I did mean to include Wong..... i just am not sure if he will actually end up on the inside at Houston. If he does, he's in there in the late 20's somewhere. I think Greenwood will be the playmaker of the two though.
Pro Football Weekly ~ The Way We Hear It The Texans have two new starters at inside linebacker: Kailee Wong and former Dolphins WLB Morlon Greenwood. They replace Jamie Sharper and Jay Foreman, who were released. Texans LB coach Tom Olivadotti, while making it clear he wasn’t criticizing Sharper or Foreman, is excited about what the new starters can do. “I think we can make more plays on the ball with the guys we have,” said Olivadotti. While Greenwood was listed as an outside linebacker in Miami, Olivadotti said he played behind the line as an inside ’backer. The 6-foot, 238-pound Greenwood plays with “good leverage, even for a shorter guy,” said Olivadotti. Wong, who played some middle linebacker in Minnesota, moves back inside after three years outside. Olivadotti likes Wong’s zone-coverage ability and believes it will be an asset to a LB corps that has sometimes struggled in that area.
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Note: Kailee Wong has been named one of the Texans team captains and LB coach Tom Olivadotti has also stated that he will be a 3 down linebacker for the Texans in 2005.
Well, at least one Shark got on my case for talking about this "too much", but here goes again. First, I have a good friend who is a die hard Texans homer, who feels this isn't all in concrete yet. I know Wong has been named the D captain, but there is still some chance he could play on the outside. It isn't so much that either Moreno or Evans can outplay Wong in the middle, it has more to do with the ROLB position. From the Texans' site:Under the radar
By Carter Toole
HoustonTexans.com
Much of the off-season attention in Texanland has been focused on Antwan Peek -- and rightly so.
Peek is sliding into starting the right outside linebacker slot after a season in which he emerged as the Texans' proverbial microwave, making the most of limited snaps with big play after big play.
But Peek's last big play -- a 66-yard fumble return for a touchdown at Jacksonville the day after Christmas -- resulted in an injured shoulder. Thus, the Texans are limiting Peek's participation in these coaching sessions to 7-on-7 drills. And that's created an opportunity for Charlie Anderson.
In many ways, Anderson is where Peek was a year ago, heading into his second year after adjusting to the switch from college defensive end to outside linebacker. And like Peek, Houston's coaching staff is very intrigued.
“Charlie's doing well,” defensive coordinator Vic Fangio said Friday. “He has definitely progressed from last year. He's feeling more comfortable in the system and in executing his assignments. His technique is better and he's moving faster.”
Anderson was considered a project as a sixth-round pick last season but quickly impressed the coaches with his motor and attitude. He made an immediate impact on special teams -- eventually recording 13 special teams tackles -- but didn't see action at linebacker until Oct. 31 against the Jaguars. Anderson finally made a tackle six weeks later against the Colts. That was his lone tackle of the season, but not his biggest play.
That came a week later at frigid Chicago. Cornerback Dunta Robinson sacked Bears quarterback Chad Hutchinson on a blitz. Hutchinson coughed up the ball and Anderson scooped it up and raced 60 yards for the first touchdown by a Texans rookie in their brief history.
“Charlie started to play some and play well at the end of last year,” head coach Dom Capers said. “He’s plenty athletic enough. He just needs to get stronger.”
Fangio agrees.
“We'll see what he does when the pads come on,” he said. “He's got to show that he's strong enough to play outside.”
Anderson played at about 238 pounds as a rookie and tried his best to bulk up in his first NFL off-season without sacrificing his speed. He’s up to 246 at these coaching sessions.
“I did a little bit of everything,” Anderson said. “I tried to work on speed and footwork but also tried put on a few more pounds.
“It will be different when we put the pads on because you're running with 8-10 pounds more and the temperature will be hotter.”
At that point, Anderson’s reps might decrease as Peek works his way back into the fold. But that doesn’t diminish the experience Anderson is getting now.
“When you get those reps, you have to take advantage of them,” he said. “And you're exposed to a lot of things you wouldn't see if you weren't in there. This has helped me. I'm getting different looks from the offense.”
Capers and the rest of the staff aren't sure how well either Peek or Anderson are prepared to play the outside just yet. And, and it's a bigger IF than most people realise, I think, they are keeping the option of moving Wong back outside, just in case. Neither Peek or Anderson have fully learned the system. Peek's injury is hurting him, missing reps in practice, and Anderson was still considered something of a project. While last year Peek made some big plays, he also blew assignments as well. They generally feel that Moreno and Evans are more prepared to play at RILB than Peek and Anderson are ready to start on the outside. Sure, I think it's much better than 50-50 that Wong will play the inside, but I'm not betting the farm on it.... yet.
The fact that Capers romanced Boulware tells me they still don't have confidence in Peek or Anderson. So, I have my reasons for questioning where Wong plays, even if others don't agree.
The preseason should answer those questions, but I still have Wong on the side notes of my rankings until I get more confidence he's definitely starting on the inside.