2021 Houston Texans - (2 Viewers)

[Houston turmOiler]

Good let's replace Washington with Corey Coleman then

 

[SWC]

i hope that htis year during player introductions all year that jj watt rides in an endangered snow tiger and that after he gets a sack and does his famous dance he goes over and pets that tiger take that to the bank bromigos 

 

[GregR]

A.J. Bouye signed his tender.

And Brandon Weeden was re-signed.  2 years, $4m total. Probably going to try to trade Hoyer now.

Kind of surprising the success the Texans have had getting draft picks, any draft picks, for their old QBs:

• Fitz to the Jets for what ended up being a 6th
  
• Schaub to the Raiders for a 6th
  
• Keenum to the Rams for a 7th
  
• Yates to the Falcons for... Akeem Dent I think?
  

 

[GregR]

Crick signed with Denver.  In need of a DE now.

 

[Houston turmOiler]

I'm amazed Denver had any room to sign anyone. Must have been a cheap contract, which I guess means we didn't value him very much at. Still hoping to land Corey Coleman but I suppose there could be some good defensive linemen at 22. We could definitely use some new talent there as well even though I'd like to get another weapon, preferably speedy, for Brock....

 

[GregR]

Sounds like they'll have to make some moves to fit anything under the cap.  2 year contract, but they only had $1.62m in cap room this morning per an ESPN article.

 

[Buckna]

I'm amazed Denver had any room to sign anyone. Must have been a cheap contract, which I guess means we didn't value him very much at. Still hoping to land Corey Coleman but I suppose there could be some good defensive linemen at 22. We could definitely use some new talent there as well even though I'd like to get another weapon, preferably speedy, for Brock....

I think its all dependent on if Coleman is still on the board at our pick. Otherwise: hello defensive lineman and then they will focus on someone in the 2nd or 3rd for WR.

Since basically everybody is mocking Coleman, it's almost certain he will be off the board before we pick. Likely because someone trades right in front of Rick Smith.

 

[Houston turmOiler]

I think its all dependent on if Coleman is still on the board at our pick. Otherwise: hello defensive lineman and then they will focus on someone in the 2nd or 3rd for WR.

Since basically everybody is mocking Coleman, it's almost certain he will be off the board before we pick. Likely because someone trades right in front of Rick Smith.

Maybe Rick should trade up a few spots so we get this guy. The 3rd round pick we'd give up is usually something lousy like Crapodorwitz anyway. 

 

[GregR]

Preseason schedule:


Houston Texans


Week 1: at San Francisco 49ers
Week 2: vs. New Orleans Saints
Week 3: vs. Arizona Cardinals
Week 4: at Dallas Cowboys

 

[GregR]

2016 schedule:


HOUSTON TEXANS 2016 SCHEDULE 


 


 


 


 


 


 


 


PRESEASON


Day


Date


Opponent 


TV Network


Kickoff Time  


Sunday


Aug. 14


at San Francisco 49ers


KTRK


6:00 p.m.


Saturday


Aug. 20


NEW ORLEANS SAINTS


KTRK


7:00 p.m.


Sunday


Aug. 28 


ARIZONA CARDINALS


FOX#


3:00 p.m.


Thursday 


Sept. 1


at Dallas Cowboys


KTRK


7:00 p.m.


 


 


REGULAR SEASON


Day


Date


Opponent 


TV Network


Kickoff Time


Sunday


Sept. 11


CHICAGO BEARS


FOX


Noon


Sunday


Sept. 18


KANSAS CITY CHIEFS


CBS


Noon


Thursday


Sept. 22


at New England Patriots


CBS/NFLN/Twitter#


7:25 p.m.


Sunday


Oct. 2


TENNESSEE TITANS


CBS


Noon


Sunday


Oct. 9


at Minnesota Vikings


CBS


Noon


Sunday


Oct. 16


INDIANAPOLIS COLTS


NBC#


7:30 p.m.


Monday


Oct. 24


at Denver Broncos


ESPN#


7:30 p.m.


