As noted in this earlier post, Chronicle sportswriter Richard Justice was a devoted supporter of the Charlie Casserly tenure as Texans general manager far beyond the time that most reasoned observers had concluded that Texans ship was leaking profusely. After the Texans bottomed out at the end of their horrid 2005 season, Justice finally turned on Casserly with the same vehemance that he previously used in supporting him. Since then, Justice has routinely mocked Casserly and former Texans coach, Dom Capers.
Now, on the heels of this weekend’s NFL Draft, Justice is drinking the Kool-Aid again with regard to the tenure of the Gary Kubiak/Rick Smith regime with the Texans:
The Texans are going to be a long time escaping their past. But these are not the Texans of 2004 or 2005. Check the facts. They haven’t done a single dumb thing since Charley Casserly left the organization. Not one. They’ll win your confidence only by winning on the field. That’s why next season will be interesting.
H’mm. Kubiak and Smith haven’t done “a single dumb thing” since taking over? That offense from last season sure could have fooled one into thinking that Kubiak and Smith had done a “dumb thing” or two since coming on the scene.
Frankly, my sense is that the Texans draft this year was rather underwhelming (an opinion shared by one local draft expert). Okoye, the number one draft choice, is a fairly raw 19 year old playing at a position (defensive tackle) in which he will be pitted against wily veterans; it’s by no mean certain that he will be any more successful next season than first round draft choice Mario Williams was last season. The Texans next draft choice — third round WR Jacoby Jones (the Texans didn’t have a second round pick) — does not even appear likely to start next season. In fact, absent injury, none of the Texans’ 2007 draft choices outside of Okoye are sure bets to be in the starting lineup for the Texans next season.
Granted, it might actually be a good thing if most of the Texans’ 2007 draft choices aren’t expected to start next season because that would indicate that the Texans are developing the type of depth that is necessary to contend for the playoffs in the NFL. Likewise, those draft choices cannot be fairly evaluated for several years. But Justice’s chronic cheerleading for the Texans is better left for the team’s website, not for a newspaper that is supposedly dedicated to providing objective analysis of news events.
That was a really strange column.
Here are some of my favorite lines:
They’re close enough to contend for a playoff spot next season if Schaub is the real deal. Your tendency is to roll your eyes at this kind of assessment….
Yes! Guilty as charged!
Also:
Oh, stop being so cynical. Just because you haven’t heard of him doesn’t mean he can’t play. Owen Daniels and DeMeco Ryans weren’t exactly household names this time last year.
As my friend put it yesterday, yeah, DeMeco Ryans was only the best player on the nation’s best defense his last year at Alabama, and NOBODY noticed that.
Goodness gracious.
LOL! I read that column and thought of you immediately. That was ridiculous even by hyperbolic Richard Justice standards.
Lots of the Chronicle guys are really high on Schaub. They will just end up flip flopping on that if it turns out that Schaub is a less mobile version of David Carr (or more fairly, challenged by being behind a project offense line).
It seems like some of the Chronicle writers have a savior complex as it relates to the QB position. If you contend that Kubiak-Smith should be blamed for the offense, they will put all the offensive failings on Carr without pointing to the atrocious line play or a group of running backs that no other team in the league would have wanted to switch with.
AOL asked us to put a grade on the draft, and though I generally heap derision on that sort of exercise, I did it anyways because I’m a team player that way:
http://www.aolsportsblog.com/2007/04/29/nfl-fanhouse-draft-grade-houston-texans/
(It has links to all the player profiles).