Texans Have Retained Every First-Round Pick Since 2008

It's hard to say honestly, he struggled his rookie season and a hostile home crowd could set him up for failure by putting too much pressure on him. Houston fans are pretty terrible so the first time a Carr threw a pick they'd be burning bags of crap on his doorstep. For that reason alone it's probably best the Texans passed on him.

 

Okay now you're just hating.

 

Wade Phillips was the reason of the JJ Watt pick.

 

Stay the hell away from my FACTS

 

Wade liked Watt but he wanted Aldon Smith more. San Fran took Aldon at 7. Rick wanted Peterson more than anyone else in that draft and had a trade worked out but the Cards took him at 5.

http://www.sfgate.com/49ers/article/2011-draft-story-49ers-would-have-passed-on-7947768.php

What if the 49ers had a chance to select Cardinals cornerback Patrick Peterson in the 2011 draft?

Answer: They would have passed.

No, really.

In this Sports Illustrated article, an oral history of that talent-stuffed draft that appeared in its May 2 edition, Houston general manager Rick Smith says the Texans, at No. 11, had a deal in place with the 49ers, at No. 7, to move up if Peterson was still available.

The trade never materialized because the Cardinals selected Peterson with the No. 5 pick.

“There was one guy I fell in love with, who I absolutely wanted on our team, and who I’d prearranged a trade to move up and get: Patrick Peterson,” Smith said. “I arranged with San Francisco to move up to No. 7 if Peterson was available there.”


The 49ers, of course, surprised many by selecting Missouri defensive end Aldon Smith, who declared for the draft after an injury plagued sophomore season. However, they were obviously considering other players with their first-round pick. Smith says the 49ers reached out to Houston before they drafted Smith, who was also on the Texans’ radar.

“When San Francisco went on the clock, they called to see if we still wanted to trade up,” Smith said. “We didn’t want to do it with Peterson gone. We needed to improve our pass rush, and while Aldon Smith was tempting, I didn’t feel strongly enough about him to move up.”

As it turns out, standing pat was the right call for Houston. At No. 11, they selected Wisconsin defensive end J.J. Watt, a three-time NFL Defensive Player of the Year.


Similarly, Peterson is on a Hall-of-Fame trajectory. He is one of four players in NFL history to be named to five Pro Bowls before turning 26 (the others: Jim Brown, Barry Sanders and Emmitt Smith).

In hindsight, it’s easy to blast general manager Trent Baalke for being willing to trade back if Peterson had slipped to No. 7.

At the time, however, the 49ers desperately needed a pass-rusher. And it’s possible they figured they could still land Smith at No. 11, while also collecting a draft pick or two from the Texans.

Smith, who wasn’t discussed as a character risk in 2011, would have currently been viewed as Peterson’s equal if he’d stayed out of trouble. Smith was an ublockable force who had 42 sacks in his first three seasons, the third-most in NFL history behind two Hall of Famers: Reggie White and Derrick Thomas.

Even Peterson, in discussing why Carolina selected Auburn quarterback Cam Newton No. 1 overall, acknowledged NFL teams place a priority on quarterbacks and players who can harass quarterbacks.

“I knew I was the best player in the draft, but I also knew I wasn’t going to be the No. 1 pick,” Peterson said in the article. “It would have been cool to be the first cornerback to go No. 1, but I know how teams build — around the quarterback and pass rush.”

 

Maccagnan: Very early on in the process, Rick Smith and I were joking around, and Rick said, “You know who’s going to be our pick? J.J. Watt.” That was like a month in advance. Sometimes these things happen for a reason.

Rick Smith: We were moving toward a 3–4 defense, and one of the things you have to do in a 3–4 defense is shore up the edge. He had all the elements we thought were necessary to play that spot in our scheme.

Maccagnan: We had a lot of discussions, weighing between [Auburn defensive tackle] Nick Fairley and J.J. But it became pretty clear we liked J.J. more than Nick [who would go at No. 13 to the Lions].

Rick Smith: We loved the story of the guy who wanted to walk on and prove himself.

https://www.si.com/nfl/2016/04/26/2011-nfl-draft-oral-history-cam-newton-von-miller

 

Was Wade also the reason for the Sam Montgomery pick too?

 

I think the organization passed on Carr.

Look, the kid is very good. But he would have come to a much different environment here and you can't just assume everything would have worked out the same. bobby is right, and it's something I've said previously: his rope here, at least with the fans, would have been significantly shorter and the reaction would have been far more vitriolic.

I'm not defending their decision to pass on him - but those are legitimate concerns and if they additionally had a bad experience with David (who, by most reports, wasn't in love with playing football) as well as a frayed relationship with the apparently hands-on dad...... I at least respect them for not pretending none of that mattered. It would have.

 

I'd like to see the numbers on 2nd and 3rd round picks...

 

Couldn't pick him. Totally understandable

 

Brown: All Pro
Cushing: All Pro 2nd team
Jackson: Earned 2nd contract
Watt: DPOY
Mercilus: All Pro 2nd team
Hopkins: All Pro 2nd team
Clowney: All Pro 2nd team
Johnson: TBD
Fuller: TBD
Watson: TBD

Not bad. Not bad at all.