Sunday


Oct. 30


DETROIT LIONS


FOX


Noon


 


 


BYE


Sunday


Nov. 13


at Jacksonville Jaguars


CBS


Noon


Monday


Nov. 21


at Oakland Raiders


ESPN#


7:30 p.m.


Sunday


Nov. 27


SAN DIEGO CHARGERS


CBS


Noon


Sunday


Dec. 4


at Green Bay Packers


CBS


Noon


Sunday


Dec. 11


at Indianapolis Colts


CBS


Noon


Sunday


Dec. 18


JACKSONVILLE JAGUARS


CBS


Noon


Saturday


Dec. 24


CINCINNATI BENGALS


NFLN#


7:25 p.m.


Sunday


Jan. 1


at Tennessee Titans


CBS


Noon

 

[GregR]

Chargers and Raiders both are coming off of byes when they play us.

 

[GregR]

Crick's contract with Denver was 2 years, $4million.

 

[Houston turmOiler]

Hoyer looks like he's officially gone. Weeden would appear to be the backup for now. Stick with Savage or look for another developmental QB later? Wouldn't mind someone like Hackenberg or Hogan 4th round or later to compete and develop

 

[GregR]

So my friends, who are we wanting Thursday?

I'm having a bit of a hard time still deciding which WR I'm hoping is there. I know we are looking for speed, but a lot of drops is something I'm always a bit wary about in a receiver. Coleman may be the best fit but I could see Doctston ending being the better NFL receiver easily enough.

I guess I'm probably hoping for Coleman that or that someone just plain slides who shouldn't have. Wouldn't be upset with an offensive lineman. Need a DE but I'd be happy with someone in the 2nd, just seems like not the right position to take in the 1st barring someone really sliding.

 

[Houston turmOiler]

Really hoping for Coleman 

 

[Getinthemix]

Doctson here

 

[GrandpaRox]

Fuller but Treadwell, Coleman, Doctson or Henry will work.

I really expect Doctson but he is not my first choice.

 

[FF Ninja]

Really hoping for Coleman 

The General was wheezing about him this morning on 610, saying that's who we're taking.

 

[Buckna]

Feel like they are dialed in to one of Fuller or Coleman but one will be gone, likely because the Vikings or Bengals will have traded in front of us. Fuller is my guess or something less exciting (but still a good pick) like Ryan Kelly at Center.

 

[Buckna]

Neat article I saw today. Interesting to see that Smith had worked out a trade up for Patrick Peterson with SF at 7 but he went to Arizona at 5. Instead we ended up with a little known player named JJ Watt. Of course, Peterson is a great player too.

An oral history of the star-studded 2011 NFL draft, five years later...

 

[GregR]

Heard interview with John Harris on the radio today.

His take, his gut he doesn't think the Texans will be taking a WR despite the talk. He's personally hoping for Ryan Kelly, the C from Alabama to be there. Thinks he could turn into a multi-Pro Bowler.

Other interesting discussion was about the teams picking after us. Apparently everyone believes Pittsburgh is hot for a CB, think they said William Jackson from U of H. They mentioned the Chiefs and Cardinals could be two teams who are also targeting him, and that could create an opportunity for a trade down for Houston as they jump a few spots ahead of Pittsburgh.  Again this was John Harris speculating (though I think Mark Vandermeer was the one that came up with the scenario of teams looking for a QB), and he thought if we could trade down and still get Sterling Shepard he'd be happy.

 

[Jayded]

I'm a huge Irish fan so I've seen all of Fuller's college games. The best way to describe his game is that he's got a ton of horsepower vs. torque when you're talking about his speed. Yes he ran a fast time at the combine, but where he really excels is stuttering off the line and then exploding past a defender when both are already moving. His high volume of routine drops vs. the acrobatic stuff he's able to pull sometimes is concerning, but I do like that he was asked to run many route combinations in the offense he played within should he be the Texans' choice.

I like Coleman as well and feel either could be a great fit. I would be surprised if the Texans go WR and don't go with Doctson or Coleman, but if they choose Fuller the above is what he'd need to work on to go from good to great.

