No where in my post did I say I was convinced the Texans are in love with Gurley... Pat Starr was on 790 (in the trenches) and he said the Texans like Gurley a lot. Take it for what it's worth. And O'Brien has been a run heavy coach since he's been a head coach going back to college and that's why I believe he would take Gurley over a WR... I believe Robinson (out of Penn St) and Moncrief are better. And all that kid Bryant does is catch TD's. I think Cooper is overrated and the best pro prospect WR in college last year plays for Ole Miss (Treadwell)... A rookie WR would have to fight for time with Nuk, Washington, and Shorts. Gurley could get 10-15 touches a game even with Foster starting. He could have more impact than a 1st year WR who may not see a lot of balls come his way.
a multiple pro bowl caliber running attack is just as important to an offense as a Qb in order to win. Seattle is 8-8 without one, packers don't get past the bears w/o one. big manning doesn't win his only ring without james. It's a position that is overlooked by the talking heads because of the new flavored k gun. If you were certain that the running back you were picking in the first round was Arian foster, you would take him in the top 10 every day. However, since those teams are not wanting to take a running back in the first, you can benefit and still have your shot at them in the other rounds. you can say that about every position, even the qb if you want to get technical about it, only 2 of them have been worth the number one pick in the last 16 seasons, Luck and Eli. My only keyboard rule for drafting running back would be have your system in place and make it the final piece since they do go quickly. i'd like to see more play action in our system. fitzie isn't brady as some might notice. it was crazy to put him back there on empty sets. i know cool story, brosef. =)
You're right. You didn't say they are convinced. But I've heard/read a lot more reports about them liking other players than I have of Gurley. From every Pat Starr report there's a lot more out there about Marcus Peters, Brett Hundley, and Randy Gregory. We just don't know. You say rush-heavy, some say he's the QB whisperer. Hackenberg had more passing attempts than the top two leading rushers at Penn State. He's had to deal with a freshman QB and a stop-gap in Fitzpatrick as his QBs, perhaps that's why he's run the ball as much as he has. You think higher of Gurley than I do and I think more of Cooper than you do. That might be the root of our disagreement. I like Ezekiel Elliot in next year's draft; and this year I like Abdullah, Ajayi, and Johnson. A rookie wouldn't have to fight for time with Hopkins, they would be on the field together. It's not that hard to beat out Washington and Shorts in the starting lineup. If you bring up fighting for playing time against those average WRs then you have to bring up Gurley fighting for playing time with Blue.
I almost never wade into draft threads because, well, I find them mostly pointless. BUT... I keep seeing "WR this," "OLB that," "RB?" I'm going on record: their first round selection will be a TE. They need one, generally, and this offense, specifically, is built around one that can cause mismatches. I think it's their single greatest need (other than overall team speed). Thank you; carry on.
This isn't a particularly good TE class, if they went TE, it would be a reach no matter who they picked.
I agree that the Texans would take a TE...if there was one that warranted that early of a selection in this draft. Unfortunately, there is not, and they could get more value by selecting another position and waiting to address the TE until later rounds.
I'm arguing that DGB can play the' Gronkowski' type TE too so with that pick you add a lot of versatility in the offensive sets. You could argue the same for Funchess and take him later, however there is no guarantee he would be there at 82 where you would like to take him.
Best TE probably going in the 2nd although there's the possibility he could go late 1st. Second best TE probably going in the 3rd.
NO just has to take Maxx Williams after trading Jimmy Graham. I think they would take DGB if he falls.
I see Funchess to us at 82 on some drafts. If we go OLB in the first we'd need to pick him at 51 I think. Kiper has a 2nd. round grade on him. The reason to do it early is the same as DGB, you get versatility and can create size mismatches.
I don't think a lot of teams think like this; I think a lot of FANS do... but not teams. Not this explicitly. Which is why I think the WR/Texan angle is (mostly) fanservice. They may draft one (if a great one slips) - but I don't think they're as 1:1 B&W "We have to replace AJ!!" I guarnatee you, they already think they've replaced AJ (with Hopkins).
Shane Ray might drop: <blockquote class="twitter-tweet" lang="en"><p>Report: Missouri DE Shane Ray might need surgery, could be out 5 months <a href="http://t.co/JeuEYUQ69t">http://t.co/JeuEYUQ69t</a></p>— Shutdown Corner (@YShutdownCorner) <a href="https://twitter.com/YShutdownCorner/status/591267807234396160">April 23, 2015</a></blockquote> <script async src="//platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
I proudly recommend Jalean Strong with the 16th. Him and Clowney would form a monstrous duo on the bench. Smiles and Warm Benches=Championships.
Point remains your premise on drafting a wide receiver revolves around filling holes and there are no holes at that position. Washington and Shorts are proven commodities and they are not garbage (they've just been on garbage teams). And Gurley could easily beat out Blue. Blue looks the part, but he runs like he has cement blocks tied to his feet. But just judging by the McNair/Smith track record... They may go defense.
CJ may turn out to be pretty good. Rookie TE's hardly ever make any noise in their 1st season. It was some good TE prospects in last year's draft and practically all of them did next to nothing.
