Depth remains big question mark for Texans at linebacker

There are 3 ILB's that are 1st round materialin the draft. With the Texans biggest need at ILB I don't see them drafting any other position in the first round. Theres enough talent at OT, WR, and DT to draft at those positions later on in the draft.

Glover Quin is not going anywhere. He's a safety that the Texans will want to sign quickly. If they don't sign him initially they will franchise Quin.

 

The 3 ILBs that are slated as first round grades are Teo, Ogletree, and Minter. I don't know anything about their games, other than that Teo has range. But if they're going to be first round LBs I think that's what separates the worthwhile ones like Kuechly from the maybe not's like Hightower, who was more of a downhill guy.

If there's a case for any of those positions you mentioned to wait until rounds 2-4 for, it's definitely ILB. 2011 has a weak class so far, but look at the early-middle round LBs that went in 2012 and 2010. Washington in the 2nd, and Bowman in the 3rd, and those are two top 5 LBs today. 2nd rounders Wagner and David both led their team in tackles on dominating defenses last year.

Walterfootball's mock has 1-2 NT's going in the first, and there's a safety going in that range too. Anything to make sure Keo stays off the field in any subpackage, and it'd counter the big two way TEs we'll be playing against in 2013: Gronk, Lewis, Allen, Dreessen?

 

ILB was their biggest issue at the end of the year, but if Cushing is ready to go for voluntary workouts, doesn't that change things? Youncould be drafting a guy that simply works in behind him and a resigned James. You can't forget that both Smith and Cody could be gone.

We don't know Quin's price tag, or if we have the cap room to franchise him yet.

 

I hope it doesn't because linebacker depth was a mirage of a luxury this team thought it had. Nor is Bradie James a starting linebacker on any self respecting defense and his spot on the depth chart (or roster) shouldn't be guaranteed no matter how great Tania Ganguli thinks of him.

If Smith is gone, there's a backup with potential in Crick. Cody could be gone and I think we all agree NT should be a priority regardless.

 

Right, but you're talking ILB depth - not something we should be dealing with in the first round when we're staring at starting voids at NT, DE, and possibly S. Also have to take into account where proper value lies in the 7 rounds.

I was sour on Bradie James the second they signed him - I was never fooled into thinking he was worth a damn. Unfortunately, Phillips and Herring are married to him and probably want him to stay - which means any ILB you draft is automatically slotted 3rd on the depth chart. Additionally, when Cushing is here, they play him as a lone ILB frequently. So Cushing makes ILB depth superfluous if he goes 16 weeks.....but if he misses time, you suddenly need 3 ILBs rotating through with two on the field at all times. Tricky situation.

I don't agree at all regarding Crick, at least not as he stands today. I think he's as viable a starter as Mitchell. If we're all concerned about the major drop off in pass rush, the last thing we need to see is those two inheriting starting jobs on the line. Antonio Smith doesn't get enough credit for his blue collar play the last two years - Crick would be a bad downgrade.

Ultimately, we have to see who's on the board when we select - can't go in determined to select this position or that. Also remember that we should have two 3rd round picks this year. It's easier to find a LB or S in day two or three than it is a ready-to-start interior lineman.

 

I sure hope they aren't too content/satisfied with James being the other starting ILB. They should be expecting the LB they draft to start or at least rotate in a good amount with james and possibly even Cush. There just can't be as big of a drop off as there currently is from Cush to James.

Sharpton helps a ton, but you just can't rely on him staying healthy at this point.

 

I disagree. The position that can be most improved during this years draft is ILB. There are 3 ILBs that are first round material. There is not another ILB that I would look at drafting till the 4th round. James, Ruud, Dobbins should never start. Cushing and Sharpton are both coming back from major injuries. If you watch the lat 6 games of the season, opposing teams readily attacked our biggest weakness; our inside linebackers.
Zone blocking OTs can be selected in the mid rounds. There is so many second and third round recievers and nobody has figured out how to rank them.
I agree that a NT is also a priority, and needs to be a second day selection. DE does not need to be adresseed until next year. Smith and Waat are under contract with Crick backing them up.

 

Smith is a very likely cap cut, along with Walter. Cody is a questionable resigning.

I whole heartedly agree that ILB was a major problem as the season ended. I whole heartedly agree that James sucks and that Sharpton can't be relied on given his Mr. Glass history.

But Cushing on his own makes ILB a-okay, even if James is his wingman. Cushing is reportedly on schedule to be back for the entire spring/summer schedule. ACL injuries frighten us all, but if he's back, you're only concern is upgrading the second LB spot, which Wade only uses for 60% of the downs.

If you go into this season with a starting D-Line of Crick-Mitchell-Watt, you will witness a woeful bottom 10 defense even if you keep Quin, bring back Cushing, and have someone like Minter joining the team (Ogletree currently looks out of reach).

They're going to take whomever they like and aren't going to be dead set on any one single position. I won't be mad if it is ILB, hopefully that means they took a ringer and that they've got a good plan lined up for NT-DE-S-3rd CB-2nd TE-OL depth-OLB depth.

 

Anyone thing getting a BIG OLE NOSE TACKLE before Linebacker would help
If the LB's don't have to do as much run support maybe they would be better in coverage?

Can the Texans go with the BEST DEFENSIVE PLAYER AVAILABLE mentality?

