick hitches at Dunta Robinson. Speaking of Pay Me (P)Rick...

CORNERBACKS

Dunta Robinson

It wasn't so much that Dunta Robinson was bad this year, it's that he really could've easily been worse. I went over my concerns more in-depth in TexanDC's fanpost, but to summarize, Dunta was dead to rights by any number of wide outs beating him deep in 2009 and was extraordinarily lucky that he wasn't burnt more often than he was. Add to that a real shying away from contact, the huge pass he gave up in the second Indy game when he started crowing and preening himself while Peyton Manning quick-snapped the Texans, and the fact that he's not really all that great in the short passing game either. Mix with a side-dish of management critique on your own shoe, enough yellow nylon to weave himself another dreadlock, and missing training camp, and you've got yourself one easy-to-hate player.

Much like Anthony Weaver before him, Dunta Robinson has entered the phase of his career where he doesn't do what he's supposed to anymore. He hasn't been the same player since his injury, he looks unsure at times, and his productivity is way down. Unlike Weaver, the Texans aren't anchored to a contract where cutting him would do more harm than good to the team. Whether Rick Smith and Company can look past it all and see that Dunta isn't worth half of his salary this year is one of the crucial questions facing the Texans this offseason. If Robinson is back as number one cornerback, it's a good sign that the Texans are either satisfied with 8-8 or are basing their decision purely on reputation. I'm hoping they just let him go.

Glover Quin

Another opinion I've already slightly stepped on earlier. Quin probably will end up at safety one of these days, but for the now, the Texans aren't really giving up too much with him on the field. Quin has terrific read-and-react instincts. Throwing the quick curl route at him was pretty fruitless. However, get his feet moving on a drag just past the line of scrimmage or a quick turn and he doesn't really have the speed to keep up. He's easily the Texans' best tackling corner, and I'd be surprised if he didn't wind up with at least a few forced turnovers next year via the fumble or interceptions.

Long-term, Quin should be a key part of the Texans either at safety or corner as long as he can avoid Fred Bennett Syndrome. I wouldn't get too caught up in moving him to safety in the near term. Lets see how he does with a full offseason under contract. Best case scenario: He gets better reads on WR moves and keeps stride with them. Worst case scenario: He's a decent safety.

Jacques Reeves

FO quotes his 2008 season as "good underneath, but easy to beat deep". This season, it seemed to be almost the opposite. He gave up quickly on some of the underneath stuff, but the only way he was getting beat deep would be if the throw was absolutely perfect, like Nate Hughes' catch in the second Jacksonville game. Probably a bit of small sample size in there with this one, but possibly also some overcompensation by Reeves.

Reeves was fairly serviceable in 2008, so the idea that he was sitting most of the season in favor of Dunta is really hard to take, particularly considering the Texans had so many close losses that could've been solved with just one extra defensive stop. He's probably only a decent CB2, but that's better production than the club got out of Dunta last year. With one of the highest price tags on the team and no salary cap rules to bend through, the Texans might be better off cutting him if they find a CB1 in the draft or on the free agent market.

Brice McCain

McCain showed solid speed in his limited field time and is probably the best zone coverage guy the Texans have. His problem going forward is that he could be too physically limited to be anything more than a cover guy. -3.1 in run defense on dime snaps is ugly, and while he might get up to the nickel role, he could be a liability versus big wideouts.

Not bad for a sixth round pick, and he probably will reprise his role next year unless the Texans have a sudden change of heart on Fred Bennett or Antuwan Molden stays healthy for a whole month. Just don't get your expectations too high for him. He reminds me an awful lot of Tim Jennings.

Fred Bennett

Most physically talented Texans cornerback? Probably Fred Bennett. If you asked me to pick one Texans CB to check Randy Moss or Reggie Wayne one-on-one, Bennett is my pick. Unfortunately, due to his lack of focus, mental mistakes, and complete inability to play a decent zone, Bennett was so deep in Frank Bush's doghouse that he actually found diagrams for elaborate blitzes.

I look at Fred Bennett and I see a player with NFL talent that could be spotted in more ideal situations than he's had here (more man-to-man) and become more productive because of it. He's probably not going to suddenly go back to what he was after everyone was declaring him the next Christ of cornerbacks after 2007, but I think there's a solid chance he winds up as a guy that bounces from team-to-team and plays a steady but unimpressive role on the edge. The Walt Harris of the 2010's. It probably won't be with the Texans.

(F*** it, I'm) Going Deep

Antwuan Molden - A rare high-round misfire by the Smithiak regime, Molden spent most of last year being hurt. When he was healthy in 2008, he didn't exactly seize playing time away from anyone either. His saving grace comes in two forms--he was terrific on special teams in 2008 and the non-starters ahead of him on the depth chart have their own warts. This is the make-or-break year for him.

Mark Parson - He showed decent coverage skills in the little preseason action I caught of him. Probably a rung higher than your average practice squad fodder. Parson looks like someone who you could do worse than, which is a decent use of your squad spot.

SAFETIES

Bernard Pollard

Pollard wasn't quite as good as he looked in coverage--his interceptions generally were fluky and his zone coverage was pretty limited as well. Of course, that's not to say that he didn't have a huge impact on the defense by knocking the piss out of everyone he saw up front. He wasn't quite DeMeco Ryans good, and he can take poor angles at times, but his contain and instincts were crucial in the Texans cutting down on the amount of successful edge runs against them. He was also excellent at not biting on the play fake.

There is no denying that he changed the calculus this year, but I think he got a little too much credit for this. I'm not denying he was very good for the Texans, I just think his effect on the defense was more of a tipping point than him being a dominant force of nature. Think of the Texans defense on a seesaw: one side has Mario Williams, Brian Cushing, and DeMeco. The other side had John Busing, Dunta, and Frank Bush's zone schemes. When Busing stepped off the bad side and Pollard stepped on the good side, it tilted the Texans from a mediocre defense to a solid one. When Eugene Wilson went down and Busing stepped back on, the defense went right back to mediocrity until Dominique Barber took snaps from Busing. Just because Pollard was the one who tipped the scales doesn't mean he should be given extra credit. It could have been any solid player, is all I'm saying.

