I like that line up. Salty. We're due for a healthy season, so, while depth is nice, anybody who has significant injuries to their top 5 players is going to suffer.
No, he wasn't. EVERY CORNERBACK GETS BURNED. It's the nature of the position. I can find you several plays where Joseph was torched. Difference is, he doesn't have a fan base watching him like a hawk and losing their minds at every such moment. Jackson made strides and was a mediocre CB. So was Allen. Newsflash: you don't become the No. 2 defense in the NFL if your second and third cornerbacks are "f'n awful" and "suck". You need to watch film and compare 2011 Jackson and Allen to 2010 Texan cornerbacks to get a better understanding of what those terms mean.
He's the gaping hole in this defense. It'll show once we play this tough schedule. I think part of the reason why the Texans were statistically that high defensively was because of the cupcake schedule.
Sad to see Dressen go. He was an important wrinkle in our offense, way more important than anything Casey does (Vickers could have handled those duties fine). We really need another receiving threat now... Dressen is going to explode in Denver. Top 4 fantasy tight end.
We faced a pair of competent quarterbacks in the playoffs (and before you say anything about Flacco, look at what he did to the Patriots). It didn't happen then. He's one of the weak links of the defense, yes, in that most of our other defenders are significantly above average at their positions. But there's a gap between being a weak link and gaping hole.
The thing is, that lineup you posted is actually better than the lineup that almost went to the AFC championship last year. Remember, Butler turned down the chance to start for several other teams and resigned here only to get hurt and miss the entire year. I don't think we lose much by putting him in Winston's spot. Sharpton was playing pretty well before he got hurt too. Those are 2 guys who weren't on the depth chart last year, so you have to count them as additions. I loved Dressen's toughness and hands, but we still have 12 TE's on the roster already. Casey can always go back to TE too, since we don't run a 2-back set very often. I agree about the depth, but that's the price you pay when you have so many guys on your roster who can play. The Texans have never had this "problem" before....... All the injuries last year got them lots of playing time.....and thus lots of interest from other teams. That's just the nature of the NFL.
Played a rookie QB in his first playoff game and Joe Flacco. Flacco himself actually played decent against the #2 defense. But Flacco isn't a good QB, using the Patriots as an example? They had one of the worst defenses in the NFL statistically. The point I'm trying to make with the gaping hole is that he doesn't deserve to start on this defense. I'm just surprised a guy like Brandon Harris hasn't really gotten an opportunity yet for a guy the Texans drafted in the 2nd round.
Graham is supposed to be a Daniels clone. We need another blocking TE, with all the double Tight sets we run. Especially if Casey can't handle it. If Dallas Clark doesn't go to Denver, you may be right.
Yeah, I liked Graham's pass catching ability but Dreessen was a competent blocker which i'm not so sure about for Graham. Expect a TE in this draft for sure. Despite the popular belief, texans are short at that position.
Yes, that's exactly why I used the Patriots (a terrible defense) as an example. Jackson is better than most of the corners New England trotted out. I'm fine with giving Harris a shot to win the job. If he does well in camp and wins the job, I'd be thrilled. I'm certainly not in love with Kareem. I'm just tired of all the drama and folks acting like he's the same as 2010 and/or that he's one of the worst CBs in the league. He's not. He's mediocre. I definitely wouldn't mind upgrading him, but he's not terrible and having him as your No. 2 CB isn't the end of the world.
Casey simply steps in as TE2 now while also playing FB. I don't think we run too many sets with a 2nd TE AND a FB, so he can play both roles. Graham will compete for the job and I'm sure we'll sign a cheap bruising fullback to compete, but I want to see more of Casey on the field. If we draft one it should be 5th round or later.
Seeing as how rarely we use a FB, he may be right. Casey may well get all of Joel's snaps, with Graham being Daniels' main backup. We're still going to draft or sign a blocking TE or FB though. Casey is a decent blocker, but there's no way we go into the season with him being our best blocking TE/FB.
Absolutely not worried about the TE position, if there's any position that gets number "in the system" it's TE. Kube's will get Graham ready to go.
i agree. i'm not sure about a FB being taken though, but getting one in the 6th or 7th could be possible. I wonder if Cody Johnson could be had in the 7th. I think he could be a helluva lead blocker.
How can you not be worried? The texans' #2 TEs are not very good run blockers (or not consistent)...when the team relies on running out of 2 TE sets, then that's a problem. Granted, it's not the biggest concern, but it's an area that needs to be addressed
A lot of the tightends, especially the mid-late rounders, played a little HBack or FB in college. So, I expect that to be what we go after from now on. The Texans won't be hosting another Lawrence Vickers or Vonta Leach for a while, IMO.
Yeah, I don't see us drafting a FB. That usually can be had thru FA rookie signings. Plus using Casey as an H-back like we did early in the season puts tremendous pressure on a defense. When does Benny J. come off the IR anyway?
