zhangzk
Little Gooner
Joined: 08 Apr 2018
Posts: 22
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 Teams love them because they are cheap, easily replaceable |
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Houston Texans Keep Five UDFAs On First 53-Man Roster Last year Authentic Jadeveon Clowney Jersey , many in the Texans fanbase was surprised by the defensive prowess of undrafted free agent (UFDA) linebacker Dylan Cole from little known Missouri State.Undrafted Free Agents are rookies who weren’t selected in the NFL Draft, are then signed by a team as a free agent, and make the roster usually by usurping the spot of an underperforming veteran. A team doesn't have to take any, but usually one or two sneak onto each NFL roster every year. Life as an UDFA can be harsh because the lack of investment the team has put into them makes them extraordinarily expendable. Most drafted rookies are signed to four-year contracts, but UDFAs usually sign one-year contracts with most of the money coming if they make the roster. After a flurry of cuts and several surprising releases, the Texans have recently finalized a 53-man roster that contains five UDFAs. This is the most we have kept in a long time. What may be most surprising is the manner of which they chose these UDFAs. Vyncint Smith dazzled in the preseason and upset Braxton Miller to be the sixth wide receiver on the team. Punter Trevor Daniel wrestled the job away from potential Hall of Famer Shane Lechler in the most underappreciated position battle in all of training camp. Then, over the weekend, when waiver claims began for players recently cut, A.J. Moore, Natrell Jamerson, and Buddy Howell were added to the active roster as the Texans had a fortunate waiver wire position (fourth, based off the 2017 season). A.J. Moore, a safety/nickel corner out of Ole Miss, was released by the New England Patriots and swiftly added onto Houston’s active roster. Pats Pulpit wrote a quick bio on him and his talents, which you can view here. Moore only had six tackles in the preseason, so I’m curious what the Texans see in Moore for them to choose him over Kurtis Drummond. According to Pats Pulpit, Moore did not do anything special or deserving of a roster spot while in New England:Maybe it’s a scheme fit, but the conspiracy theorist in me believes the Texans added him to get an inside scoop on the Patriots’ secondary play for the Week 1 game coming up. If so, Moore is an expendable player who may provide special teams help.Vyncint Smith was an UDFA who signed with the Texans immediately after the NFL Draft.The highlight from Smith’s preseason experience came when he caught a 41 yard touchdown pass from QB Joe Webb III against the 49ers. He also made an impressive catch downfield against the Rams.At 6’3” and 195 lbs., Smith is by far the tallest receiver on the Texans. He can run more routes than Braxton Miller could and also provides a skill set that the Texans don’t have in abundance. From the limited film that I can find of him (since he played his football at D-II Limestone College), Smith plays best on the outside against soft Cover Two schemes. He is good at tracking the ball in the air, but needs to work on not having his hands out too early for defensive backs to swipe at. A very raw prospect, the coaches must see enough in him to keep him on the roster.The move I least agree with was cutting RB Troymaine Pope and adding RB Buddy Howell, who was cut by the Miami Dolphins. It’s not like the Dolphins are flourishing at the running back position, so for Howell to be cut by them does not bode for a fruitful NFL career. Howell played at Florida Atlantic and was signed by the Dolphins right after the NFL Draft. He scored twice in Week 4 of the preseason against the Falcons, first on a one yard touchdown run where he bowled into a scrum of players late in the first quarter. Howell has a great combination of talents: quick hands, hard hitting, and a willing blocker. Admittedly, the native Floridian balled out in preseason http://www.houstontexansteamonline.com/christian-covington-jersey , making plays like this, where he catches a pass in the flat before using excellent vision and balance to make a fool out defenders trying to make an open field tackle. With D’Onta Foreman on the PUP to begin the the season, depth and dependability at running back will be of vital importance. The roster cuts were ruthless for the Saints this year as Natrell Jamerson, the team’s fifth round pick (and two other drafted players) were cut from the team. The Texans did not allow him to clear waivers as they picked him up and added him to the roster; it’s like Houston basically, by proxy, snagged another selection in the 2018 NFL Draft. Although it is said that Jamerson had a “slow start in training camp”, he will be used as a special teams gunner and dime safety here. You cannot have this conversation without comparing him to Corey Moore, an UDFA who had started and played significant time with the Texans but was released on September 1st.Jamerson will be a project already on his second team before he even takes a snap in the NFL. Moore, on the other hand, was a talented young safety who knows the system and could step in at any moment and play well for this team. It’s hard to believe that the Texans chose to go with Jamerson over Moore, taking a big chance on a player they know significantly less about, though I suppose the Texans can take a chance on a prospect that falls into their lap. Here is a college highlight video of Jamerson. Lastly, the punter position this year featured one of the best to ever kick a football in the NFL in Shane Lechler against an UDFA college phenom in Trevor Daniel. Daniel is far from a household name, but if the young kicker could inspire enough confidence that the coaching staff had no choice but to release a guy who’ll likely have his bust in Canton one day, the young punter must have put on a show in training camp. Lechler, in his 19th season in the NFL, probably is playing either his last or close to last season of football. Trevor Daniel shined from the moment he stepped onto the Texans practice field. According to The Chronicle’s John McClain: “Shane Lechler did’t lose the job, Trevor Daniel won it.”This speaks volumes about the prowess of the rookie. 
