The Texans "A" list

[itssharif]

My A's would be:

QB- M.Schaub (top 5 QB in my book after P.Manning, T.Brady, P.Rivers, D.Brees - I know this is debatable but there is loads of potential in Schaub and this offense if it only did what it was suppose to do when the regime was originally brought in here and that is to RUN the ball effectively)

WR- A.Johnson (best WR in the league)

TE- O.Daniels (top 3 TE)

MLB- D.Ryans (top 5 MLB)

SLB- B.Cushing (top 3 SLB)

RE- M.Williams (top 5 DE)

B's would be:

SS- B.Pollard (leadership, hard hitting, and very mature)

CB- D.Robinson (physical CB who has only allowed 1 - 100 yard receiver against our D all year)

RT- E.Winston (solid pro)

RB- S.Slaton (say what you will about his sophomore slump but it was never his burst that was missing it was 3 very poor interior offensive linemen and when given the opportunity through the air he excelled, I expect a BIG TIME COMEBACK from him next year)

LG- C.Pitts (it was said before the injury that C.Pitts could start on virtually any other team's squad in the NFL, I personally think it's important to retain him)

C's would be:

PR- J.Jones (this guy is an absolute wild card as numbers showed he was a very efficient receiver this year and is always a dangerous returner whenever his hands are on the ball but the head on his shoulders and fumble concerns can be scary)

LT- D.Brown (in my eyes was in the B-league before our 4 game losing stretch where I feel many of his individual lost battles against his defender led to some critical turnovers and eventual losses for the team, still though the upside can not be denied as he's had a pretty solid overall year)

WLB- Z.Diles & X.Adibi (Z.Diles came back strong from injury and X.Adibi's potential due to his great speed still hasn't been seen yet)

CB-G.Quin (the opportunity to have a 2nd physical corner opposite Dunta with decent coverage skills has shown to help tremendously in our pass defense which quietly has been quite solid statistically all season)

TE- J.Casey (if he can work on blocking to get more playing time on the field his pass catching capabilities give him Owen Daniels like potential if he could just build up that chemistry with Schaub)

DT- A.Okoye (has been disruptive enough to rack up tackles for losses but needs to figure out ways to make more of an effect in the sacks department, I personally think a 2nd stud DT who would require double teams virtually every play next to Amobi would actually tap into the final remnants of Okoye's potential as a dual pass rushing and run stopping threat)

WR- D.Anderson (incredibly underrated slot WR who got open for Schaub in key moments of games and for key 3rd down conversions)

LE- C.Barwin (has potential of developing into a pass rushing specialist)


Aside from this I find everybody else on the Texans roster as either expendable or replaceable. The biggest name of my cuts here is LE-A.Smith. The reason for this is because though he is very solid in what he does for us and our team I don't see how if we ever found that big time NT how A.Smith's responsibilities couldn't be replaced (I say this because I assume a LE's responsibilities would become much easier with a NT that brings in penetration from the middle). With this upcoming DT rich draft and free agent class I don't see how the Texans don't fulfill this need. The other honoroble mention of which I find replaceable is Kevin Walter. I feel as if it's very realistic to find someone with his skill set in the open market. And with that said everyone else can walk and I'm sure we could find an adequate replacement for them.

[Arky]

Originally Posted by itssharif

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RB- S.Slaton (say what you will about his sophomore slump but it was never his burst that was missing it was 3 very poor interior offensive linemen and when given the opportunity through the air he excelled, I expect a BIG TIME COMEBACK from him next year)...............

Like barrett alluded to, it's interesting that only a healthy Pitts gets mentioned in this thread when speaking of G-C-G. Myers might not be as bad as some of us think - he was dealing with injury early in the year. The coaches apparently like him - perhaps because he's the best they got. Having said that, I still think he could be upgraded and would make a good backup... Would love to see a 1st or 2nd round used on a Grade A center next year. Seems like all the dynasty type teams in the past had an all-world center (Steelers had Webster, etc.)...

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Thinking about it a little more, I could easily add about 5 to 7 more names to my own list which would make 26-27 keepers or roughly half the roster.... And that suggests that half the roster could be upgraded. In building a team, I think you gotta get or try to get all the starters in the ABC categories. Doesn't mean they all have to be all-pro, a C is fine if he is solid and doing his job. So, according to this very informal survey, we have several starters that don't make the ABC list....

One other thing to note: this roster is definitely improved from where it was just a few years ago. Should the Texans change the HC for next year, this is not the kind of roster the incoming coach should blow up (ala what Payton did with the Saints). Just a few more pieces needed.....