Chris Mortenson: Julius Peppers to Texans? Info on Major Applewhite

We are not going to get Peppers. Will Julius play basketball and football professionaly?

Maybe rockets can grab him in the second round of the draft.

 

Applewhite had an internship with the Titans however Mackus Brown announced the Major will be back in Austin next year as a Graduate Assistant.

 

he quit basketball this summer to focus full-time on football and has stated already he intends to make himself eligible for the 2002 nfl draft.

and houston has the first pick -- why wouldn't they get him (if he's their choice)?

 

There was a recent article in the local paper (where UNC rules) in which Peppers was re-considering his decision not to play basketball.

As I recall, it didn't indicate that he was changing his NFL draft-eligibility though.

 

Ok. Now for the second-hand info... A guy at work has a friend who's uncle is Matt Dougherty. He claims that Peppers will not play basketball for UNC. Take that for whatever you will.

I still say the Texans trade the #1 pick for more picks.

 

Actually the more I think about it, as image-conscious as the Texans are, I can definitely see them holding on to the #1 overall pick, unless they get a deal too sweet to turn down. They want to make a splash of eveything, which is understandable, and will relish in the attention.

And the fact that they could select a top-notch prospect like Peppers helps too.

 

fwiw, i agree. i think it'll prove important to mcnair to put a face, and thus an identity to his franchise, someone to lay the first brick of the foundation, so to speak.

and yeah, i doubt mcnair would mind having all eyes on his franchise during the month leading up to the draft.

 

Identity? The #1 pick of the new franchise could be Bryant McKinnie, a friggin offensive lineman. A brick in the foundation, yes. Hardly the face of the Texans, though. You'd only be trading down a few spots (for more picks). I think Houston football fans (re: the ticket holders) would rather see the franchise competitive in its first year than waste a pick on a possible bust. Trade down, get some picks, and take DeShaun Foster, Joey Harrington, Adrian Peterson, or David Carr if you want. They're much more marketable than Peppers or McKinnie. Besides, the "face" of the Texans will most likely always be an offensive player.

 

mcnair will want someone he can sell to the public -- it's still no slam dunk the texans will be overtly embraced or even enthusiastically supported by the city of houston, and he knows this. run a loop of peppers doing what peppers does best and that'll be an easy sell. more importantly, a necessary one.

as for the four you suggest drafting: none of those guys are worthy of a top 15 pick, with the possible exception of foster, and even he's questionable. mistake of epic proportion to build a team around any one of them, because none are franchise cornerstones.

they likely candidates remain henderson, peppers, edwards and mckinnie, all pretty much on the same playing field in terms of talent and likely impact, and peppers is probably the easiest to sell and market, and i think that's gonna prove important to mcnair.

 

I'm not suggesting using a top pick on a QB or running back like Foster. In another thread, I said we could pick up a good QB in the later rounds of the draft. I still stand behind that statement. What I'm saying is that we could trade our #1 pick for possibly 2 first rounders and grab more pieces of the puzzle in one draft. Peppers, as a #1 pick, can be marketed to Houston, but I guarantee you that a high profile QB taken in round 5 (like Chris Weinke was last year) will steal the spotlight from Peppers. Can you name me the first round draft choice for Carolina last year? Did he take top billing from Weinke? Absolutely not. He should get the spotlight, right? Nope. Offensive players are always more marketable. Hell, I make football cards for a living. No one wants defensive players (no matter how hard I try to market them ) Only offensive players are collectable. You can argue until you're blue in the face. QBs, RBs, and WRs are the face of your organization. I'm sure McNair and Casserly know this.

(BTW, Carolina's first round pick was Dan Morgan (LB) from Miami.)

 

such as? assuming the top underclassmen don't declare, it's going to be a very weak crop of senior qb's. and the good ones (harrington, carr and kittner) will be gone by round 4.

vick was traded for a first, a third and next year's #2, so the idea of this year's #1 drawing even that much, let alone two first rounders, is unrealistic. there's no consenus #1 guy and it's a very deep and talented draft.

there are no 29-year old heisman winners in the 2002 draft, so it's an irrelevant point. also, dan morgan wasn't the first player ever drafted by the panthers, so it's even more irrelevant.

you can't compare the reaction to an established team to what might happen to a team with no players, no roster, no history.

 

Maybe in year 2 or 3 the Texans trade that #1 pick, but not in year 1. McNair wants to make a splash and grab the headlines. You don't do that by trading down.

 

Is John Henderson an injury concern? Before he got hurt, everyone was projecting him to be the #1. But now, you hear about McKinnie and Peppers.

If the Texans keep the #1, I couldn't imagine that they'd take anyone else right now. DeShaun Foster's the only high profile-typle player that could have a significant impact, and I think it'd be a mistake to take a RB with the first pick for an expansion team.

I'd take Kurt Kittner with a #2 or #3. Joey Harrington is overhyped. Yeah, he gets lots of comeback wins. But the point is: Oregon's forced to come back continually. Harrington didn't put them ahead earlier.

