51 O'Clock Stock Watch: T-Minus 1 Week To The NFL Draft, LB/CB/S

I don't claim to have any idea where these guys are going.  For infotainment purposes only, yadda yadda yadda...

These are players I would consider worthwhile uses of the 51st pick in the draft considering the Texans' need areas and overall talent.  Instead of organizing them by where I think they may go, I'll organize things by position and add a projected slot to each players intro.

LINEBACKER

1) Daryl Washington, OLB, TCU (CBS) (Draft Countdown) (Mocking The Draft) (Age at start of 2010 season: 22) - Projection: So You're Saying There's A Chance?

I don't think Washington slides this far down, but mocks have routinely had him within the margin of error at the beginning of the second round.  He would be a natural fit at WLB for the Texans as someone who is great at open field tackling and steady in coverage.  The only question, as I had in the earlier post when I mentioned him as a trade down candidate, is whether the Texans will use such a high pick on someone who won't sniff the field versus the Colts.

2) Navorro Bowman, OLB, Penn State (CBS) (Draft Countdown) (Mocking The Draft) (Age at start of 2010 season: 22) - Projection: There If We Want Him

Like MDC, I dig Bowman's skills and feel he compares favorably to Washington.  However, he's also a knucklehead, and the Texans have traditionally shied away from those types.  I would not be surprised if he was off their board entirely, but talent-wise, he belongs in the conversation at this pick.

I considered a writeup for Eric Norwood, but in the end, these are the only two really worth it as I feel Norwood is more of a 3-4 guy.  I'd love Washington at 51, but if he's not there, I don't think I'd take Norwood over any of the defensive backs or defensive linemen in the second.  In the third, he makes a bit more sense.

DEFENSIVE BACKS

1) Kareem Jackson, CB, Alabama (CBS) (Draft Countdown) (Mocking The Draft) (Age at start of 2010 season: 22) - Projection: So You're Saying There's A Chance?

Like Washington, he'll probably be gone in the first ten picks of the second round, if not sooner, but he's got a clear talent edge on the rest of the defensive backs in my eyes even if I don't think he's quite as great a fit for the Texans as Kyle Wilson or Devin McCourty.  Good in both zone and man, and to tell you the truth, I wouldn't be completely stunned if he was the pick at 20.

2) Morgan Burnett, S, Georgia Tech (CBS) (Draft Countdown) (Mocking The Draft) (Age at start of 2010 season: 21) - Projection: Sweet Spot

It might be a bit of a surprise that I'm ranking him above Nate Allen, but when I compare the two side-to-side, I think Burnett beats him in some critical areas.  Burnett, despite having some questionable instincts on play fakes, wound up with 14 interceptions in 3 years compared to Allen's 9 in 4.  Burnett has a better safety body and looks smoother in run support.  Burnett is only going to be 21 (!!?) at the start of the season, Allen will be 23, and 2 years is forever in football.  The only thing I think Allen beats him on is man-to-man coverage, and I'll give that up for better ballhawking.

3) Amari Spievey, CB, Iowa (CBS) (Draft Countdown) (Mocking The Draft) (Age at start of 2010 season: 22) - Projection: There If We Want Him

My ears will always perk up at the sound of "great instincts", and after both Scott Wright and Hunter Ansley vouched for him, I'll throw back another shot of the Kool-Aid.  He's productive, he's physical, he can play a solid zone.  I think he's the best fit for the Texans of all of the corners in this clump after Jackson, and he's ranked as such even though the mock drafts think he may be there in the third.

4) Nate Allen, S, South Florida (CBS) (Draft Countdown) (Mocking The Draft) (Age at start of 2010 season: 22) - Projection: Sweet Spot

A terrific fit for the Texans, and, I think, a better player overall at his position than most of the cornerbacks in the second round.  Allen isn't a playmaker in the mold of an Earl Thomas, but he's a steady presence at safety who should make his presence felt, as well as a leader.  My concern with him, as it is with Jerome Murphy below him, is that the South Florida defense seems to have so many good prospects (these two, Jason Pierre-Paul, George Selvie) that I'm wondering if some of them were propped up by their more talented teammates.

5) Brandon Ghee, CB, Wake Forest (CBS) (Draft Countdown) (Mocking The Draft) (Age at start of 2010 season: 23) - Projection: Sweet Spot

The tools are there, but his inconsistency and lack of interceptions have me a little more down on him than most.  I think he's about properly rated by most of our amateur draftniks, but I dock him some extra points for the lack of playmaking ability.  I don't care how little they throw to you, you need to at least show a LITTLE playmaking ability.

6) Jerome Murphy, CB, South Florida (CBS) (Draft Countdown) (Age at start of 2010 season: 23) - Projection: There If We Want Him

Very reminiscent of Brandon Ghee: great measureables and inconsistency.  He also adds on a little more playmaking ability, with 8 interceptions.  So why is he lower?  Character concerns account for some of it, but a player that actually got benched for poor play in his senior year is a bit of a red flag for me.  Additionally, like I said with Allen, I always get a little worried about a player who played with so much other NFL caliber talent.

7) Dominique Franks, CB, Oklahoma (CBS) (Draft Countdown) (Mocking The Draft) (Age at start of 2010 season: 22) - Projection: There If We Want Him

What holds back Franks as a prospect, in my eyes, is his instincts.  He has all the physical tools, and he came out a year early, but he can be beaten deep and will fall for a pump or double move.  He'd be a decent second round pick in a normal year, but in this crop, he doesn't quite measure up.

8) Chris Cook, CB, Virignia (CBS) (Draft Countdown) (Mocking The Draft) (Age at start of 2010 season: 23) - Projection: There If We Want Him

A classic case of Senior Bowl Inflation.  Cook may have played excellently there, but that can't erase all his problems: he's a tweener, his physical tools are more impressive than his performance, he's been injury prone, and he was declared academically ineligible in 2008.  Too much smoke here, I'll be passing.

9) Patrick Robinson, CB, Florida State (CBS) (Draft Countdown) (Mocking The Draft) (Age at start of 2010 season: 23) - Projection: So You're Saying There's A Chance?

I don't like underachievers.  I'm sure I've got him way lower than most people, but coming up with 0 interceptions in back-to-back years makes me question him.  He's probably physically up there with Ghee and Murphy, and I can't justify this ranking on it's face, but I've just got a really bad feeling about him.

10) Akwas Owusu-Ansah, CB, Indiana (PA) (CBS) (Draft Countdown) (Age at start of 2010 season: 22) - Projection: There If We Want Him

Love the tools, love the range.  He's a project though, and we need someone who can step in right away.

11) Perrish Cox, CB, Oklahoma State (CBS) (Draft Countdown) (Mocking The Draft) (Age at start of 2010 season: 23) - Projection: There If We Want Him

Terrific player.  Terrific fit for the Texans system.  It's a shame it's all stuck in a ten cent mind.  I watched this guy blow his draft stock up live and in person, and I wouldn't want to touch him in the first three rounds.

With these guys, I'd be happy with any of the top five.  Ghee and Murphy I'd be agreeable to assuming the Texans thought their playmaking and character, respectively, weren't issues.  Cox I'd be agreeable to assuming the Texans thought his litany of issues weren't a big deal, but I doubt that's the truth  The rest of them I'm not as happy about, especially in a deep draft for defensive backs.  Donovan Warren and Myron Lewis are among many guys I'd rather gamble on in the 3rd, 4th, and 5th rather than deal with the rest of these guys in the second.