Newest Texan: Brandon Brooks

Brandon Brooks' name was just called as the newest member of the Houston Texans and the team finally has the big space eating guard we've been clamoring for all these years.

Oh... right.

Seriously though. This guy is huge. He's 353 pounds huge. I mean, even if he can't block, it'll take pass rushers an extra couple of seconds just to get around him.

On face value, it seems curious that you would select such a big man for a zone scheme, but perhaps Kubiak knows something we don't know.

I realize that guard was a position of need with Mike Brisiel leaving in free agency, but my 5 minutes of Googling leaves me a bit puzzled as to whether or not this was the best selection.

Some of the early knocks I'm seeing on Brooks is that he may not be very quick off the snap and may struggle in space. These are skills that are pretty valuable when it comes to the zone blocking scheme. See here and here for sources.

On the other hand, some of the immediate feedback after the pick suggests that Brooks is more athletic than it may appear. Clearly Kubiak must feel this way if he's willing to draft someone that doesn't fit the standard physical profile for this position.

So after a little bit of research (and beer) it seems like this pick is one of those typical Kubiak project guys. It's a little early in the draft for the project guy, so Kubiak must see something that he really likes in him.