Still one year removed from being dreadful for the Chiefs, I'm loathe to hand him a long-term extension for the reasons above. I want to see last year's form repeated before I'm comfortable handing him a big deal, both due to the play for the Chiefs and the character concerns. I'd slap the second round tender on him and give him a prove-it year.

Eugene Wilson

Wilson is clearly the best cover man on the Texans, and losing him down the stretch was a exploitable problem for the Texans as they went 0-3 against their AFC South brethren while Busing tried to find a spot 50 yards downfield where he wouldn't be a problem at. Wilson played inspired football and I thought he more than justified his re-signing with his play, which is something I thought would be more of a problem this year after last year's Will Demps debacle (hey, I found a Pro Bowler just as undeserving as VY!)

On the other hand, he didn't stay healthy enough to keep Busing off the field in the first place. He also has one of the highest cap figures on the 2010 Texans at $3,705,000 and cutting him to get out of the signing bonus push might be a decent move by a proactive front office if it thinks Dominique Barber can be an answer, especially since he's now pushing 30. I expect the Texans to play it safe here after they spend their self-evaluation watching Busing highlights.

Dominique Barber

Barber showed some decent intermediate coverage skills, particularly after the staff got tired of watching Busing get destroyed on a play-to-play basis. He doesn't have the deep speed to catch up with someone running past him, and while his run defense isn't as bad as spelled out by PFF, he does go for the big hit way too much.

To me, Barber is about what Shaun Cody was to the defensive line, except younger. There are weaknesses, and he's probably not good enough to be an every week starter without being exposed. Still, a fine backup safety and someone who has a place in the NFL. He'll only be 24 next year though, so he still has some time to shake these labels. He's definitely a better fit at free safety.

John Busing

This was right up there with the ugliest seasons in Texans history. Busing couldn't cover anybody, to the point where the Texans defensive scheme often featured him dropping back into Galveston on every play. Busing also set out to turn poor run support into an art form. While other Texans made mistakes in containment, Busing set the bar, tripped over it, then watched running backs go past him without even a customary Matt Stevens flailing of the arms.

Busing is purely a special teamer. A special teamer with no value on defense as a backup is someone who doesn't often hold a job long. Ergo, expect John Busing to surface in the UFL next year if he plays at all. If he suits up again for the Texans defense, it's time to get a prescription for codeine.

(F*** it, I'm) Going Deep

Nick Ferguson - Here is my chart for Nick Ferguson last year:

Brian Russell - When people from other fanbases openly take pity on yours for signing someone, it might be a good idea to immediately release the player and pretend this never happened. The scary part? He outplayed John Busing.

Troy Nolan - Last year's 7th rounder, who went on IR during training camp. It's a rare 7th rounder who can overcome spending the whole first year hurt. Let's just say he's fighting "Lions in the Super Bowl" odds to be relevant again and leave it at that.

Bonus if you made it to the end: Would you like to see a Special Teams breakdown? I can do it, I just don't want to put the effort into it if it's just going to be a 10 comment thread that consists of "Kris Brown sucks" repeated over and over again.

Super Bowl: Open Thread

2010-02-07T20:47:14Z

Judging from the poll, it appears the BRB community is split nearly down the middle when it comes to today's big game. Consider this your open thread for sharing your thoughts about all things Super Bowl XLIV as we complete the interminable creep toward kickoff.

If you're interested in reading what other, non-Texans fans might have to say, SB Nation has a mega thread here open to fans from all over the place. And, of course, head on over to Stampede Blue and Canal Street Chronicles to check out what fans of the Colts and Saints are thinking as their squads compete for the title.

Have at it in the Comments. Even if you're at a Super Bowl party, we've got mobile commenting. Here's to a great game.

Super Bowl Prediction Thread

2010-02-06T05:03:18Z

I'm told there's a football game on Sunday. It doesn't involve your Houston Texans, so forgive me for downplaying it. Consider this your official prediction thread for the Super Bowl. I'll get it going...my head says there's no way Peyton Manning allows the Colts to lose, but I'm rooting for the Saints. As you all know, I've never been accused of leading with my head. Saints 27, Colts 24.

Your turn: Let us know who you believe will emerge as champion of the universe on Sunday night via the poll, and then put your name on it (e.g., call the final score, MVP, and any other items of note) in the Comments below.

Poll

The winner of Super Bowl XLIV shall be:

Colts

168 votes

Saints

168 votes

336 votes | Poll has closed

Will Steve Slaton Be In The Picture in 2010?

2010-02-05T14:29:20Z

If this news is accurate, would you be okay with taking a RB in the earlier rounds of the draft?

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After a nightmare of a sophomore season that ended with an IR trip for Texans RB Steve Slaton, there are now whispers that he may not be in the picture at all for the 2010 season.

Slaton recently underwent a discectomy to relieve pressure on the nerve root that was causing a problem in his spine. The Texans brass said the surgery went well and that recovery will take from four to six months. Head Coach Gary Kubiak said the prognosis of Slaton is good, and he will avoid contact until training camp.

But John McClain from the Houston Chronicle is thinking there may be more to it than that. He went into more detail on the surgery in explaining that the herniated/ruptured disc had to be removed and a bone graft was placed in the resulting space (as a spacer), so that the peripheral nerves coming out of this space are no longer compressed. Yes, a four to six month resting period is required for proper healing.

