I think that it is pretty obvious at this point that St. Louis made out like a bandit in the RGIII trade.
I do find it amazing that St. Louis has Tampa Bay and a possible Super Bowl bound Seattle, who may be sitting starters week 17, as the only thing standing in the way of finishing last in thier division at 8-8. Not bad for a division that a few years ago sent a division champ to the playoffs with the same record.
Let’s not go crazy. RGIII was at least a candidate for MVP last year, and did win OROTY; the Rams still don’t have a franchise quarterback, which makes everything else kind of meaningless.
When they made the trade, St. Louis figured Sam Bradford would be the guy. I doubt they’re so sure right now.
Looks like the oily puddle that was the Houston Texans has earned the clusterfuck title running away, and in impressive fashion. They started the season undefeated before putting together a breathtaking 14 game losing streak. Their stunning collapse deserves the highest admiration, never has a team played so hard for April.
Wait, what? The NFC-W division champs in 2010 had a record of 7-9, not 8-8.
Mel Kiper has released his Top 5:
I have to say that I seriously doubted Manziel’s pro potential going into this season, expecting a Tebow-like transition once he gets drafted. But while his numbers weren’t nearly as absurd as they were last year, I saw him play smarter and more capable football. I don’t really see him going #1, but teams without a QB seem to get pretty desperate on draft day.
Desperate or not, I can’t see the Texans taking Manziel over Teddy Bridgewater under any circumstances (except possibly Bridgewater blowing out his knee on his pro day or something.) As far as I know, the Texans have no problem filling their stadium*; it’s not like we’re talking about the Jaguars or something.
I really, really hope that Blake Bortles doesn’t go to the Browns, too. He’s such a nice kid.
*even if their stadium is full of assholes.
I wonder if Manziel will have a similar Tebow problem in Pro. One of the things that was great about Tebow at the college level was that he could run. He was a big dude, and could have played running back just fine, and when the pocket collapses in college or you need some yards as a quarterback, he could pull it off. But in pro, they don’t need the QB to run - in fact, they don’t WANT the QB to run for fear of him getting injured. So one of Tebow’s strengths was irrelevant in Pro, which meant he had to rely on his throwing, which while above average in college was less than mediocre in the Pros.
Manziel can also run - the little guy is fast, I will give him that. But he’s also small, so the Pros are going to want him to run even less. I think Manziel’s a better passer than Tebow, so I think he’ll do better, but he’s not going to be the standout carry-the-team-to-victory guy he was at TAMU.
Barring a series of freak accidents, I don’t see Houston getting Manziel and definitely not with the first pick. Bill O’Brien likes his prototypical QBs. The only way it’s even an option is if somebody trades them for the first pick, and Houston settles for Manziel lower in the draft. Even then, it’s a shaky idea.
I think Kiper is overvaluing the hometown hero aspect. The Texans aren’t a team to take a local favorite over what they perceive to be the smart pick. For example, taking Mario Williams over Vince Young. History has vindicated that selection, though there are somehow still fans who were clamoring for Vince Young up through last year.
The Williams/Young decision was made by Charlie Casserly, who was basically railroaded out of town for a bunch of other moves that went badly (most notably giving up two high picks for Phillip Buchanon). I don’t think it tells us much about the current Texans braintrust.
I guess not, but Rick Smith is also not one to give fan whims much of an airing.
He took a lot of flak initially for taking JJ Watt from fans who thought they knew better.
And had Houston fans had their way, Case Keenum would have been drafted instead of picked up as an undrafted free agent. Not that he didn’t work out as a backup, but the Texans still aren’t the type of team to take local favoritism as a major consideration. That was more Bud Adams style, rather than Bob McNair.
Wasn’t McNair pushing Casserly to take Vince Young?
Yeah, but he didn’t mandate it, like Bud Adams would have.
That’s been the thing about McNair. He has his own opinions and will push for them, but he’ll ultimately let his front office and his coaches do the job they were hired to do. That’s certainly better than the Dan Snyder/Jerry Jones/Al Davis model of ownership.
Though, if I were Rick Smith, I’d be a bit nervous this year. He’s had a few outstanding picks (Watt comes readily to mind), but most of the Texans’ draft picks haven’t been that great. And there have been a few free agency mishaps, like Ed Reed this last season.
If Clowney’s potential from the beginning of the season remained, could you imagine Houston’s d-line with him and Watt? Would they have still passed on him, because of Watt?
Clowney scares the crap out of me. If he won’t play hard because he wants to get that big payday, will his motivation be there when he gets it?
I hope he has a monster combine and Jax takes him or someone trades up. I’m afraid Brudgewater and Bortles are gone and the Browns are faced by choosing the bigger bust between Clowney and Johnny ACL waiting to happen Football.
Somebody said Manziel is the next Favre. If a GM believes that I can see him #1 on their board. I’ll have to watch some tape, but Manziel seems to have a good arm, good accuracy, and is more than willing to throw into coverage. Without a stud wideout to bail him out, I think he’ll struggle (imagine Stafford without Johnson). With the size concern and a red flag personality, I can’t really see taking him over Bridgewater, but a team like Oakland would be happy if he’s the next Jeff Garcia.
called it!
Called what? Clowney going first? He was the pre-season consensus #1 pick. I called Washington getting the top pick, and they finished 2nd to last - that was pretty good.