Rocket River

 

Not really. James sucks in coverage. Period. Getting a NT that would help out in the run game won't change that.

 

having a big hole clogging DT means nothing if the LB can't cover space and get to the outside to make the play or be able to keep up with a TE in space

 

Im sure that the Texans will either draft a NT or ILB with their first pick...im leaning towards ILB (especially considering what Bob McNair said after the season: "after Cushing went down, we struggled in the middle of the field") Mr. McNair noticed that our ILB position was a huge liability...im sure he will convey that message to the Coaches!!!


Will JJ still be as effective( i think so, but he needs help a mammoth NT will help tremendously)
What about Cushing's knee (He will lack in explosiveness/lateral speed initially; we will need a coverage LB especially with teams using bigger and stronger TE's on offensive packages)
Will KJ and JJo be enough on the outside??(JJo missed a few games, and wasnt really healthy when he did play, bc he was getting torched) -> I think we will resign Quin(but at a cost of Smith, Walter)
Rather trade Daniels in exchange for picks but who's looking to give away picks

The Texans will once again go defense with their first pick(and if Minter, Teo, or Olgetree are still on the board by our 27th pick...expect them to go this route 1st...if not, best available defender)

I would love if the Texans could pick up Mike Wallace(although he had some big drops this year, he has speed that can keep teams honest)

 

Not necessarily. We were excellent against the run this year, with the lone chink in the armor being runs up the gut. There's a FO analysis on that, but I can't find it right now off the bat (will keep looking). And by eyeball, post-Cushing era was replete with runs between the hashmarks that saw James either helplessly unable to shed a block or making his tackle from behind. He was atrocious all year at meeting runners at the line, thanks to what seemed to be a second or two delay in reaction and concrete shoes. Those two attributes also helped make him the worst man in coverage all year.

Point being - Wade Phillips coaches his entire line, Cody/Mitchell included, to penetrate every down. Cody and Mitchell also are undersized for NT and hardly run stuffers. When they fire through a gap, it's on the ILBs to cover anyone coming up the middle. James was a giant failboat there. In the pass rush, Cody/Mitchell were constantly neutralized by the center or guard tossing them to the outside - late in the season, this happened so much that there was no pocket, but rushers on each side of the QB and a highway for him to run forward (ex. Ponder's 48 rushing yards, almost all of which were crippling first downs).

I don't know if Wade is open to the idea of a more traditional NT, but that shuts down the gut and creates more of a pocket to contain the QB. Get a guy like Jonathan Jenkins that can pancake the center, all the better.

As far as bouncing runs to the outside, you already have our OLBs set outside the tackles (for all the grief he deservedly took, Barwin had a respectable 7 stuffs this season). With a true nose, you're also a little more free to set your ILBs wide across the B (weak) or C (strong) gaps.

No matter what, let's just pray that we get the real Cushing back for the entire 2013 campaign. He's an uber rare sideline-to-sideline guy that can hide even the likes of James.

 

Apparently Lance Z is reporting that the Texans are considering a permanent move for Reed inside if they're able to re-sign Barwin.

Personally, I think I like it. Whether it's Mercilus, Braman or someone else, I like the Texans' odds of finding or developing a capable young edge rusher better than finding someone mature enough to handle the middle. More often than not, that route eventually leads to retread veterans like James, Ruud, etc.

If nothing else, it guarantees you'll have more speed out there, which should help covering backs and tight ends (New England).

 

As long as we can get someone there and have some depth, I'm fine with Reed inside.

I think Mercilus as an edge rusher will be just fine. He had his moments this past season (as did Braman), I think he's earned his chance to give it a go.

I know it's not a priority, but the Texans should look at getting a nose tackle also.

 

I think this is a great idea

 

The idea of Reed at ILB is fun and all... but I imagine an ILB will be cheaper than Barwin. I'm not sure who's out there, Wheeler? Henderson? Both 4-3 guys but does it matter? GB sticking with Bishop? Just throwing out names but again, the bottom line is that ILB's are cheaper than 4-3 ends. But Wade does love "his" guys. Nothing wrong with Brooks Reed at ILB if he can learn it, but it's not exactly easy to do.

 

The rest of the league has proven that you don't need to be a veteran to succeed in defending the middle, much less in a 3-4 inside where you can line up next to a veteran, or even better in this case, a pro bowl level veteran. I don't think manning the inside is a matter of maturity. And taking away depth from a position that was already a question mark doesn't seem like the answer to me.

Why put in the legwork of converting talent to other positions when the draft is right around the corner and guys already specialized to those positions are there for the taking?

 

I don't mind trying Reed there, but I would still proceed with the assumption that they need an starter there. I'd rather have a log jam of young and athletic LBs than not

 

Question: I know it's fairly common to have converted DE's playing Weakside OLB, but what about Strongside? If the WOLB operates primarily as a pass rusher, does that mean the SOLB spends a significant amount of time in coverage on TE's and RB's? Do you lose something in coverage by having converted DE's at both OLB positions? Reed was a 3-4 OLB at Arizona, but Barwin and Mercilus were 4-3 DE's. I know Mercilus played SOLB opposite Barwin when Reed was out, but we were better with Reed playing the position.

I just have concerns about both Barwin and Mercilus being slates as starters. It seems like both are better suited for WILB and playing on the strong side is kind of playing them out of position.