But that is just part of it. After the healing period, numbness, pain and weakness, due to nerve damage from the previous nerve compression, may take months and months, easily a year or more in some cases, to resolve. And sometimes they don't resolve at all. The prognosis for nerve regeneration is directly related to the length of time the nerve is allowed to be significantly traumatized before a decompression procedure is performed. The greater the length of time, the greater the risk of irreversible nerve damage. And Slaton is rumored to have played most of the 2009 season with this injury.

It's a long way until September, but it may be smart to start looking for Steve Slaton's replacement sooner, rather than later.

Official 2010 NFL Scouting Combine Invitation List

2010-02-03T01:50:25Z

Official 2010 NFL Scouting Combine Invitation List

Mocking Dan over at Mocking The Draft, SB Nation's site for all things NFL Draft year round, posted the list of participants for this year's cattle show otherwise known as the Combine. For those of you who haven't checked out the site before, you should as Dan does a great job.

Gary Kubiak Officially Signs Extension To Remain Head Coach Of Houston Texans

2010-02-02T23:43:12Z

Although head coaching contracts are generally not worth the paper they're written on, Bob McNair moved from "close" to "done" in terms of officially extending Gary Kubiak's deal as head coach of your Houston Texans today. Interestingly, word is that Kubes actually left a year (and therefore money) on the table, opting for solidarity with his staff by making 2012, not 2013, the end of his new deal.

Comradery? Loyalty? Or is Kubes relying on a shadowy network of Mayan contacts who have assured him the world is in fact coming to an end on December 21, 2012, thus rendering a deal for 2013 utterly useless?

Shine on in the Comments below, BRB. Your thoughts on this development?

Bob McNair "Close" To Extending Gary Kubiak

2010-02-02T03:28:17Z

More photos » Stephen Morton - AP

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Houston Texans owner Bob McNair is close to completing a contract extension for Head Coach Gary Kubiak. Kubiak is currently slated to coach the last year of his initial five season, $10 million contract in 2010, but McNair stated that Kubes will be extended through at least 2013, or "maybe even longer."

All Texans assistant coaches will soon be locked into their positions through 2012, which is not the norm in the NFL as it prepares for a possible lockout in 2011. Critics might also wonder why McNair has chosen to allocate more time and money to a coach that has failed to make the postseason and has obtained a winning season only once.

I've stated my resounding support for Kubiak before, so I won't make this post about my opinions. Rather, I'd like to hear yours. In Tim's opinion polls regarding Kubiak, a clear majority of readers on this blog stated their desire to see Kubiak on the sidelines in 2010, but what about this added commitment? Is it a good move?

Poll

Is extending Gary Kubiak through 2013 the right move in your opinion?

Matt Schaub Named 2010 Pro Bowl MVP

2010-02-01T04:09:46Z

Matt Schaub Named 2010 Pro Bowl MVP

After a 13 for 17 performance good for 189 yards and two touchdowns, Houston Texans' QB was named the MVP of the Pro Bowl. Not bad for his first trip. David Garrard and Vince Young were close, I'm sure.

2009 in Review: Linebackers

2010-01-29T14:43:58Z

More photos » Hans Deryk - AP

about 1 month ago: Houston Texans linebacker Brian Cushing (56) intercepts a pass intended for Miami Dolphins running back Ricky Williams, left, in the second quarter during an NFL football game in Miami, Sunday, Dec. 27, 2009. (AP Photo/Hans Deryk)

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Hit the jump if you're familiar with the series because the next couple of lines are review.

DeMeco Ryans

Ryans is a run-stopping linebacker, at least against everyone except Maurice Jones-Drew. Very much an east-west guy. Until this year, the Texans had a lot of problems stuffing the run to the outside because they simply didn't have anyone who could catch up on sweeps and be a reliable tackler asides from Ryans. Adding Brian Cushing helped him play more to his strengths. He's got great instincts on run plays and wasn't fooled too often on play-action.

Weaknesses? Ryans isn't much of a pass rusher. He's not awful, but he got blocked by a few running backs over the course of the year. Additionally, while he's solid in the underneath zone, he can't run with a tight end deep, as Vernon Davis taught us this year. That's more on Frank Bush and the Red Carpet Zone (TM) than DeMeco though, and it's hard to exploit either of those weaknesses.

Pay the man, Rick.

Brian Cushing

Cushing didn't just play up to expectations; he destroyed them. As much Bush bashing as you'll see from me, if he was truly the one who zeroed in on Cushing, he should be given a head scouting role no matter what success or lack thereof he has as defensive coordinator. Cushing doesn't have elite timed speed, and while he gets a good jump off the snap, he's not winning any sprints. His success is a testament to superb instincts. Three of his four interceptions were on tips, and while he shouldn't be covering Dallas Clark one-on-one again any time soon without a bump, he was acceptable in pass coverage for the most part. He's probably not as good in a zone as DeMeco.

Against the run, what more can you say? He was a force to be reckoned with. He sheds pulling guards like they're Roscoe Parrish. He takes terrific angles and hits holes before the running back. He's a stellar blitzer, although he's not fast enough to go around the edge very often.

This was the happiest I have ever been to be so wrong about a draft pick.

Zac Diles

Diles has brought more to the table than he's taken away, alhough by no means would I lump him in as a good or even solid linebacker. Unlike Ryans and Cushing, Diles isn't a very solid tackler, and he makes a few arm whiffs a year to go along with taking some questionable routes. His strength is that he's good north-and-south and has a good motor, so he often catches up to guys after they cut downfield to prevent a positive play from becoming a catastrophic one.

He's not quite as good in coverage as that PFF rating, but he's the best zone linebacker on the team. When you take the overall package here, you have Bernard Pollard with about 30% worse tackling and 20% worse coverage, except he's playing linebacker. It's good enough to get by, but in an ideal scenario he's the first guy off the bench.

Diles is a successful late round pick, unlike Kasey Studdard, who thus far has not been a successful late round pick as I've heard some say. Diles can be on the field without being a huge weak spot. That doesn't mean this isn't an area the Texans shouldn't look to upgrade.

