Strength in numbers March 6, 2003 By Carter Toole HoustonTexans.com The Texans launched free agency last week by upgrading their offensive line. Today they indicated that they're far from finished. Five days after signing unrestricted free agent Zach Wiegert, the Texans traded one of their two fifth-round draft picks for Patriots right tackle Greg Randall. Randall is entering his fourth season. The pick is the second of Houston’s two fifth-round selections, the 19th pick in that round. Randall started 26 games (counting playoffs) at right tackle over three seasons with the Patriots, including all 19 games during New England’s Super Bowl XXXVI run two seasons ago. Randall played in seven games in 2002, starting three. “Greg is talented young player who has started in a Super Bowl,” Texans general manager Charley Casserly said. “Bolstering our offensive line is one of our primary off-season goals and we feel we’ve been able to do that with the two moves we’ve made over the past week.” That they have. The Texans presumably signed Wiegert, who spent the previous four seasons in Jacksonville, to play right tackle. He has played both tackle and guard over his eight NFL seasons. But 57 of Wiegert's 89 career starts have come at right guard, including 28 of his 43 starts for the Jaguars. Could Randall shift Wiegert down to right guard and replace the departed Ryan Young? It's too early to speculate. But at the very least the Texans have gained another veteran to bolster the depth of a unit that was decimated by injuries in 2002. Randall (6-5, 322) was a fixture at right tackle during the Patriots' championship season. He helped New England jump from 26th to 12th in the NFL in rushing and average 5.3 yards per carry in the Super Bowl XXXVI triumph over the Rams. But Randall lost his starting job in training camp last year to second-year pro Kenyatta Jones. He only saw special teams work through October but returned to the starting lineup for a three-game stint in a Nov. 3 win at Buffalo in which the Patriots racked up 159 rushing yards and allowed just one sack. Randall (6-5, 322) was originally drafted by the Patriots in the fourth round (127th overall) of the 2000 NFL Draft. He earned first-team All-Big Ten honors as a senior at Michigan State, lettering two seasons in East Lansing after transferring from Coffeyville (KS) Community College. Randall was born and raised in Galveston, earning all-state honors at La Marque High School. In case you're confused, Randall was known as Greg Robinson until extending his last name to Robinson-Randall to honor his late father, who died of cancer when he was five years old. Now he just goes by Greg Randall. Today’s trade is the sixth in club history and the first since Apr. 21, 2002, when the Texans traded a fourth-round pick in the 2001 draft to Atlanta in exchange for a third-round selection in this year’s draft. Moving Wiegert to RG shores up one side and leaves one side to go!
Does anybody have a rough idea of the percentile these lineman would fall into. How good or bad they are? in the top 50% of starters or higher? I have no idea. Anyone got a clue.
Thats only because he started for the Patriots the year they won the superbowl. The guy gives some depth to the team and could spot start on any given sunday. Wiegert will stay put at RT if Boselli is healthy.