 

[zeeshan2]

Heard that Cincy wants Fuller and will pick him if he's still there; they also want to try and jump the Vikings for Doctson

What do you guys think of Fuller? 

 

[Houston turmOiler]

I'd rather have Coleman than any of them.  if we don't get him I'd like to trade back a little bit and get Henry at tight end. 

 

[GregR]

I'm a Notre Dame fan too so have seen lots of Fuller. He does make a lot of great catches to go with the drops like Jayded said. Not going to break a lot of tackles but could run away from guys if you can hit him on the move. I can't really attest to his route running beyond that ability to accelerate past defenders on the deeper routes, but he definitely does have more experience there than someone like Coleman.

 

[GregR]

I don't have any complaints about the Fuller pick. But I also don't want to suddenly love it just because he's on the team now.

Like I said before I couldn't really settle on which WR I wanted. I'll just be happy they got their choice and hopefully O'brien made a good one. Apparently Fuller was committed to play for O'brien at Penn State until the sanctions and he switched to Notre Dame instead. I am interested to hear what went on that they traded up. I'm guessing they were convinced Washington was going to take him. Or someone else was going to trade up. In any event it shows they saw Fuller as being significantly better than the rest of the WR class that they weren't content on taking from whoever was left at their pick. Whether he turns out to be remains to be seen.

In any event, this should be a different looking Texans offense. Obviously Osweiler is going to be a change, but we added one of the fastest running backs in the league in Lamar Miller and now have one of the faster WRs in Fuller, to go with Hop who is a deep threat of his own just for being able to win the battle in the air. Let's hope that translates into big play ability and stretches out defenses.

 

[cjv123]

I hate the pick. Doctson and Carroo will be much better Pros than Fuller. Fuller has no physicality at all apart from straight-line. He's Ted Ginn without Ginn's all-pro return game. Truly horrible pick. When the Chiefs ran away from the Texans the Texans lost their minds. Fuller is not a DB so he won't help with the real speed problem, which is on defense.

 

[Buckna]

Feel like they are dialed in to one of Fuller or Coleman but one will be gone, likely because the Vikings or Bengals will have traded in front of us. Fuller is my guess or something less exciting (but still a good pick) like Ryan Kelly at Center.

Pretty close to right, except the Browns traded back again and took Coleman. Not super excited, Fuller is exactly the player BOB would want for his offense, and probably makes more football sense in opening up the field for Hopkins and Miller as opposed to catching a lot of passes. I prefer WR2's be more than mainly deep threats though. Ideally someone that can play more than one spot and fill in for your #1 if needed. Don't think it was a reach or mind the trade up at all, but I expect this pick to be blasted for years to come as Fuller likely won't ever be a high volume guy but that's not what his role is going to be anyway.

Seems unlikely, but fingers crossed that Hunter Henry falls to us in the 2nd.

 

[GregR]

Saw BOB said they would consider Fuller as a returner too. IIRC he only had a pair of punt returns in college. 

 

[Getinthemix]

Hate the fuller pick.  WR's who can't consistently catch concern me.

Got a news alert that said the Texans had their hearts set on Karl Joseph.  Would have been VERY happy if that had come to fruition

 

[Chadstroma]

As an ND fan, I think this is a great pick for what the pick is. The guy can bust open coverage with his speed and the knock on his hands is over blown. He makes the hard deep catches which you ought to be making him do a lot of those. Lot's of post, go and corner routes. He will burn CB's on those and safeties will have to respect that. If you don't, you will give up 6. Meanwhile, that respect opens things up for the offense. It makes Hopkins that much more dangerous as the primary focus of the passing game.

 

[GregR]

He needs to improve on catching with his hands on short and intermediate routes.  Lets it get into his body too much.

But Deep routes he does an outstanding job at catching. 5th best catch percentage in the nation on long passes.  Shorter passes his ranking drops into the 80s I think it was. He does a great job shielding with his body, adjusts very well to a thrown ball and seems one of the better I've seen at over the shoulder catches.  Not as good at the contested balls though so you want a QB who isn't going to be under-throwing him a lot.