(F*** It, I'm) Going Deep

Xavier Adibi - Adibi played 293 snaps in 2008 and 31 this year. While he's not as bad in run support as PFF (-4.7 in 08, -2.4 in 09) thinks he is, I do think he may be too undersized to be more than a nickel LB. At least he'll always have that fourth down stop in Jacksonville.

Kevin Bentley - Stellar special teamer, decent backup linebacker, good use of a roster spot.

Marcus Freeman - Fifth rounder from Ohio State last year, mock drafts had him much higher, but injuries and size concerns dropped him to the Bears in the fifth. The Bears released him in training camp, the Bills had him on the practice squad for a few weeks, and the Texans later hid him on their practice squad. I'd be more optimistic about his chances but for two reasons: 1) The Bears gave up on him, and they know a thing or two about good linebacking, and 2) The Texans already have someone in this profile in Adibi, and they barely gave him a shot. Why would they give Freeman one?

Darnell Bing - When you've been trying to convert from safety to linebacker for four years, you might be a practice squader.

Khary Campbell - Purely a special teamer. Spent the majority of this year hurt. Sort of old. With these three traits, it wouldn't surprise me if the Texans told him to Khary his things out of the locker room. Or perhaps they will just Khary on.

Chaun Thompson - Another mostly special teamer, Thompson looked like a decent pickup but has yet to really show much of anything. Thompson and Campbell may be fighting for one roster spot.

Toddrick Verdell - If your Texans.com biography loads a blank page, you might be a practice squader.

2010 Senior Bowl Practice Report: Day Three

2010-01-28T04:14:54Z

More photos » Dave Martin - AP

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Today was the last day of practice in full pads for the members of the 2010 Senior Bowl. Some new members joined the group to fill in for injured players, and these players quickly joined the original participants in an effort to impress coaches and scouts in attendance. Today was the last time before the Senior Bowl itself for players to show these evaluators how they play in pads until their individual pro days.

Among those scouts in attendance were representatives of your Houston Texans, including Gary Kubiak. One draftnik witnessed some Texans scouts talking to Idaho guard Mike Iupati, Vanderbilt offensive tackle Thomas Welch, and Fresno State running back Lonyae Miller. Before you get too excited or upset at the notion that Texans evaluators seem to be taking an interest in offensive players, keep in mind that the Smithiak administration usually plays their draft cards pretty close to their vest; both Brian Cushing and Connor Barwin claimed to receive no special attention from the Texans prior to the draft last year.

For note on individual performances today, follow the jump.

Late Edit: As I stated above, Will Spencer of Draft Breakdown reported that Texans evaluators were seen talking to Mike Iupati, Thomas Welch and Lonyae Miller. As TexansDC pointed out in the comments, Drew Dougherty of the Texans official web site just published a report of practices at the Senior Bowl and players that have impressed so far. Intriguingly, Iupati and Miller were both listed in the report along with Dan Williams, Cam Thomas, Dexter McCluster, Perrish Cox, Anthony Dixon, Tyson Aluala and Taylor Mays.

This could all be coincidence, but it is interesting. Those players are not the only players impressing at the Senior Bowl, in fact a few of them such as Dixon and Aluala, have been rarely mentioned in practice reports on other sites. Would it be outside the realm of possibility to assume that Dougherty, who works for the Texans organization and therefore has a great deal of access to the coaches, observed which players had caught the Texans scouts' eyes, spent most of his time watching them in practice and then used them as the centerpiece of his practice report? Dougherty even went as far as to ask Cox, who is a Waco native, what he thought about playing for the Texans.

All of this isn't very scientific, but considering how little was reported by the Chronicle or anyone for that matter on who the Texans were targeting last year for the draft, I'm willing to grasp at straws a little. If anything, it might show the positions and type of players they are interested in, i.e., big defensive tackles such as Williams and Thomas or big bodied running backs like Dixon and Miller.

North

- LeGarrette Blount (OREG) ran well today, showing his ability to run between the tackles as a one-cut runner. The one area in which he continues to show deficiencies in is running pass routes.

- Matt Tennant (BC) showed flashes of quality play today while taking reps at center. Yesterday, Tennant was beaten a couple of times while playing guard, but he went a decent way to erasing that from memory by stuffing defensive tackles in the middle.

- Chris Cook (UVA) had a good day in coverage. At 6'2", 204 lbs., evaluators are in disagreement whether Cook is better suited as a cornerback or safety in the NFL. Cook did pick off an errant pass while in press coverage, something not easily done by most safeties.

- Jacoby Ford (Clem) had a very good day, finally showing the speed that he is known for. He twice beat Kyle Wilson (BSU), once on a go route, and he was wide open on a crossing pattern during team drills. Ford will likely run extremely well at the combine considering his track background, and he made a case today that he has the receiving skills to go along with his impressive speed.

- Mike Iupati (Idaho) had another strong day in "the pit"--the defensive line vs. offensive line one-on-one drills. As a guard, he is showing he deserves to be the first off the board. He was also played some at right tackle today, and while he didn't look as out of place as he did at left tackle, it was still obvious that he isn't used to playing in space.

- Offensive tackle Ed Wang (VT) and guard Shawn Lauvao (ASU) have been continuously beaten in the pit during both days of full pad practices. Lauvao got completely run over by Alex Carrington (Arkansas St.) on a defensive stunt.

- Brandon Graham had another strong day, strengthening the growing feeling that he might have a shot to be drafted in the first round. He did, however, lose containment during the team drills on a bootleg play. Jared Odrick (PSU) also continued his good play and received praise for his penetration during the pit drills.

- There seems to be mixed feelings on linebacker Darryl Washington (TCU). Some analysts such as Mike Mayock think that he is a prototypical WLB in a 4-3 because of his sideline-to-sideline speed, while others feel he is too small and lacks physicality in his play.

