| Jeff Risdon. 9th May, 2007 - 1:58 pm
 The picks:
1st round, #10 overall--Amobi Okoye, DT, Louisville
3rd round, #73--Jacoby Jones, WR, Lane
4th round, #123--Fred Bennett, CB, South Carolina
5th round, #144--Brandon Harrison, S/LB, Stanford
5th round, #163--Brandon Frye, T, Virginia Tech
6th round, #183--Kasey Studdard, G, Texas
7th round, #218--Zach Diles, LB, Kansas State
Best pick: Okoye
Worst pick: Bennett
Analysis:
The Texans had far more needs than picks, which generally portends taking NFL-ready players with lower risk instead of taking chances on more unproven or marginal prospects. Houston did not buy into that wisdom, for better or worse.
Okoye has his detractors but I’m not one of them. I believe that in 3 years he’ll be the best defensive player from this draft class, an agile but powerful inside force who makes plays in the backfield and commands constant double teams. But he’s going to require some seasoning and he’s got very little around him to help. The thinking is that Okoye and last year’s #1 overall, Mario Williams, can form a dominating duo that sets the tone for their defense. That’s a nice thought, but here’s the reality of it: Courtney Brown and Gerard Warren, D-linemen taken by Cleveland with top 3 overall picks in consecutive years; both wound up being awful busts from which the team has yet to recover. And both were more NFL-ready than Okoye is right now.
The Texans addressed their gaping hole at WR with Jones, a small-school wonder with a great size/speed package, though he has fought the dropsies quite often. He should represent an immediate upgrade at #2 WR and complement Andre Johnson well, and one scout who watched him a lot compared him to Bryant Johnson of the Cardinals, which the Texans would happily take.
Bennett is a hot-and-cold cover man who struggles with physical WRs and offers nothing in run support. He will make some plays though, and he offers great size and good recovery speed. Harrison is (take your pick) an oversized but slow safety or an undersized, soft LB with poor instincts. He’s one of those guys that looks awesome in the training room but not on the field.
Frye was a solid pick in the late 5th round, a project OL who has the chance to be a capable 6th lineman on a team desperate for depth and athleticism up front, though he’s quite raw.
Studdard is a physical mauler but he’s got zero lateral movement and poor balance.
Diles is a special teams athlete, nothing more.
Grade: C-
Considering they dealt their 2nd rounder (and then some) to get QB Matt Schaub, the Texans didn’t have a plethora of options to fill their plethora of needs. This class offers scant immediate help, and only the first 3 picks look like they will ever become starters. The team still has issues at safety, interior OL, OLB, and overall speed at the outside positions. Rome wasn’t built in a day, but other teams recently in similar situations to the Texans have done better than this. |
