For years we needed a real number 2 with Andre yet the Org decided to keep drafting WRs in later rounds or getting cast offs. Has there been any word, ever, about our WR philosophy? And now our young "stud" WR likes to beat off on instagram.
Because we are a run first team and Kubiak loved Walter as a blocker and heavily used tight ends anyway.
Fair enough but Andre needed someone to take the top off the D, which using a plodding TE like Daniels didnt help. I just dont get why the GM didnt just usurp Kubiak and got him a WR and made him like it. They dropped the ball...like every other WR we have had minus Andre.
Have they really neglected it? It's one position. In the last 2 years, they've spent a 1st, 3rd, and 4th pick on that position. They may not be finding the right guys, but they aren't neglecting it. There's no other position that got that much attention the last 2 years.
Thats the problem to me, that it wasnt addressed handily until the last two years. I am interested if we got WR early again in this draft, although I know the team has more pressing needs like QB, MLB, and O Line so most likely another 4th round WR. I guess I am just concerned seeing how Andre has slowed down (stats aside) physically and its looking more and more apparent. He is NFL-Old now and its starting to show some. Hopefully Hopkins turns into a real stud, I dont give much credence to this year since it was an aberration but he has lots of potential. Heres to hoping he harnesses it just as well as he can harness himself.
Before the last few years, they had one of the best WRs in the game. Meanwhile, they have holes all over the rest of the field. I don't think it's surprising that they weren't spending top picks on WRs at that point.
Yeah...it was weird. A lot of teams nowadays seems to have a fourth WR that was a better play maker than the Texans WR2. I don't see how anyone can justify a team having one good wide receiver over a 10 year period.
It wasn't the WR that were the problem it was the QB and more importantly the coach who couldn't get the ball in their hands Ina. Good position to make plays. How often did you see WRs make open field catches last year with room to maneuver? Almost never. It's because other teams figured Kubiak out. They solved his puzzle and he was exposed for being the inflexible, two trick (zone run, play action) pony that he is.
I think people who are disappointed must have had unnecessarily high expectations. It was his rookie year. And he had a "fading fast" Schaub and an "in over his head" Keenum throwing it to him all year. He was still the #2 rookie WR behind Keenan Allen who 1) had Phillip Rivers throwing it to him and 2) didn't have anyone near the level of Andre Johnson playing opposite him to take away his catches. As it is, Hopkins had the best season any Texans #2 WR has had since 2008 when Walter had his best season with 60 catches for 899 yards. Josh Gordon led the NFL in receiving this year with 1,646 yards on 87 catches. Last year he was 3rd among rookie wide receivers was 50 catches for 805 yards. That's pretty close to what Hopkins did this year, 52 catches for 802 yards. Michael Floyd had 45 catches, 562 yards last year. This year, 65 for 1,041. Kendall Wright last year: 64 rec, 626 yds. This year: 95 rec, 1,079 yds. TY Hilton last year: 50 rec, 861 yds. This year: 82 rec, 1,083 yds. Alshon Jeffrey last year: 24 rec, 367 yds (missed 6 games). This year: 89 rec, 1,421 yds. Hopkins' season was pretty good by typical rookie WR standards. There are 5 examples of rookies last year who had comparable or worse rookie seasons and then surpassed 1,000 yards in year 2. And that doesn't include Justin Blackmon who had 865 yards as a rookie and was averaging 104 yards/game when he wasn't being suspended for drugs. Good receivers do tend to make a nice jump in their 2nd year and Hopkins had a good rookie season. It would not shock me at all to see him add at least 20 receptions and 300 yards to his totals from this season. And FWIW. Johnson and Hopkins ranked 4th in yards for WR duos this year.
Not sure why the hate for Hopkins had a good year as a rookie with the mentioned QB carousel of suck. I anticipate a huge year for Nuke.
Because in general the Texans always lacked depth given how few of their non-1st rounders work out. And the WR position has never been the major need. They kept drafting DBs, 6 in a 2yr span, and still had to sign JJo to not suck. They kept drafting OLinemen, because Kubiak needs his ZBS guys, yet we still haven't really developed any after Brown/Myers from way back. They kept drafting pass rushers and our pass rush is still utter crap. If the Texans could've drafted worth a damn, they would've had the resources available to allocate to solving the 2nd WR problem. But they never did, because when they couldn't solve their problems elsewhere with the draft.
I had to look at the date of this post because I thought it might have been from last year before the draft. This team has spent too much trying to acquire a #2 over the last few seasons. They spent a #1 in Hopkins and a #3 on Posey. Hopkins has had a great rookie season and should break the 1000 yard mark next season. I know it's exciting to go after skill positions but we're not going to find a Megatron to line up next to AJ. There are more important and crucial positions that we need to fill and I would rank WR as the very last need of this team.
WR is one of the few positions we are perfectly fine at. You have to give most young guys 3 years to hit their stride. Posey looked good bouncing back from his injury, Nuk showed outstanding ability to reel in tough throws. Things were certainly uneasy after the break, but a lot of that was a locker room giving up on the staff...and a desperate staff overcompensating as their authority withered away. With our number of need positions and only 7 rounds in the draft, WR isn't going to make the shopping list.
Both Hopkins and Swearinger have very bright futures. When evaluating both players, it's important to consider the environment, crap QB, lame duck coach, and a team that had the league's longest losing streak.
Fans reaction after the fumbled punt gave the team no choice but to move him. The outcome was very Houston-esk though. True Yep. Thank God that era is over.
He's still not a good receiver. 7 years in the league and he doesn't have one season that's as good as what Hopkins did as a rookie.
Hopkins wasn't even the best receiver on his college team so I was worried about him coming in but I was surprisingly impressed. I'm still not sold if he was worth a 1st round pick but as others have pointed out receivers can improve over time. I would expect the #2 receiver to be able to do alot more with having the benefit of being on the field with Johnson who makes it possible for Hopkins not to be doubled covered and have to face the best corners. Keenan Allen did what he did throughout the year as the #1 option amongst the wide receivers on his team and that's what makes his year so impressive and why you can't just look at the stat line and compare their #'s.
Thank you. Some people grossly over-react to things like that. Jones made one or two timely catches in high profile moments but he's still a disappointment as a WR.
