Texans sign Matt Kalil

Carlos Gomez

 

Only pass blocking but here you go:

 

Reads like someone who didn't know Kareem was primarily playing safety until injuries hit the Texans' secondary. If you're looking at this as a Kareem replacement then of course it looks great. Few problems with that:

1. Texans didn't need a replacement for Kareem, they need a #1 CB and Roby couldn't handle being a #2 in Denver
2. Kareem was a #2 (#3 when Kevin Johnson was healthy the previous year). So Texans just paid their 2nd or 3rd CB $10 million for one year. How is that a good signing? Especially if that means their #1 is old man Joseph?
3. "He's better than Kareem (the corner)" isn't saying much
4. #2 CBs were available for much cheaper. The same guy that wrote that article ranked Darby higher than Roby in his top 101 free agents. Roby's contract is higher than Darby's.
5. He's still the highest paid free agent CB this year

 

That is not true. They can get better through free agency, trades AND draft. The draft is not the only way. Most teams draft AND bring in free agents. I guarantee you that the teams that signed free agent linemen will still draft linemen at some point in the draft. You want to build through the draft but you don't want to force them into starting if they're not ready. That could have been what ruined Davenport. He was brought in as a project but was forced to start due to Duane Brown's holdout and injuries. He wasn't ready.

Here are some that could have been had in FA:

-Donald Penn could be plugged in as a starter at LT immediately.
-Daryl Williams, a free agent, signed a one year $7 million deal with Panthers. He is coming off an injury but he is no doubt an upgrade.
-Cam Fleming, another free agent, signed a 2 year 8.5 million contract with the Cowboys. Definitely would have made the team better.
-LaAdrian Waddle signed a one year deal for $2 mil with the Bills. An upgrade.

Speaking of Buffalo they added FIVE new offensive linemen this offseason. And that is just the list of tackles, outside of the top two (Trent and Jawuan), that were available. There were also guards and there were also trades.

 

To be clear on what we disagree on; I'm not saying sign free agents and don't draft I am saying sign free agents AND draft. Especially if you dont have a high draft pick.

Davenport was a project. He needed time to develop. That was his draft profile. He wasn't ready. They had to play players like Giacomini and Chris Clark as bad as he was. Left tackle might be the worst position to learn on the job; especially in front of a young franchise QB.

 

I don't disagree that they have to be smart about resources. The only linemen they have invested in the past few years have been guards and the only one that you can call a bust is Jeff Allen. Fulton and Kelemete were good (not great) last year. The only FA tackles they have brought in are players like Giacomini and now Matt Kalil. Not a whole lot of investment. For example, the Patriots traded for Trent Brown last year and still drafted a tackle in the first. 49ers resigned Gilliam and still drafted a tackle at #9 overall. Cowboys signed Cam Fleming and still drafted Connor Williams.

Here's the real reason why it's a problem. The Texans pick at 1-23; there's a good chance the top 3 tackles (maybe even 4) are gone by the time they pick. Then they might be stuck picking a RT and trying to make him move to the left AND START.

I think they want to wait till after the draft. If they don't get their tackle in the first then they probably sign Penn and get one later.

 

That post was specifically about offensive linemen. They just signed their first one last Friday and he has not been impressive of late; even before injury. Many people are even saying he shouldn't be on the roster week 1. Here are my thoughts on the others since you brought them up. I like Gipson. I'm not sure how they are going to use him since he is better as a FS and so is Justin Reid. Texans got better at FS; not sure about SS yet. Roby was a disappointment as a #2 beside one of the top 5 CBs in the league. I don't look forward to him being a #1. If he is just depth, then that's great. But $10 million for a backup corner. Shrug. Not my money. Body-Calhoun is depth/STs. As I see it, they still need to hit on a CB that can fill the #1 corner role; in the draft or elsewhere.

This point was about building the line solely through the draft vs building through the draft and free agency. I don't consider what Gaine did the same at all. You say Cowboys and Patriots needed to replace multiple linemen; I say even more-so the Texans. They were horrible last season. Patriots brought in Trent Brown before they drafted Wynn. Brown >>>>>> Kalil. And because they drafted AND traded; they were okay when Wynn was injured. If Wynn turned out to be better as an OG; again they hedged their bet by having Trent Brown on the roster. This would be the equivalent of the Texans bringing in Donald Penn. A solid starting tackle, if your rookie is not ready. That is not what they have in Kalil except he somehow surprises everyone.

You're right about Gilliam, bad example. But Fleming was the 2nd best tackle available in free agency last off-season. He was not terrible for the Cowboys; far from that. Fleming >>>> Kalil. Henderson is a huge unknown. He had one good not great season and that was over a season ago. He wasn't terribly impressive in training camp last year either.

I think Jonah Williams will be a great LT and a greater RT or guard. I am considering him as one of the top 3 tackles that could be gone by 1-23. If the Texans are able to get him, that's a huge win. Ford, I think, is in a lower tier. I consider him tied for 4th with Little as a tackle prospect. If both Ford and Little are available, I would rather take Little because we know what we're getting as a LT and we don't have a good enough fall-back option at that specific position.

I don't like what they've done so far. It doesn't mean I won't like what they've done a couple months from now. The complaints you are reading are based on real-time current status; not projecting what they do the rest of the off-season. Of course they'll be fine if they come out of the draft with Dillard, Love/Ya-Sin, Risner or Greedy, Little, McGary. And I'm still picking them to win the division again.