- Ed Dickson (OREG) had a phenomenal day by running crisp routes, showing good speed, and catching everything thrown his way. The question for Dickson now will be can he play as a complete tight end by blocking.

- SYd'Quan Thompson (CAL) is another divisive player amongst analysts. This is because he looks out of place in one-on-one drills, but looks good in seven-on-seven and team drills. Thompson lacks the speed to keep up with speedy vertical threats, but plays the run and underneath routes very well with aggressiveness and decisiveness.

- Taylor Price (Ohio) and Mardy Gilyard (CIN) both had good days running routes and catching the ball. Gilyard's speed is unmatched among North receivers, while Price has shown the best hands.

South

- Perrish Cox (OK St.) intercepted two passes within four plays today, both of them reportedly tough plays. These ball skills will undoubtedly cause his stock to rise.

- Taylor Mays (USC) had another rough day in coverage. Mays seems to be more suited to make big hits over the middle rather than breaking up passes.

- Ben Tate (AUB) ran well today and performed well in pass protection.

- Myron Rolle (FSU) is still shaking off the rust that came from a year away from football while at Oxford as a Rhodes Scholar. Rolle is not a ball hawk as shown by his low interception totals, but he is in incredible shape and you know he is intelligent.

- I continue to be impressed by Nate Allen (USF). He holds up better in one-on-one coverage against receivers than expected of a safety, but sometimes fails to turn his head an locate the ball when he is in position to break up a pass.

- Shay Hodge (Ole Miss) did much better than the previous two days in getting off press coverage and making solid catches. Hodge is a big body receiver and can improve his stock greatly during the game and at the combine.

- Riley Cooper (UF) seems to be the best receiver on the South at beating jams at the line and beating coverage with physical play. He still shows inconsistency with his hands.

I apologize for a lack of reporting on the South practice, but the practice was delayed, so the first 45 minutes of the hour coverage on NFLN consisted of watching players warm up. I should have better notes for tomorrow's practice.

2010 Senior Bowl Practice Report: Day Two

2010-01-27T00:50:03Z

More photos » Dave Martin - AP

Browse more photos »

Day two has come and gone for the practices prior to the 2010 Senior Bowl. Television coverage of the event was dominated by the Tim Tebow Show today, which is understandable if not frustrating. I understand that NFLN is trying to expand their viewership of all pre-draft events and therefore feels it is necessary to show the most popular college player invited to Mobile, but it's aggravating to see so much focus on a player who has very little chance of cracking the first two rounds of the draft.

In my practice breakdown, you'll see an absence of notes on both running backs and linebackers. This is because during coverage of the practices, NFLN usually shows pass rushing drills involving the offensive and defensive lines and pass drills with wide receivers, defensive backs and quarterbacks. If anyone has questions about specific players feel free to leave them in the comments and I'll try to relate what I've seen so far or I'll try to keep an eye out in future practices. Enough talk. Follow the jump to see the notes.

South

- Taylor Mays (S - USC) didn't have a great day. He did do a good job separating from a blocking wide receiver during a stalk block drill to pursue the trailing ball carrier, but later was burnt in both press and soft coverage at least three times that were shown. It's a little unfair to grade him in man-to-man coverage given that he's a safety, but it was still disconcerting to see how awkward he looked on an island.

- Dexter McCluster (RB/WR - Ole Miss) had another spectacular day and his stock is rising considerably. Following a dominant rushing performance in the Cotton Bowl, McCluster showed off receiving skills today. He easily defeated press coverage a couple of times on both a slant route and a vertical route on a double move followed by a diving catch.

- Nate Allen (S - South Florida) had an impressive day in coverage. Despite playing in man coverage on receivers, he more than held his own.

- Patrick Robinson (CB - FSU) had a good day as well. Robinson reacted well in both soft and press coverage, although he looked lacking during the stalk block drill which requires the defensive back to shed the wide receiver block and get to the ball carrier. Mayock thinks Robinson has the quickest feet of any CB in the draft.

- Parrish Cox (CB - OKSU) looks good but a tad bit inconsistent. He looked weak in the stalk block drill and on one of his routes, but then looked great covering the speedy McCluster on a flat route which should have favored the scat back.

- Terrance Cody (DT - Bama) had a better day than the weigh-in disaster yesterday, but still not great. He did a good job of collapsing the pocket in one-on-one drills, but in the two O linemen vs. one D lineman drill, which is designed to test a DT's ability to hold the point of attack and keep both blockers on the line away from linebackers, Cody allowed a free release every time.

- Dan Williams (DT - Tenn) looks like a great two-gap DT. During pass rushing drills he collapses the pocket with ease and excelled during 2 on 1 drills. Mayock pointed out that Williams gained 17 pounds in the last year, which makes me wonder how much more weight he could put on his frame.

- Jeff Byers (G - USC) shows great interior line blocking ability. In every pass rushing drill shown involving Byers he did a great job using his hands and then finishing blocks by knocking rushers to the ground.

North

- Kyle Wilson (CB - BSU) continues to impress during practice. He showed great ability in press coverage several times. Mayock led the program by stating Wilson was the most impressive from day one, and shared that he received several texts from friends who were scouts that admitted Mayock was probably right in assigning a first round grade to Wilson.

- Taylor Price (WR - Ohio) is showing that he belongs with the prospects from bigger schools. He doesn't look like he's a blazer, but he has shown decent speed, good size and phenomenal hands thus far. He looks like he could be a sneaky later round pick as a possession receiver for the next level.

- Mardy Gilliard (WR - CIN) had a much better day and there was not a single DB that could jam him at the line. He is extremely quick but his lack of size is concerning.