I'd like someone with overall better hands, but you're not going to get a WR in the 20s who we think doesn't have some kind of wart to overcome or make up for with other attributes. He's a better route runner with more experience in the array of routes the Texans want him to run than the other speedy options

Again, I don't want to go all uber positive just because he's a Texan now. But it's not like he should be ineffective either.

 

[coolnerd]

The offense has seriously increased its raw speed and big play ability when the moves are taken as a whole versus them apart. The Texans are attempting to move away from the methodical, must execute every play stuff of the past few years. sure, there is plenty of questions of the how and who, but I at least see them as trying to change the nature of the offense. whether it works is what they play football games to find out.

I don't think that the Texans are thinking of the offense in terms of number 2-4 (hopkins given) versus having 3-4 Wrs sets with guys that have cause different match-up problems. I will be interested to see if the Texans try to upgrade TE and what type. I think the Texans will some version of the pro spread, passing match-up offense. What we saw the first two years was more modified Kubiak with some stuff thrown in than what O'Brien envisions as how to play offense in 2016.

My belief is BOBs offense passes early and often. With being shaky at best undercenter and a one man show passing game, the Texans still were 10th in the league in pass attempts in 2015, but were 30th in completion percentage and 29th in yards per attempt.  

Edit: I posted this before the Braxton Miller pick..wash, rinse, repeat, with heavy starch

 

[GregR]

Just going to quote Jayded from the draft thread as he sums up how I feel about the draft pretty good with this sentence:

  1 hour ago, Jayded said:
Agree to disagree. Will was routinely double teamed in college and had more TDs this year than Ginn or DHB had in their entire college careers. 

The knock on Fuller is the mid tier ball range. He's electric with screens and tracks a deep ball as good as you could want. 

The Texans didn't go with Doctson or Treadwell because their game is similar to DHop's. Imagine now running Lamar Miller out to one flat, Braxton Miller to another, Hopkins slanting to the middle, and Fuller going deep. That's how he fits in ideally with their offense. 

I don't know if they got the right guys or whether they will be busts, but I do like that I think they had a scheme in mind that fit the rest of the roster and went to get the people they think can pull it off.  BOB seems to be very good at fitting an offense to what his personnel can do, as evidenced by how they keep changing the game plan as the turnstile of QBs progressed throughout the season. I think he's got personnel now with the potential to be used in ways that can make the offense into one with a lot of good dimensions and flexibility for how he uses them.  Just have to hope they develop them, as both Fuller and Braxton Miller need to improve in various ways.

 

[GregR]

Also meant to mention, this draft class may provide a definite boost in the return game. Though I think things like blocking and on the other side coverage were as much a problem as were the returners themselves.

Tyler Ervin:

                    Kick Ret                              Punt Ret
Year      G      Ret      Yds       Avg     TD    Ret      Yds      Avg      TD
2011      12      28      672      24.0       1                     
*2012      9      22      599      27.2       2                     
2013      1        0          0          0        0        0        0
2014      12      26      506      19.5       0        7       81      11.6       1
2015      13      25      597      23.9       0        7      105      15.0      1
Career           101     2374      23.5      3      14       186      13.3      2

 

[GregR]

After finishing their draft that included selecting six players over three days, the Texans agreed to terms with 16 undrafted free agents. The deals are contingent on the players passing physicals.

Offensive players joining the Texans are Memphis receiver Tevin Jones, USC fullback Soma Vainuku, Alabama receiver Richard Mullaney, California tight end Stephen Anderson, University of the Cumberlands receiver Wendall Williams and Tulane tackle Arturo Uzdavinis.

 
Defensive players joining the Texans are Miami end Ufomba Kamalu, North Carolina inside linebacker Shakeel Rashad, Michigan State end Joel Heath, California inside linebacker Jalen Jefferson, Stanford outside linebacker Brennan Scarlett, South Florida outside linebacker Eric Lee, Texas cornerback Duke Thomas, San Jose State cornerback Cleveland Wallace and Florida International cornerback Richard Leonard.

