Good move, I wonder how much the texans saving by cutting these guys? http://www.chron.com/disp/story.mpl/sports/6280713.html As the 12:01 a.m. Friday deadline for the start of free agency approaches, the Texans are continuing to make moves. They are releasing defensive end Anthony Weaver, offensive tackle Ephraim Salaam and safety Will Demps today. Weaver is the only player of the three who started last season. He said Monday he found out he would be waived this week. The Texans are looking for a replacement for Weaver at left defensive end in free agency or the draft. Salaam played behind rookie left tackle Duane Brown last season. Demps began the season as a starter, but lost his job when the Texans moved Eugene Wilson and Nick Ferguson into the lineup. john.mcclain@chron.com
Salaam being cut is suprising. Duane played a whole lot better towards the end of the season but a backup LT is now a pretty big hole for us now. Biggest Needs (in order): 1. Pass rusher 2. Backup QB 3. Backup LT 4. Safety 5. Backup RB (preferrably goal line) 6. OLB I initially had safety and backup RB as our 2nd/3rd biggest needs. But with all these cuts/trades, I definitely think a backup QB/LT takes those spots. An injury at anyone of those positions w/o a proper backup would be a disaster.
my guess (strictly a guess) is that it's a temporary, cost-cutting move - i'd be shocked if he didn't return (assuming he doesn't retire). he'll be 33 this summer and i doubt there are going to be too many offers to start. he's been in kubiak's system for awhile, he has a bit of a local following (doesn't he have a local talk show?)...
#2 you can safely cross out. they obviously aren't worried about getting somebody good or serviceable, and likely already have a plan in place. i'd like to be able to say the same about #3 since they cut salaam, but who knows. #5 hasn't been considered a need by them for the past 7 years...don't know why they'd consider it one now. i'd like to see them address safety in the first round finally. not sure how many years in a row i've said that.
I should have stated that those are our biggest needs "as of right now." I agree that they most likely already have a plan in place for a backup QB, the Chron put out an article listing a couple guys the Texans might be interested in. But there are a lot of QBs that are serviceable backups so I'm not to worried about it being filled, but it's a high priority none the less. The same can't be said about a backup LT IMO. Hopefully Ric is right in that Salaam will be back, but if not, LTs are a high commodity and it may not be that easy to find a quality backup. I think Kubiak and Co are definitely considering a backup RB as a need because they absolutely know Slaton is their #1 guy and know they shouldn't run him into the ground. After Green was done last season, they went out and picked up Shipp and Sapp pretty quickly. I don't expect them to spend a high draft pick or a lot of money on one, but it's a need.
At least 1/2 of that list is backups. We're really not looking for a ton of new starters. That's a sign of progress, right?
well, personally, i don't agree with gucci888's priority: i'd place DE, DT, LB, CB, and S (in whatever order) as our top 5 priorities. if you told me an inside the 20 RB was more important than, say, a CB, i likely wouldn't disagree. i don't think a back-up QB or LT are UNimportant by any means; i just think starters or front-line contributors should always rank higher on the to-do list.
Im not too worried about picking up the back up QB and LT...thats going to happen without much of a problem. As far as a back up running back, I definitely think we need a bruiser. We need that goal line offense to be able to punch it in on a consistent basis. Defense is my biggest area of concern...we have a lot of positions to fill/upgrade. DE is my biggest priority, followed by secondary help, then DT, and finally OLB. The DT I would like to see us pick up in free agency is Rocky Bernard. The guy has been pretty consistent in his career and he's from Baytown, so he may like to come play in Houston. He had 55 total tackles last year (43 were solo)...and he even had a season where he got to the QB 8.5 times. He'll turn 30 before the season starts, but I think he would be a nice pick up for this team.
I wouldn't be surprised if that happens either. But it's also likely that he retires and begins his career in the movie industry. I don't remember the exact details but his brother is a hollywood writer or something, and Eph helps out with the business when he can. Having a backup swing-tackle is pretty important. If Brown or Winston goes down, even for a few plays, you've got to have a servicable guy that's not going to be abused by today's great DE's.
I agree for the most part, and my priority list looked a lot like yours before the cuts/trade. But as of right now, I do think a backup QB (considering Schaub's injury history) is more important than a CB. We already have one bonafied starter in Dunta and I think one of Bennett, Reeves, or possibly Molden could be the other starter and/or front-line contributer. Ric - What do you think about our LB situation? Diles was playing really well before his injury and I thought Adibi did a pretty good job filling in. I do see that LB is on your list, do you think we need an upgrade over Diles and/or Adibi?
Alex Gibbs and the coaching staff are pretty big on Rashad Butler, I wouldn't be surprised if he's the back up LT next season.
here's the interesting thing about their linebacking situation: if there's a certified BA middle linebacker available - well, that one guy conceivably upgrades two poisitions because you can then move ryans outside. that's significant and i imagine its something they're very much aware of. they seem to like diles and adibi; unfortunately, neither has much of a track record because of experience - can they hold up and be productive, year after year, for 16 games? so i wouldn't place them above the pass rush or the safety position (or probably, now that i think about it, the RB position) as a priority... but i wouldn't assume anything, either. if they can upgrade, they should upgrade. and i think diles and/or adibi would still have a place here as valuable back-ups and special teams contributors.
keep in mind kubiak just turned a career journeyman back-up into a 4th round pick. so i don't think finding another journeyman back-up (who's younger and might actually have a future here) is going to prove difficult. i mean, there're a lot of candidates available and i'd wager houston would be a pretty decent landing spot for a lot of them given kubiak's track record, not to mention schaub's.
It sucks that Salaam got released but from what I have heard, a bit of it seems like he might be seeking a starters job else where. He was brought to the Texans to be a veteran backup, but has started for a large chunk of his time here and he seems to want to be starter, which if Brown continued to develop wouldn't be an option for him here. I still have to wonder what went on with Demps, he was solid (not spectacular but solid) in the 07 season but in the games he started in 08, it was like he wasn't ever on the field even before the injury. I hope the same thing doesn't happen with Eugene Wilson.
I don't think you can have too many O-lineman in the fold, but I actually think this might not be a bad move if they give the backup LT spot to Rashad Butler. That would mean they would quit platooning Brown and Salaam, which I think was a bad idea from the start. Brown is the future, so why not let him take all the snaps? It can't do anything but make him better.