- Syd'Quan Thompson (CB - CAL) is getting exposed as a slower corner. Gilliard absolutely burnt him on a vertical route that wasn't even close. Thompson is known as an aggressive, run-supporting corner, but his lack of speed could drop his stock considerably.

- Mike Iupati (G - Idaho) is justifying the rating as the best interior lineman in the draft. He is physical and nasty while playing on the inside, but today he took reps at left tackle and looked out of place. He doesn't necessarily lack the physical skills to play on the outside; it's just something that he's never done before. If teams feel he could fill in on the outside in case of injury, his stock would rise even higher.

- Vladimir Ducasse (T/G - UMass) continued to struggle against prospects from bigger schools today. Ducasse has amazing physical attributes, but he will need time to develop skills and get used to the speed at the higher level.

- Brandon Graham (DE/OLB - Mich) is the best performing defensive player for the North thus far. He has a great mixture of speed and strength and will likely be an outside linebacker in a 3-4 in the NFL.

- Camp Thomas (DT - UNC) is a two-gap defensive tackle who shows no ability to rush the passer. He might be good at holding the point of attack, but has shown little ability to collapse the pocket.

- Jared Odrick (DT - PSU) has been playing well in one on one rush drills. Odrick will likely be a one gap penetrator in a 4-3 or five technique in a 3-4 at the next level. All the same, he has shown good burst off the line.

- Jacoby Ford (WR - Clem) is lowering his stock so far. Ford is an NCAA track champion but lacks that kind of speed in pads. Ford will likely wow at the Combine, but he has not fared well in full pads.

That's it for today. Check back tomorrow for notes after the last day of practice in full pads. Once again, if you have any specific players you are curious about leave it in the comments.

Greg Knapp Hired As QB Coach

2010-01-26T23:59:02Z

Greg Knapp Hired As QB Coach

He did work with Matt Schaub in Atlanta. That's something, right?

2009 in Review: Defensive Line

2010-01-26T23:45:31Z

More photos » David J. Phillip - AP

Houston Texans defensive end Mario Williams (90) is held by teammates Connor Barwin (98) and DeMeco Ryans, rear, after sacking New England Patriots quarterback Tom Brady during the fourth quarter of an NFL football game Sunday, Jan. 3, 2010, in Houston. They were hardly the first people to hold him in this season. (AP Photo/David J. Phillip)

Browse more photos »

Hit the jump if you're familiar with the series because the next couple of lines are review.

While with the offensive line FO stats you have a clear-cut placement of credit, the defensive line stats are much more subjective. The improvement in the Texans run defense, especially after Week 3, was obvious. How much of that you want to put on the defensive line and how much of it you want to put on Brian Cushing and Bernard Pollard is the real question. I think that the Texans' run defense improvement was a confluence of factors: Mario Williams became a more complete defensive end by improving against the run, Pollard was a huge upgrade over John Busing in containment, Cushing was a complete beast after some acclimation time, and while Antonio Smith was not a plus run defender, he was much better than the corpse that was Anthony Weaver.

Despite blitzing more often than Richard Smith with better pass rush personnel, defensive coordinator Frank Bush didn't get much improvement in pass pressure. Some of this came from an abnormal amount of missed sacks, but the blitz schemes couldn't have been more transparent if Bush's microphone were directly linked to the opposing QB's helmet radio. I charted somewhere in the neighborhood of 12-15 zone blitzes this year, and all but one or two of them were effective. But instead of trying to cause confusion and havoc by using these more often, Bush all too often would send DeMeco Ryans or Cushing off the edge or up the middle and call it a day. There have been enough words spilled over Bush's merits for one season, so I won't focus too hard on this for the time being, but if I had to come up with three question marks for next years Texans team, his playcalling would make that list.

Mario Williams

Texans fans often feel forced to justify Williams' existence, and while he did not have the usual number of sacks, he completely turned around the meme that he was poor in run support this year. Despite being the target of popular big time announcers who enjoy big time plays by big time players, Williams showed more heart than any Texan on the entire team last year by suiting up and finding a way to be effective on one arm. It's easy to focus the Williams talk on how good he is and how much better than Reggie Bust and Multiple Pro Bowler Vince Young he has been, but for nutting up this year while hurt, Williams should be lionized more for his pain threshold and leadership then for his raw talent.

Williams' burst off the line came and went this year, which is a good sign for his future success in my eyes, since the injury seems to coincide rather nicely with the effect. Williams was good all over the line in run support, but he developed this nasty outside spin that ruined a few edge pitches, and I think that's where he does his best work.

Obviously, Williams is the franchise's best defensive player ever. If he manages to get healthy and provide last year's run support with his previous levels of sackage, it could be an improvement that takes the pass rush to the next level all by itself. Crappy play-calling be damned.

Antonio Smith

Smith is nowhere near as bad against the run as that PFF rating in my eyes. He's not a positive influence, no, but he's not nearly -15 bad. He might be a true talent 0 to -5 player against the run. Another driving force on that -10.7 rating is the insane number of penalties he picked up this year. Thankfully, compared to last year, that amount looks like it has some fluke in it.

Rushing the passer, Smith was a fine second banana to Williams. His only problem was finishing his pressures; he probably had 4 or 5 separate plays where he got a hand on the QB while the ball was coming out. He won't go out and dominate a Joe Thomas or anything, but against a normal second tackle, he'll have success.

Devil's Advocate: Given the relatively poor year, the fact that the Texans definitely overpaid to get him in the first place, the rather strong class of older defensive ends, and the fact that the Texans could cut him now with no salary cap ramifications if there is no CBA, one could make a case that it makes sense to cut Smith this offseason. I'm not saying the Texans will do that, or probably even dream of doing it, it would just be an interesting use of market forces. Particularly since Connor Barwin is in the fold anyway should things not work out.

