Texans down to picking Clowney or Manziel?

[ThomasTomasz]

Houston Texans general manager Rick Smith knows exactly what he intends to do with the No. 1 overall pick when the team is officially on the clock next Thursday to open the 2014 NFL Draft in New York.

Just in case a tremor of a trade offer comes down the pike, Smith will keep the identity of the player the Texans covet to himself for the time being.

"I absolutely know who I want," Smith said.

While good friend Ozzie Newsome said he hasn't the slightest hunch what Smith will do, Sports Xchange contributor John McClain reported Wednesday that Houston was down to two possibilities at No. 1: South Carolina defensive end Jadeveon Clowney and state-grown quarterback Johnny Manziel.

There is also the option of sending the pick to the highest bidder. Even if the Texans draft a player, Smith could do so with the intent to unload that prospect to the highest bidder. Jacksonville, which drafts third overall, Cleveland (fourth), Oakland (fifth) and Atlanta (sixth) are all thought to hold some level of interest in Clowney or Manziel.

"Where the game is played is if there's an opportunity to move and, in this case, obviously to move back if somebody else wants to come up to that first pick," Smith said. "Then you weigh what the opportunities are versus who the individual is that you want to take and what that value is relative to the value that somebody might be offering you."

The Texans hosted Clowney and Manziel on the same date -- April 21 -- at team headquarters.

Houston holds 11 total picks and McClain said the top pick would come at the steepest of prices -- a first-, second- and fourth-round pick in the 2014 draft and a first-rounder next year.

One known need for the Texans is quarterback. If Houston passes on Manziel, Central Florida's Blake Bortles and Louisville's Teddy Bridgewater at No. 1, O'Brien could push to trade back into the first round to get a future franchise quarterback. Houston also picks 33rd overall.

Drafting a quarterback in the first round comes with a higher salary slot but also the advantage of a fifth-year team option.

In the second round, players receive four-year deals with no option but annual salaries are less than $1 million.

http://www.cbssports.com/nfl/draft/...667/nfl-draft-texans-gm-locked-loaded-at-no-1

Probably more posturing since we are a week away from the draft, but there isn't much else to discuss at this point. The rumored asking price to move up for the #1 pick, especially in a draft with this much talent, is too much in my mind.

 

[Bane]

I mean who would you rather have?

 

[ThomasTomasz]

Sidenote- your gif in the signature should be part of the post.......at least I read it as such.

 

[MmmmBeeeeer]

Since they are in the Colts division I hope they take Manziel

 

[RyanLeaf16]

I honestly don't know why this is even a question. Clowney is the pick, he is the pick for every team that has the opportunity. 34 or 43 front, it doesn't matter. This guy is gonna rush the passer all day long. Makes no sense to pass on him because "you're concerned about his ability to drop into coverage."

Either teams are currently out-thinking themselves and suffering from paralysis by analysis. OR, we've got the biggest smokescreen in the history of the draft and the Texans are hoping to sucker some team into leveraging themselves out of future drafts.

Clowney is the pick, he should have always been the pick and we should be debating who is going #2 overall.

 

[Aso]

They'll pick either Clowney or trade down.

 

[Bane]

I honestly don't know why this is even a question. Clowney is the pick, he is the pick for every team that has the opportunity. 34 or 43 front, it doesn't matter. This guy is gonna rush the passer all day long. Makes no sense to pass on him because "you're concerned about his ability to drop into coverage."

Either teams are currently out-thinking themselves and suffering from paralysis by analysis. OR, we've got the biggest smokescreen in the history of the draft and the Texans are hoping to sucker some team into leveraging themselves out of future drafts.

Clowney is the pick, he should have always been the pick and we should be debating who is going #2 overall.

And it sucks knowing how close Atlanta is from possibly drafting him, yet so far :crying:

 

[Aso]

In a poll of 20 NFL personnel executives, eight predicted Texas A&M QB Johnny Manziel will be a "hit" in the pros, while the other 12 guessed "miss."
NFL people have a hard time projecting Manziel with any confidence because there have been so few successful quarterbacks like him. At 5-foot-11 3/4, he'll become just the eighth sub-6-foot QB drafted in the last 28 years. "He typifies the SportsCenter generation," said Falcons GM Thomas Dimitroff. "As far as being reminiscent of anyone in the past, to me he's of a different generation of quarterback. It will be interesting to see how his career plays out." In another poll of 17 personnel men conducted by the Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel, Manziel received eight votes as the top quarterback in the 2014 draft. Blake Bortles got four first-place votes, while Teddy Bridgewater and Derek Carr each got two.

My vote goes towards miss. Sub 6 feet tall, very slim build while at the same time being a reckless running QB will surely bring injuries his way. His pocket presence is piss poor and has Blaine Gabbert like moments where he'll run outside the pocket even though he has perfect protection. I'm also not convinced with his arm strength that he can make all of the throws. I vote miss.

SportsRadio 610 Houston reports the Texans and Falcons "will not be working together" on a trade for the No. 1 overall pick.
Per the station, the Falcons are still eyeing a move up from No. 6, but do not believe the player they covet is "worth picking with the No. 1 pick." This aspect of the report makes it a bit unbelievable, as someone who wouldn't fall to No. 6 but also isn't worth the plunge at No. 1 is a suspiciously narrow range of player. NFL.com's Ian Rapoport has refuted the report. Lying season is in full swing, and it's quite possible this story is a part of it.

Definitely sounds like BS to me.

 

[RyanLeaf16]

They'll pick either Clowney or trade down.

I heard something on the radio this morning about how the Texans may take Clowney and then try to trade to the highest bidder.

Dumbest shit ever. The Fog of War element this time of year has gotten so bad that you could say any outlandish thing and it will make its way to Twitter, Facebook, Tumblr, radio, TV, etc.

 

[RyanLeaf16]

And it sucks knowing how close Atlanta is from possibly drafting him, yet so far :crying:

Its kind of like losing a long playoff series in a tight game 7. The pain from losing is so great sometimes you just wish you weren't in the race to begin with.

 

[ThomasTomasz]

I heard something on the radio this morning about how the Texans may take Clowney and then try to trade to the highest bidder.

Dumbest shit ever. The Fog of War element this time of year has gotten so bad that you could say any outlandish thing and it will make its way to Twitter, Facebook, Tumblr, radio, TV, etc.

What's made that For of War worse is that we now had a month extra of this crap. I'm fine with it sandwiched with free agency, but it's nuts.

The Texans should just trade down for the highest offer for Clowney at this point. In the article I originally posted, they wanted to swap picks in the first, gain a second and fourth, and a first next year. I can't see that happening, so they should just take the best offer and acquire more picks.

 

[Maynard]

the first 4 picks will DL, OL, QB, OL

 

[Hasselbeck]

At this point the Texans know who they are drafting, now they are starting to pretend they're wavering on the pick to try and get someone to give up a kings ransom for Clowney. Doubt anyone is really in love with Manziel enough to trade for the #1 pick.

I think Houston winds up taking Clowney, then the Rams selection becomes a wild card as they could go with Matthews, Robinson or Watkins.

 

[NAHSTE]

Trade the pick

lease: