Here comes D'Brick!!!!! Look at the Oilers draft history in the early 80's when they rocked at OL. These were there first round picks! '82 Mike Munchak OL 8th pick '83 Bruce Mathews T 9th pick '84 Deal Steinkuler T 2nd pick Nt exciting picks, but very beneficial for Campbell and Stabler!!
Revisionist history by the USC faithful to make his staying all the more dramatic. He was certainly a high draft pick, but most mocks in late December did not have him in the top three. Most did have Aaron Rodgers ahead of him, even though looking back Leinart clearly appears to be the better prospect.
Incorrect Cat. Everyone had San Fran drafting him #1. It was after Leinart said he'd go back that the draft boards got all screwed up. Many scouts ranked Rodgers over Smith. That's probably what you are remembering.
Greatly disagree. Ask anyone outside of the city of Houston, and the decision has essentially been made. I'm not saying it, but listen to ESPN and some of the non-local outlets... we'd be absolutely shocking the world if we didn't take Bush first. I'm not saying it would be a mistake not to take him, but it would undoubtedly be a huge shock to anyone except the locals.
you may be right. but i'm certainly not USC faithful and that's how I remember it. he tore apart OU...and it's why everyone was so baffled that he wasn't coming out.
But Houston has the #1 pick, not the rest of the country. I really believe that McNair is going to make the pick himself, and bring home Vince in order to bring people back to Reliant.
i saw the first sign of change on this earlier this morning. they had john clayton on sportscenter talking about how much heat the texans were getting to draft young, and how they just might do it.
season ticket holders have to re-new well before we'd know who were drafting, anyway. we need to be a little bit more forward-thinking than the 2006 Houston Texans, in my view. i don't have real high hopes given how poor this team was and how tough our schedule looks.
I know you aren't, Max. I'm saying that the USC faithful spread the perception in the media and thus transferred that to the rest of us. I remember some people discussing what a great fit Leinart would be for a team in-state (San Fran), but many claimed at the time that Rodgers had better overall talent. What people have left Reliant, though? This team has sold out every game in its history. Sure, there were empty seats late in the season, but those seats were sold, and it's ridiculous to think those people won't come back if the Texans put a good product on the field. The ticket/local interest angle of drafting Vince is really overplayed... people will support a winner, whether it's led by a Trojan, Longhorn, Aggie, Sooner or whomever. The Texans have had zero problems with fan support thus far in their history, other than the customary empty seats after the season is over. And Houston's fan base doesn't have the pick... it's the organization. It's an organization with professional minds to rationally look at all the data instead of a group of fans who mostly have burnt orange glasses. Again, I love Vince Young, and I'd love to see him in a Texans jersey... but it's not as simple as some of you make it. Bush is the overwhelming favorite at this point.
Cat -- it's about franchise value. drafting Bush doesn't mean you start winning. drafting Young doesn't mean you start losing...hell, they can't lose much more than they just did. it's about swinging for the fences...it's about winning...and then some. it's about changing the face of the organization. it's about grabbing on to the hottest athlete in the country right now...who happens to already be a hometown hero. it's about building goodwill for the franchise. if all things are equal...if they win with bush...or win with Young...if you're the team owner, you choose win with Young, and all that carries, every time. because truth be told...you don't know if you'll win or lose. that's the "to" motivation. the "away" motivation is when your fan base never forgives you for passing up on a local hero who kicks your ass twice a year. i think that away motivation will be VERY strong for team ownership. i don't think GM's and coaches and scouts care much about that. but i don't expect this decision to be made by GM's and coaches and scouts. i expect it will be made by ownership. he's at a serious cross-roads with this franchise, and he's a PR giant.
Imagine if the Rockets have drafted Sam Bowie instead of Hakeem. How good would it feel to have Hakeem and the Portland Trailblazers kick our butts?
that's the opportunity before us. you can look back with hindsight and say we should have taken jordan. but at the time...you take the local hero. even if he's unpolished and raw. because his potential value to your franchise off and on the field/court is way too great to pass up on. you'll never have THIS kind of opportunity again.
Obviously not. But I'm responding to whether Bush is the consensus number one right now, on the hypothetical that he declares, which is a formality, imo.
You're preaching to the choir on the reasons to take VY on the field. However, I don't think this team is that far from winning. I think with a solid draft (Casserly has to have one sometime, right?), one or two interior lineman signings in free agency and Reggie Bush this team could potentially be competitive next year. Any fan who would stop supporting the franchise over whether they took his/her personal choice in the draft wasn't all that much of a fan in the first place in most instances. I don't think this team is as far from winning as some of you do, and perhaps McNair is convinced that with Carr, Bush, AJ and an improved OL they can kick VY's ass twice a year if/when he's with the Titans. The PR angle, however, is overblown, imo. Fans in Houston, or anywhere, will support a winner. There will be some immediate backlash if we don't take VY. However, losing a few angry bandwagoners one summer doesn't even come close to the amount of fans and positive PR this team will gain if they contend for divisions and championships in a few years. The real gain - or loss - in PR over this entire Bush/Young debate will be determined by how the team plays on the field in the next five or so years. If he's convinced this team can win with Reggie Bush and David Carr, Bob will get all the positive PR he needs.
Wrong, wrong WRONG! The ONLY reason we were able to draft Hakeem was due to the fact that you CAN have two centers playing at the same time. If we could only have ONE center playing (ie. QB), the Rockets would have DEFINITELY have taken Jordan. Why? Hakeem and Bowie AND SAMPSON were Centers. Why? Because NO TEAM needs a redundant part.
And how often do you see teams use two centers at the same time. How many times have NBA teams drafted pure centers with their first pick two years in a row?