Amobi Okoye

Here is your enigma. The hardest player on the team to evaluate by far. Unlike the Smith run defense rating, I don't think -10.9 is too far off on Okoye. He'll occupy a blocker, but he doesn't often beat his man or cause a cascade with a great move. On the other hand, I think he's about a +5 true talent pass rusher. But the split on that has to be something like +15 against bad guards/centers and 0 against good ones. To make a baseball comparison, saying Okoye is a good pass rusher is like saying Juan Pierre is a good hitter--he's above average, but there's a lot under the surface that makes that .300 look worse than it is.

The flashes and talent are always there with Okoye. He can look absolutely dominant for a series, a quarter, even a half. Then he can spend the next 15 plays adding absolutely nothing to the defense. I advocate patience with him, because he is still incredibly young, but this is an enormous year for him. Playing aside a nose tackle who demands a double team would be a good start for helping him out, but another thing that the Texans might want to look into is cutting his snaps. He seems to tire easily subjectively, and I think it might be a nice wakeup call to say "Hey, we love you and all, but we want performance out there, not promise."

Shaun Cody

Well, that worked out just about like it was supposed to. Cody was, as he has been for most of his career, just another guy. He can occupy a blocker, but he's not often going to do anything to beat said blocker. There is no untapped upside left, and while guys like him have a deserved place in the NFL, Cody is an injury-fill in on a good defense.

To turn around a King Of The Hill phrase, Shaun Cody is a great defensive tackle for housewives and little girls playing barbecue, but you can't compare him to a real NFL nose tackle.

Connor Barwin

Barwin's progression was pretty much what you'd expect for someone who'd played just one year of defensive end in college: downright ugly in the first couple of games, but he was a solid contributor from then on, albeit one who made some mental mistakes. I don't think he's average against the run yet, but he's already the second best pass rusher of this lot. Like most of the Texans rookies, expect Barwin to benefit from a full year of OTAs and training camp.

The long-term future is somewhat more up in the air. I'm not sure the coaches will let him overtake Smith, and I'm also not sure he'll be able to stick at linebacker for more than a few gimmick sets. He looked lost the few times I saw him have to play coverage. I'm hoping he gets more snaps this year, but there isn't a clear answer to where they come as long as Smith is on the team. Perhaps to run with my Okoye idea, the Texans can run some more sets with Smith kicked inside and Barwin at his end spot.

Jeff Zgonina

I have backspaced about a hundred clever ways to say "Jeff Zgonina is a nice guy, I'm sure, and he tries hard, but he's old and not that good at football anymore", some of which have involved poop jokes and the word "grit". I have no objection to Zgonina being on the team or in training camp, but let's call his snaps what they really are: a cry for help.

The fact that a geriatric could put up a -1.1 run rating screams fluke at me from every angle. He had some good fumble luck, including the one that sealed the win over the BESFs in Week 2. I think he's a true talent -10 tackle, about on par with Cody. As much as I admire the story, I also admire having talented players on the defensive line.

Tim Bulman

Bulman is the Chris White of the defensive line, and I don't mean to imply that he regularly soils himself by that. He's a penalty-prone player who does a decent job on passing downs and is probably worth keeping around as a change of pace as long as he stays cheap. At the same time, there isn't much upside here, and he's already nearing 30.

Bulman is never going to be much more than he is now, but when we here at BRB are listing defensive linemen from the old days in 2018, people will think about him and say "Yeah, I guess he was okay. He was no Junior Ioane."

DelJuan Robinson

Sort of puzzling to see him buried on this line for Cody, given I don't think there is much of a difference between the two of them. Robinson wasn't +8.2 against the run good in 2008, but he played decently in limited time. I'm not quite sure that he's anything more than an average run stopper, so there will be no rebellion against the Kubiak regime for this mass injustice, but it was odd that he went so far into the doghouse.

At any rate, not the kind of nose tackle worth losing sleep over. I think it's pretty neat that he managed to grade out as almost perfectly average on PFF, minus the penalties.

(F*** It, I'm) Going Deep

Tim Jamison - For whatever reason, I really like this guy. I think he's got some Bulman in him. All the small sample size stats say he's not worth much, but I must have caught the two or three plays where he got decent pass pressure.

Jesse Nading - Good news for him is that Darren McFadden's career is so far down the drain there's a possibility that he may yet get revenge on him in the UFL.

Frank Okam - Too busy wiping out global hunger to care about this "football" you speak of.

Pannel Egboh - Sounds like a breakfast accident.

Checking the Pulse 1/26 - What Position Should the Texans Target in the 1st Round?

2010-01-26T19:43:09Z

I know, I know. 15 yard penalty for premature prognostibation.

Lots of talk. Lots of faves. Lots of opinion. Even more beer.

All things considered equal....if we don't go for the best available talent...if we don't make a deal...if we are drafting in a complete and total vacuum...what position would you like your Houston Texans to target with our first round pick?

Poll

What position would you like to see targeted with the Texans 1st round pick in the 2010 draft?

2010 Draft Thread Depository

2010-01-26T16:15:23Z

The purpose of this thread is to act as a sticky repository for 2010 draft talk. We'll try to use this as a one-stop shop for 2010 main page draft talk. Definitely please continue to post FanShots, etc.

2010 Senior Bowl Reports

Draft Talk Open Threads

Draft Polls

01/26/2010 Poll

We'll start posting at least weekly open threads in addition to the Senior Bowl Reports, etc.

Please let me know what other suggestions you have on how to handle these.

2010 Senior Bowl Practice Report: Day One

2010-01-26T03:21:48Z

View full size photo »

With only the Pro Bowl and Super Bowl left of the 2009 NFL season, the unofficial 2010 NFL Draft season has begun. The first premier event of the season, the Senior Bowl in Mobile, Alabama, kicked off today with the first day of practice. Today's practice was held in pads and shorts, whereas Tuesday's and Wednesday's will be in full pads, followed by another light practice on Thursday and the actual game on Saturday.

