Houston Texans Class of 2006

Round 1: Mario Williams, DE NC State
Answers: Supposedly can play all four positions on the line. Rare combination of size and speed. Unquestioned character.

Questions: All but four of his sacks last season were against bad Wake Forest, Southern Miss, and Duke teams. Does he play every down? Williams has always played on the weak side, where does that put Anthony Weaver?

Bottomline: No rookie in the NFL will be under more pressure to produce than Williams in 2006. The Texans single season sack record of 7.5 doesn't seem too unreasonable a request of a player that the franchise selected ahead of a sure-fire stud(Reggie Bush). Donovan McNabb, consider yourself warned.

Round 2: DeMeco Ryans, OLB Alabama
Answers: Simply put, a football player. Showed extreme versatility as both a blitzer and coverage LB in Alabama's Cotton Bowl win over Texas Tech. A three time Academic All-American, Ryans is a coach on the field. Should start from day 1 at strong side LB.

Questions: Considered small for LB, will he be able to shed blocks to make plays in the running game? Ryans didn't time particularly well at the Combine or Bama's pro-day.

Bottomline: I don't care what his measurables are. Ryans is going to be a 10 year starter at LB.


Round 3: Charles Spencer, G Pitt

Bottomline: I'm not going to lie, I've never seen this guy play and have zero opinion of him.





Round 3: Eric Winston, T Miami

Answers: A tremendous athlete on the offensive line. Winston was a TE in high school at Midland Lee. Fantastic footwork makes him an ideal pass blocker on the right side.

Questions: Winston has had trouble staying healthy. Will his knee hold up long term? Winston's short arms make him susceptible to power rushes.

Bottomline: I thought Winston was a player the Texans should consider with the 1st pick of the 2nd round. I think this is a great value pick in an area of need. Winston will be given the opportunity to win a starting job on the offensive line.

Round 4: Owen Daniels, TEA Wisconsin

Answers: For what it's worth he was recruited to Wisconsin as a QB. Shows spurts of athelticism and good hands.

Questions: Daniels was the backup TE for the Badgers. He is not much of a blocker.

Bottomline: If it were me drafting, and I had to take a TE here, I would have picked Garret Mills from Tulsa or Jeff King of Virginia Tech. I think there were a lot better players on the board at this point.

Round 6: Wali Lundy, RB Virginia

Answers: If this was the 2005 draft, Lundy could have been a solid 2nd day selection. A powerful cut-back style that should mesh with Gary Kubiak's offense. A solid pass blocker and receiving option in a short game.

Questions: Lundy had a fumbling problem at Virginia. He is not going to break the big one. Senior season was fairly unproductive.

Bottomline: He may or may not be an upgrade over Jonathan Wells (I doubt it), but obviously the coaching staff feels he's a better fit for their system.

Round 7: David Anderson, WR Colorado State
Bottomline: I've never seen this guy play.