I do remember late in the third quarter against the Cowboys in the preseason finale Trevor Daniel shanking a punt for only 30 yards and the ball not leaving our side of the field, so the kid is no flawless prodigy. The Texans have chosen to endure a few bumps in the road as they now put an UDFA in a starting role, but they could be investing in their future punter for years to come.Were you surprised by any of the UDFAs the Texans chose to keep on the roster?Red Zone Play: Texans Looking For Excitement In The Details Last weekend’s game against the 49ers was hardly an offensive explosion, nor was it much of a defensive slugfest. In fact, the game as a whole wasn’t exactly one of those “greatest games in history” sort of events. But that doesn’t mean there weren’t a handful of flashes, or explosively bright points in an otherwise ho-hum game. Sign up for Battle Red Blog FanPulse!Since most preseason games are generally about evaluation (from individual performances, position group effectiveness, scheme work and situational play rehearsals), it’s easy to get bored as a fan since the stakes aren’t high and the drama of real team competition never really rises to a climax like it does in the regular season and the NFL Playoffs. Still, there were a fair amount of reasons to get pumped aboutcertain details throughout the game. Here’s a few that stood out for me in a good way:Duke Ejiofor – this kid just continues to get after it. While his impact slowed a bit as the game went on, can you imagine what happens in the regular season when the only person between him and an opposing skill player with the ball is a tight end or tailback? With all the attention his more accomplished teammates will demand, Ejiofor is poised to have one of the best rookie seasons for a Texans edge rusher since J.J. Watt. With either Jadeveon Clowney, Watt or Whitney Mercilus commanding a double-team on every snap, Ejiofor is going to get more than his fair share of shots this year and I for one am totally okay with that. Bruce Ellington – Year Two looks good on Ellington. Sure, chances are he’ll never make us forget about Andre Johnson http://www.houstontexansteamonline.com/kareem-jackson-jersey , but when he’s combined with DeAndre Hopkins and Will Fuller V, Ellington is going to make some plays. Just like Ejiofor, he’s going to be the guy who slides into perfect opportunities simply due to basic math; if you’re busy doubling the star players, guys like Ellington are going to make you pay for it. Seeing that Deshaun Watson is already comfortable using Ellington as his go-to guy, and knowing he has great chemistry with Nuk and Fuller, this explosive offense might just be even more so this season. Joe Webb – I remember when he was drafted by the Minnesota Vikings and hailed with the same sort of praise Braxton Miller received when he was selected by Houston. A dual-threat sort of guy who could be that Swiss Army knife player that allowed the offensive coordinator to dream up all sorts of non-standard plays. While neither Webb or Miller has lived up to that hype, Webb seems capable of not losing a game while running an offense customized to Deshaun Watson’s strengths. There will almost surely never come a day when Webb is at Watson’s level, but knowing he can run a streamlined version of the same offense makes far more sense than erecting a statue of Tom Savage in the pocket should Watson be unable to take the field for any reason. Now here are a few observations that aren’t quite as exciting, or even happy, or anything remotely resembling a #GoTexans sort of thing鈥?Kevin Johnson – chances are I speak for a lot of people when I say it’s time to close the curtain on the Kevin Johnson experiment. We have enough tape on him to realize his technique is flawed.Hs coverage skills – both man and zone – aren’t up to the level necessary to be a starter in the NFL.His inability to take care of his body “in flight” is worrisome. While I certainly hope he recovers fully from his latest injury, I also would be fine if a spot on the final 53-man roster wasn’t held for Johnson. Maybe he can salvage what’s left of his career if he lands with a team that has a defensive back guru on the coaching staff, but it seems clear that sort of coach isn’t wearing Battle Red and Deep Steel Blue. Braxton Miller – speaking of ending the experiment, it’s time for Miller to seek greener pastures as well. With the potential rookie receiver Keke Coutee offers, the consistency Bruce Ellington brings to the field, and the presence of seasoned veteran Sammie Coates, Houston no longer has the luxury of waiting for Miller to achieve his potential. I have to admit I was very wrong about Miller when Houston drafted him, as I saw all sorts of wildcat possibilities with him in the backfield alongside Lamar Miller and Will Fuller; those never occurred, and Miller just can’t seem to do the one thing he needs to do consistently: get open and catch the ball. Secondary – it’s hard to know how this unit is going to perform when the snaps start really counting, since there’s not been any consistency so far in who is on the field and when. And maybe putting Johnathan Joseph, Kareem Jackson, Aaron Colvin, Justin Reid and Tyrann Mathieu on the field together play after play will make a big difference. But if the unit performs the same as they did last weekend, allowing Jimmy Garoppolo to dice up the secondary seemingly at will, Tom Brady will hang 30+ points on them by halftime when Week One rolls around. Now, obviously, there are a lot of variables at play here, from reduced pass rush pressures, to guys learning their rolls, to coming off a week where the teams scrimmaged each other daily, but that sort of performance will require Watson and company to put up 35+ points a game just to hang in there. What did you see? Find a few pluses and minuses of your own? Give us your thoughts in the comments section.
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