David Carr... just hasn't impressed me that much... I've only seen him 3 times, but I think he's overrated as well. He's got an arm, but he doesn't seem that creative, and has had to deal with inferior competition.

Kurt Kittner might be better in the pros than in college. He makes good decisions, has succeeded in a tough conference with inferior talent, and is extremely accurate. He's also a smart guy who understands the offense. I like the idea of a Rams-type offense: lots of speed and a QB who can get the guys the ball on timing routes.

 

Just to really throw a wrench into your discussion...the Texans (by NFL rules) are not permitted to trade their #1 pick. They can trade their second pick, but not the #1. The only thing that I am not sure of, is if they can trade the player after they pick 'em...not that it's not more than just a technicality.

 

The thing that's been creeping in the back of my mind for a couple of weeks, the guy who I'm beginning to think might cause the team to trade the player picked #1 for one a few spots down...

Kalimba Edwards is a perfect outside linebacker in a 3-4 setup. Something tells me that if that is the way they're going to go, Capers would really like to get his hands on Edwards.

Free Agents LB's signed by Carolina, 1st 2 years

Darrion Conner 6-2 260
Lamar Lathon 6-6 260
Sam Mills 5-9 232
Frank Stams 6-4 240
Duane Bickett 6-5 251
Kevin Greene 6-3 260

In other words, he really likes big outside linebackers, as well as big outside LB's who can rush the QB. The only small guy of the bunch, Mills, was an inside LB and a bit of a freak to boot. Edwards comes in at 6-6 260, and he's a LB/DE who specialises in rushing the passer.

Also to give you an idea, the expansion draft went:

1.Corner Back
2.Tackle
3.Tight End
4.Defensive End
5.Defensive End
6.Corner Back
7.C
8.FB
9.Nose Tackle
10.Saftey

Which gives me a pretty clear picture that they were planning to feature the linebackers from the start... sort of fill in the outline so you can fit the quality in afterwards.

The only problem with Edwards? The Panthers didn't draft a LB in their first 2 years, either. This may indicate his scheme for LB's is so complicated that he's only intrested in vets.

 

Linebackers usually aren't taken high in the draft. The # of first round picks is devoted in respect to position in the following order:

 

#1 That's why I said aquire through a trade.

#2. He's a non-traditional linebacker. More appropriately fitting the Laurence Taylor or Javon Kerse mode. Sort of a full time stand up defensive end in a 3-4 or a true defensive end in a 4-3.

I think that Capers has show a clear propensity for featuring linebackers. I think we have to assume that that will continue.

 

(Since I happen to have a draft book on my desk...)

Let's look at what Carolina did in their first year. Yes, the system was heavily weighted towards the expansion teams, but this may shed light on what Capers wants to do with the Texans in the NFL draft (not the expansion draft, which has already been talked about).

Carolina
#1 - Choice to Cincinnati (What? Capers traded the #1 pick to drop a few spaces? I'm shocked... FYI: Cincy took Ki-Jana Carter w/ this pick)
#1 - Kerry Collins, QB (5th overall) (from Cincy)
#1- Tyrone Poole, DB (22nd overall) (from GB)
#1 - Blake Brockermeyer, T (29th) (from San Diego)
#1 - Choice to Green Bay
#2 - Choice to San Diego
#2 - Shawn King, DE (36th) (from Cincy)
#2 - Forfeited
#3 - Choice to Green Bay
#3 - Choice to San Diego
#4 - Choice to San Diego
#4 - Frank Garcia, C (132nd)
#5 - Michael Senters, DB (135th)
#5 - Andrew Peterson, T (171st)
#6 - Choice to Green Bay
#6 - Steve Strahan, DT (188th) (from GB)
#6 - Jerry Colquitt, QB (191st) (from KC)
#6 - Forfeited
#7 - Chad Cota, DB (209th)
#7 - Michael Reed, DB (249th)

OVERALL - 6 defensive, 5 offensive

Capers took a QB with his first pick. I don't think he'll do that this year (learned his lesson from Collins, probably). His draft overall was fairly balanced in that year. He really stocked up on DBs, though (4 out of 6 defensive picks). I don't think you should ever go too heavy on one position in the draft. The following year, in 1996, Capers took Biakabutuka and Muhsin Muhammad with his first two picks. In fact, 7 out of 9 picks in 1996 went to the offense. In 1997, he switched gears and used 4 out of 6 picks on the defense (including 3 LBs). He did, however, use his first pick on an offense player (albeit on Rae Carruth...). Even though picks are largely determined on the available pool of draftees (and skill level), Capers, in his first 3 years, took 3 offensive players with his top pick (QB, RB, WR). Also keep in mind that Capers traded his top pick in 1995 and slid down 4 slots to get Collins. Yes, you heard right. An expansion team, looking to make a splash in their first year, traded their first pick to get more picks. Capers does have a history of trading down in his first year, so my argument was not without merit.

If the Texans really cannot trade the first pick, who will Capers draft? Will he go against his own history and use the #1 on defense?

 

not true. i'm not sure why this keeps coming up, but houston is allowed to do whatever they want with the top pick.