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Draft season is in its infancy stage. Free agency news won't ramp up until March. So what better time is there to take a look at the Texans' 2014 draft? A 2-14 record in 2013 earned the Texans the 1st overall pick, which the team used to take Jadeveon Clowney. But after undergoing a rather serious surgery necessitated by a rather unlucky knee injury, the rookie out of South Carolina has been sidelined for most of the season. We've been tracking his injury and recovery here.
Clowney wasn't the only member of the Texans' 2014 class, and some of them were just as unlucky.
Mel Kiper, probably the most famous draft analyst of them all, has re-graded each team's draft class, and he took into account the apparent bad luck that afflicted the Texans' rookies. Read his analysis on the Texans' 2014 rookie class below:
Summary: I realize people are lining up to call Jadeveon Clowney a bust and a wasted No. 1 overall pick, but it's simply way too soon. We're talking about a freak athlete who won't turn 22 years old until Feb. 14. Yes, the draft doesn't look as good if his health is an issue well into his career, but I'm certainly not closing the door on his potential. Good pick, bad luck, we'll see.
Second-rounder Xavier Su'a-Filo is also something of a redshirt, as he didn't play much at guard and waited his turn behind veteran starters. Tight end C.J. Fiedorowicz saw plenty of the field, but struggled a bit. Alfred Blue turned into a useful player when Arian Foster was out, picking up 528 yards. Tom Savage did see the field, but it was brief exposure. There's no telling yet what he's going to be. Louis Nix III landed on IR. In some ways, this looks like a really disappointing class, but the team improved a ton in the win column, and minus a fair analysis of a healthy Clowney, it feels more like an incomplete.
Just after the draft, Mel Kiper gave the Texans an A-. Now, after a year, he's dropped that grade down to a C-.
Does that seem fair to you, dear readers? Discuss down below.