The Senior Bowl is often overshadowed by the Scouting Combine in Indianapolis, where players are treated like lab rats as their physical abilities are measured with exercises such as the 40 yard dash. The Senior Bowl, however, is the only chance for NFL scouts to see draft prospects compete in football activities. Unfortunately though, as the name suggests, only graduating seniors are invited to participate in the event, which leaves underclassmen out of the spotlight, despite underclassmen constituting the majority of the early round talent this year.

There will be a variety of outlets covering the Senior Bowl this week. First of all, NFL Network will be showing the parts of the practices live Tuesday through Thursday, and will air the game live at 4:00 EST on Saturday. Various draft sites will be covering the event daily, including SB Nation's own Mocking The Draft, which is one of the best blogs on this network. For those of you that don't have the time or subscriptions to some of the sites, I will be compiling as much of what I see from the perspective of the Houston Texans.

First I should establish what I feel are the immediate needs, i.e., positions targeted in rounds 1-3, of the Texans. I know that you can always improve any squad including Matt Schaub's offense, but my top three positions of need are all on the defensive side of the ball. Dunta Robinson was embarrassed early and often as cornerback #1, the depth at free safety was abysmal behind Eugene Wilson who was injured again, and the Texans have never had a big, space eating defensive tackle since they switched to a 4-3 in 2006.

Out of all of the "Draft Experts", I respect NFL Network's Mike Mayock the most. Mayock, who is on the team of analysts covering the event for NFLN, posted his top five at each position today. Here are the top five for three positions I detailed earlier:

1. Joe Haden - UF

2. Kyle Wilson - BSU

3. Parrish Cox - OKST

4. Patrick Robinson - FSU

5. Devin McCourty - RUT

1. Eric Berry - TENN

2. Taylor Mays - USC

3. Earl Thomas - UT

4. Larry Asante - NEB

5. Chad Jones - LSU

1. Gerald McCoy - OU

2. Ndamukong Suh - NEB

3. Jared Odrick - PSU

4. Dan Williams - TENN

5. Lamarr Houston - UT

For details on the practices today, continue after the jump.

- Kyle Wilson, the CB from Boise State, was the biggest standout of the day. During the CB vs. WR drill, Wilson undercut an out route for an interception on his first rep and was an offensive pass interference away from another on a nine route. Wilson was a premier punt returner in college, which means he is dangerous after an interception.

- Mays made the hit of the day on Citadel WR Andre Roberts, but missed an easy interception a few plays later when going for another hit. This highlights Mayock's stated concern of lack of interceptions (five over his career).

- Terrance Cody, in an homage to former teammate Andre Smith, showed up grossly overweight. NFLN pointed out that he had difficulties even setting up in his stance before the snap.

- Dan Williams had a good day stuffing the run, at least as good as possible without full pads. He didn't do well in pass rushing drills, however, which is a drill designed to favor the defensive player. I'm not particularly concerned if the DT Rick Smith drafts is an elite pass rusher as long as he can stuff the middle, so this development might actually be beneficial.

- Myron Rolle is a popular story because of his year hiatus from football as a Rhodes Scholar at Oxford, but unfortunately that break has caused some rust. He has plenty of time before the Combine and his Pro Day, but even then he is considered more of a strong safety who lacks coverage skills. Probably not a consideration for the Texans.

- Wide receiver might not be high on the list of priorities, but it's worth noting that Ohio University's Taylor Price looked fantastic. He may not have elite speed and he played at a smaller school, but it looked like he had superglue on his hands.

- Offensive Guard Vladimir Ducasse will be under the microscope this week. Ducasse moved to the States from Haiti when he was 14 and has only played football for six years, but he has enough raw talent that Mayock compared him to Jeff Otah. On his first pass rush drill, the quicker O'Brien Schofield blew by him on the edge as Ducasse was playing LT. Before the analysts could even finish stating that Ducasse never saw speed like that at UMass, Ducasse went against Schofield again, anchored down and unfortunately injured Schofield when he fell on him. I mention all this because he is rated as a guard and could be a steal after the first couple of rounds.

That's pretty much the news worth printing from day one since it was a light day of practice. I'll post what is hopefully more news tomorrow.

January 2010 Approval Poll: Rick Smith

2010-01-25T15:34:23Z

Unless I'm motivated to do another, Rick Smith ends our approval poll marathon. Do you approve or disapprove of the job done by General Manager Rick Smith?

Poll

Do you approve or disapprove of General Manager Rick Smith's job performance?

Approve

376 votes

Disapprove

18 votes

Unsure

34 votes

428 votes | Poll has closed

Sticky!

2010-01-25T15:25:06Z

via fewtech.net

Hey, what's that on the left navigation bar way down there at the bottom? It looks a little...sticky. Ewwww.

That's right, sports fans, we've got the sticky thread jibe working for us now. We talked about possible stories/threads to add a couple weeks ago, and we'll start adding content over there. Because we can! That's why.

Open Thread: Conference Championship Weekend

2010-01-24T18:00:19Z

At 2 p.m. CST, we're treated to Jets-Colts, followed by Vikings-Saints at 5:40 p.m. CST. Who do you like?

Leave your thoughts on the four teams left battling for a berth in the Super Bowl in the Comments below. Should a random Texans-related rant enter your cranium, unburden yourself as you see fit.

Saturday Night Tunes

2010-01-23T23:59:01Z

via upload.wikimedia.org

Once upon a time, there was this blog (for the purposes of historical accuracy, let's call that blog: "bfd's Fantabulous Flying Circus and Circumcision Factory") that would routinely do a feature called "Saturday Night Tunes." We'd all curl up and do our hair and talk about the music we were listening to so we could discover new tunes.

And here we go! What are you listening to? A couple of big releases this week with RJD2's "The Colussus" and Spoon's "Transference" I had to jump on. What about you?