So was Nick Mangold. It's not normal by any means and you certainly don't have to spend a #1 to get a top quality center but if it's a need and you have a chance to lock it for the next 10 years, it would be hard to not to pull the trigger. It certainly isn't sexy and it might not completely maximize draft position"value", but if you're getting a consensus "sure thing" I would be willing to give up a little draft value. Plus there is always the chance of trading back and picking up anther pick. Obviously you don't have to spend a #1. The last few all pro teams had centers not taken in the first, for example Kalil, Unger or kevin Mawae have also made it but they were taken in the second.
Janikowski was a first round pick, top 20, does that mean that everyone should spend a first round pick on a kicker?
You use one Kicker to compare to several Centers? In the last 10 drafts, 6 centers have been taken in the 1st round. They have all been Pro-Bowlers. It just isn't that uncommon to take a Center in the first round and the results are pretty good when it has happened. I'd agree the Texans would look to trade down if that was their pick, but I wouldn't shy around from taking a Center in the latter part of the 1st round.
The point was that just because some people do it doesn't mean that you need to. Is having a pro bowl center as valuable as a pro bowl WR or TE? I would argue that it is not. I just think that you get more utility out of a player at a different position so it could be seen as a wasteful pick. There's maybe 1 center that has any chance of being drafted in the first round at all so there will be plenty of good options on the board in the 2nd and 3rd rounds. The talent at other positions drys up by then.
A lot of good WRs and TEs are drafted after the 1st round. If anything, it is easier to get a pro-bowl WR & TE (especially TEs) after the 1st round.
Not easier than finding a center. It's not quite as bad as comparing a QB to a long snapper, but it's still pretty bad.
It is if you would actually look. If we were talking about the top half of the 1st round, sure WR would easily have more value (TE, not so much). You take the guy that you think helps your team the most.
I get a whole lot of the same vibe from the Kelly love that I get from the Hunter Henry love. People talk about how the team has a big hole at that position. People talk about how he is the top rated guy on some draft board they saw on the internet for that position... People seem to have a ton to say about the Texans needing and drafting a great center, but I don't hear a ton of people actually talking about what specifically it is that Ryan Kelly does that is so special that makes him that great center. He looks fairly nondescript to me. Watching the games on draft breakdown, he isn't remotely the athlete that Cam Erving was last year.
I completely agree with this statement, which is why you are looking at WR's, the one TE in this draft that is worth a damn, and DE/DT in the first. Those are the positions that help your team the most. You then follow up by picking a center in the 2nd or 3rd, maybe even the 4th and you are good to go.
I really like Coleman but I think Strong could be our 2nd receiver and we might be able to get Shephard in the 2nd round.
How high will Ryan Kelly go in round one? Posted by Mike Florio on April 27, 2016, 5:33 AM EDT http://profootballtalk.nbcsports.com/2016/04/27/how-high-will-ryan-kelly-go-in-round-one/ With the first ever PFT simulated draft on the way, there’s an important question regarding a position that NFL don’t regard with the importance that perhaps they should. How high will Alabama center Ryan Kelly go in the draft? Some believe there’s no way he gets past the Cardinals at 29. Which makes sense, because the Cardinals were in the process of sliding failed 2013 top-10 selection Jonathan Cooper to the position before trading him to New England. If that’s the floor, where’s the ceiling? No. 21 to Washington could make sense. Anything higher than that could be hard to justify, especially since NFL teams over the last decade haven’t invested many first-round picks in center. The total of true centers taken in round one since 2006 can almost be counted on one hand. Travis Frederick in 2013, Mike Pouncey in 2011, Maurkice Pouncey in 2010, Alex Mack in 2009, Eric Wood in 2009, and Nick Mangold in 2006. Cameron Erving, drafted as a guard by the Browns in the first round a year ago, is expected to move to the center position following the departure of Mack to Atlanta. The thinking is that quality centers can be found at later rounds of the draft. Those who pop through to round one typically end up being successful, however, meaning their talent is and was undeniable. As more and more teams become obsessed with beefing up the inside pass rush, however, it will become more important for teams to find quality centers and guards. Kelly is the best of this year’s crop, and a pedigree that has pushed him into the bottom of round one could potentially nudge him higher as teams hope to ensure that their passing games won’t be stymied by an emphasis on sending large, fast, strong men up the middle, repeatedly beating mid-to-late round talent regarded all too often as interchangeable.
It will be interesting to see how it shakes out but i get that feeling too, granted I haven't been keeping that close of tabs on the draft. But given they are looking at WR as a need, it's a deep draft and you should be able to trade back and still get a quality prospect. OL/C, you could easily move back a little and still get a top tier guy. DT, fairly deep draft with some prospects looking to drop into the second.
I like the idea of Kelly as I think he is a sure starter in a need area. I also liked Weston Richburg two years ago and he went in the second (#43). He started at G his rookie year and has moved back to C. I could see that happening with Kelly as well. It would be great to think that the Texans could draft the WR with the first and get Kelly with their second but I can also see a team use their first on him at the end of the first round. So unless the Texans are pretty confident that Bergstrom or Mancz filling the role I'd sure like to strengthen that OL to protect the investment in Oweiler and Miller and look at WRs in the second (Shepard, Miller)
