99topdawg
Well-Known Member
ESPN has bold moves NFL teams should make in the offseason. This would make me a Texans fan.
Houston Texans: Sign Eric Reid, then draft Iowa's entire O-line
For a team one season removed from a playoff win that has since found a potential franchise quarterback, the Texans are in a strangely difficult situation. Their defense, ranked ninth in DVOA in 2016, dropped to an injury-ravaged 23rd in 2017. The franchise quarterback, Deshaun Watson, tore his ACL in October. Other top-tier starters from 2016 such as Duane Brown and A.J. Bouyeare now long gone. The fourth-worst record in the league would usually mean a premium draft pick, but Houston's first- and second-round picks belong to Cleveland, sent over in trades for the pick to acquire Watson and offload the salary of Brock Osweiler.
The Texans have two remaining assets: cap space (most estimates give them around $60 million free) and a wealth of mid- to late-round picks, including three in the third round alone. Of course, this does not make up for losing the fourth and 36th overall selections, and would not be enough to swing a blockbuster trade (or even to win the annual Joe Thomas Imaginary Trade sweepstakes) -- but it's also not nothing.
For their $60 million and picks, the Texans urgently need to find a strong safety and an entire offensive line. The first of those is simpler: Throw whatever money it takes to persuade Reid to come over from San Francisco. That would give Houston a versatile player capable of playing moneybacker, slot corner or a more traditional safety spot from down to down. The team could then theoretically find four Day 2 and Day 3 offensive linemen from one college with a reputation for producing NFL talent -- let's say Iowa, trading up into the second round for center James Daniels, then picking up teammates Sean Welsh, Ike Boettger and Boone Myers with later selections. Such a strategy would alleviate some of the chemistry concerns that come with building an entire offensive line from scratch.
Houston Texans: Sign Eric Reid, then draft Iowa's entire O-line
For a team one season removed from a playoff win that has since found a potential franchise quarterback, the Texans are in a strangely difficult situation. Their defense, ranked ninth in DVOA in 2016, dropped to an injury-ravaged 23rd in 2017. The franchise quarterback, Deshaun Watson, tore his ACL in October. Other top-tier starters from 2016 such as Duane Brown and A.J. Bouyeare now long gone. The fourth-worst record in the league would usually mean a premium draft pick, but Houston's first- and second-round picks belong to Cleveland, sent over in trades for the pick to acquire Watson and offload the salary of Brock Osweiler.
The Texans have two remaining assets: cap space (most estimates give them around $60 million free) and a wealth of mid- to late-round picks, including three in the third round alone. Of course, this does not make up for losing the fourth and 36th overall selections, and would not be enough to swing a blockbuster trade (or even to win the annual Joe Thomas Imaginary Trade sweepstakes) -- but it's also not nothing.
For their $60 million and picks, the Texans urgently need to find a strong safety and an entire offensive line. The first of those is simpler: Throw whatever money it takes to persuade Reid to come over from San Francisco. That would give Houston a versatile player capable of playing moneybacker, slot corner or a more traditional safety spot from down to down. The team could then theoretically find four Day 2 and Day 3 offensive linemen from one college with a reputation for producing NFL talent -- let's say Iowa, trading up into the second round for center James Daniels, then picking up teammates Sean Welsh, Ike Boettger and Boone Myers with later selections. Such a strategy would alleviate some of the chemistry concerns that come with building an entire offensive line from scratch.