The Texans also reached a deal with UCLA kicker Ka'imi Fairbairn.

The kicker's full name incidentally is John Christian Ka'iminoeauloameka'ikeokekumupa'a Fairbairn

 

[GregR]

Ka’imi Fairbairn’s debut as the kicker at UCLA is memorable for reasons he would just as soon forget: three of his first five extra-point attempts went horribly wrong.

“Kicked it right into the heads of our offensive linemen,” coach Jim Mora remembers.

Mora is able to laugh about it now, though. Over Fairbairn’s next 52 games, he missed just two more PATs, became the Pac-12’s all-time leading scorer and was honored with the Lou Groza Award on Saturday as the best kicker in college football.

 

[GrandpaRox]

This is the best Texans draft ever and complemented their best Free Agency ever. 

This team is going to kick serious butt. 

Speed kills and this team now has speed everywhere on the field.

And you guys who think Fuller is a pass dropping machine are in for a surprise and have not done your research.

He had 21 drops the past two years but only 9 of them were from last season. So he had 21 drops and 138 catches for just over 2200 yards and 29 TDs over the last two years, I'll take those stats.

 

[GregR]

UDFA CB Richard Leonard is another guy they signed with a lot of return experience.

 

[Jayded]

This is the best Texans draft ever and complemented their best Free Agency ever. 

This team is going to kick serious butt. 

Speed kills and this team now has speed everywhere on the field.

And you guys who think Fuller is a pass dropping machine are in for a surprise and have not done your research.

He had 21 drops the past two years but only 9 of them were from last season. So he had 21 drops and 138 catches for just over 2200 yards and 29 TDs over the last two years, I'll take those stats.

To your last point: The problem with Fuller is less in the drops and more how he attempts to catch the ball. He definitely did let the ball get to his body too much and needs to work on extending his hands for those short to medium throws. That'll eliminate many of the drops as his highlights demonstrate great ability to track deep balls over the shoulder or in contested situations and now he just needs to recognize how to do that for those shorter ranges.

The thing for Texans fans to know about Fuller is not just that he's fast overall, but it's more that his second and third gear are ridiculously fast. He is less fast off the line and more fast once he's moving to accelerate by defenders. In the link below, really watch the replay at about the 30 second mark to highlight what I'm referring to. Adoree Jackson was the corner he flew by and Jackson will be a top flight CB pick in next years' draft.

http://www.nbcsports.com/video/deshone-kizer-hits-will-fuller-75-yard-td

 

[FF Ninja]

This is the best Texans draft ever and complemented their best Free Agency ever. 

This team is going to kick serious butt. 

Speed kills and this team now has speed everywhere on the field.

And you guys who think Fuller is a pass dropping machine are in for a surprise and have not done your research.

He had 21 drops the past two years but only 9 of them were from last season. So he had 21 drops and 138 catches for just over 2200 yards and 29 TDs over the last two years, I'll take those stats.

I'm reserving judgment and have not done any research, but getting excited that "only" 9 drops were from last season is kind of crazy. 9 drops = a lot.

I like the enthusiasm in this thread, but after years of mediocrity from Rick Smith, I'm not optimistic that this year is going to be any better than the others. I hope I'm wrong. Blind squirrels do occasionally find a nut.

 

[Bronco Billy]

So has HOU given up on Jaelen Strong already?  That is disappointing. 

 

[GregR]

So has HOU given up on Jaelen Strong already?  That is disappointing. 

Strong is a different type of receiver than both Fuller and Miller. He is not sudden, unlikely to be a threat that can stretch the defense. I would think he still has a place as a possession receiver working the middle and red zone.

 

[Bronco Billy]

Strong is a different type of receiver than both Fuller and Miller. He is not sudden, unlikely to be a threat that can stretch the defense. I would think he still has a place as a possession receiver working the middle and red zone.

That seems odd to me. While he is not comparatively fast to many other WRs, he is incredibly adept at using his body as a shield and high pointing the ball at advantageous angles. He won't run by CBs, but he's very dependable at catching contested passes. If I'm a QB, he's the perfect guy to send deep. His ball skills make up for errors in ball placement. 

 

[Jayded]

That seems odd to me. While he is not comparatively fast to many other WRs, he is incredibly adept at using his body as a shield and high pointing the ball at advantageous angles. He won't run by CBs, but he's very dependable at catching contested passes. If I'm a QB, he's the perfect guy to send deep. His ball skills make up for errors in ball placement. 

I don't think you guys are saying different things but Greg is highlighting NFL typical usage.

Teams need that solid #1 WR that is typically a hybrid receiver that can catch any tree route but is usually not the supreme speedster or even short route guy on the team, but the most complete receiver (Hopkins, Jordy Nelson, Dez Bryant).

Where I see Strong fitting in is behind Hopkins as he has a similar skill set in that regard, not being a specialist. Fuller is your deep specialist. Miller is your short play could become an 80 yard TD hybrid player.

Now imagine putting all three in a bunch on one side of the line and ask each to run his respective specialty (Miller short, Hopkins mid, Fuller deep). Someone is single covered and the defensive coordinator is always concerned. And as soon as that happens, Lamar Miller comes flying out of the backfield in the same direction with the ball too.

 

[GregR]

Yes, not saying you can't ever send Strong deep. I'm saying the benefit of Strong as a deep threat isn't the same as Fuller.

If you're an NFL safety and you have some sort of deep coverage responsibility with Strong on your side of the field, is it going to change where you line up? Are you going to feel like you have to back up extra to keep him from burning you deep? No, you probably won't worry extra about him getting behind you.  You're going to play from your normal mark at your normal distance from the line of scrimmage.

Now how are you going to play it if you have the same responsibility but it's Will Fuller lined up?  You're going to probably start the play lined up further away from the line, and you're probably going to be going into a backpedal sooner than you are with Strong. If you don't, the chance of him blowing completely past you is too real of a possibility to not adjust. You aren't going to be in as good of a position to stop a run or to help on the shorter routes. The presence of a speedster like Fuller is going to impact the defense in ways Strong won't, and that's why you are going to want Fuller to be the guy running many of those deep routes so it is a continued threat.

Of course Fuller also needs to demonstrate he can make people pay. Teams early on may or may not give him that extra cushion with the safeties. They may instead try to negate some speed by pressing him at the line. It may take him burning a couple of people before they give him that respect.

And then throw in that Strong is probably better, more reliable across the middle, and that's where I'm thinking we see him working those routes a bit more while Fuller works the deep ones.

 

[coolnerd]

So has HOU given up on Jaelen Strong already?  That is disappointing. 

I think the design of the offense a 3WR base that will use so-called WRs 2-4 (maybe even 5) as match up pieces. Even with his issues, the indications seem to be that Fuller and Miller were not replacement parts versus additional features. this might mean that strong has his fantasy upside capped a bit, but does not mean the club has given up on him. 

 

[GrandpaRox]

So has HOU given up on Jaelen Strong already?  That is disappointing. 

Jalen Strong is very much in this discussion, don't know where you are getting your information.

I am sure you have heard of Percy Harvin 4.41 and Cordarrell Patterson 4.42 and the Jet Sweep and the Fly Sweep?

The Texans drafted specifically to get faster to be able to run a full offense.

Jaelen Strong: 4.44

Lamar Miller: 4.42

Will Fuller: 4.32

Braxton Miller: 4.35

Tyler Ervin: 4.39  

and the slow guy

Deandre Hopkins: 4.57

All of this speed on the field, all over the field on every play if necessary.

Running backs catching passes. Wide receivers running the ball. Whatever the coach wants to run. The Texans are no longer limited by speed. Pedal to the metal baby.

This has the potential to be one of the most dynamic offenses in the NFL.

 

[dhockster]

I like what the Texans have done this offseason. I think if they can add a veteran DE who gets cut from another team to compliment JJ, their defense will be really strong and there offense should get stronger as the season goes on.

 

[FF Ninja]

Braxton Miller: 4.35

Um, didn't he run a 4.50?