Strahm on picks

[gunn]

From Texans.com

The Texans' scouting department put more than nine months of work and countless miles of travel into preparations for the 2010 draft.

Director of college scouting Dale Strahm, college scouting coordinator Mike Maccagnan, national scout Ed Lambert and the Texans' six regional scouts each did reports on an average of 350 players. Strahm slept in a hotel room for 192 nights, a number he estimates was similar for most of the team's scouts.

Those months of preparation boiled down to three days, seven rounds and nine picks last week. Strahm, a 12-year scout who coached college football for 31 years, raved about the chemistry in the Texans' war room and the draft class that the Texans put together as a result.

"It takes a collective effort by everybody to be successful, and I was so impressed this year by the pro department, our college scouts, Gary Kubiak and our football coaches, the leadership and visionary process that we had from Rick Smith, the cooperation from everybody in regards to what our goals were in trying to fill the needs of our team so that we would get better – and that's what we accomplished," Strahm said.

"You usually have about seven draft picks, one per round. We had so many needs when we first got here together that we had to address those needs. This year we had nine picks, and consequently what that allowed us to do was to go out and get a specialty returner, get some guys that can really help our football team on the special teams side, as well as individual position needs.

"It's an outstanding group. Two-thirds of the guys were captains, 80 percent of them have their college degrees. Over 85 percent have been three-year starters. We have a saying that what we're looking for is a ‘Tough, smart, physical player with high character that has the competitiveness and the passion about the game of football.' That's our motto, and that's what we've found. If you can have those attributes coming in here, you've got a chance."

After the draft, Strahm offered a capsulized look at each of the Texans' nine picks in a special for HoustonTexans.com:

Kareem Jackson, CB, Alabama
First round (20th overall)

Strahm: "Comes from Macon, Ga., Westside High School. He attended Fork Union (Va.) for a year in '06, transferred to Alabama in '07. He's an early-out junior. Three-year starter. Very physical player, great passion for the game. His work ethic is outstanding. He's got great football instincts. He's a very tough competitor. He likes to do the dirty work – and by that, I mean on run support, he's active, he's a solid tackler. He's got a big upside. He's got a swagger in his play, and he plays with a lot of confidence. He comes from a complicated system at Alabama, and they have really tough coaching. They really get after you. They have an outstanding program, and he's benefited because of that. He's very mature with his thought process and his technique, so we think he's game-ready."

Ben Tate, RB, Auburn
Second round (58th overall)

Strahm: "He's 5-11, 220, 4.38. From Newark, Md., Snow Hill High School. This guy graduated in three-and-a-half years from Auburn. He's got very good playing speed. He's explosive. He's got very good power as a runner. Has got very good field vision and speed to bounce his runs to the outside. We like his physical skill set and his toughness. He's just got to get in here and get a feel for our running style of what we're looking for, but he's a fine, fine addition to our team."

Earl Mitchell, DT, Arizona
Third round (81st overall)

Strahm: "What we were looking for inside. 6-2, 300 pounds. North Shore High School in Houston. Interesting guy. Very versatile. In '06, he was a tight end and fullback and started six games. '07, they moved him to tight end – H-back kind of guy. They needed some girth, they needed some power in the middle on defense because they couldn't stop anybody, so they asked Earl to come over and play defense and he was a two-year starter at tackle. He's got great quickness. Very powerful. Love his motor. He's a team leader – co-captain. He needs to refine his pass rush skills. He started there 37 out of 49 games, so he's an excellent prospect inside. Big upside because he's so versatile."

Darryl Sharpton, LB, Miami (Fla.)
Fourth round (102nd overall)

Strahm: "Two-year starter from Coral Gables (Fla.) High School. Inside linebacker, 5-11½, 230 pounds. What we like about this guy, he's got a quick trigger. He's a quick reactor to what he sees. He's got great what we call FBIs – football instincts. He's got great keys. He attacks downhill. We love his motor. He puts his hat on the ball carrier. He's an every-down player. Very aggressive in his style of play. Has his degree. Very bright, has a GPA of 3.0. Nephew of Rev. Al Sharpton – I think he was praying for us, because we were praying for this kid. But what he has is what we call body shock. It's like a prize fighter. I mean, when he hits you, boom – you feel it. He's got body shock on contact. We think he's really going to help us on special teams and be a role player for us with a chance to start."

Garrett Graham, TE, Wisconsin
Fourth round (118th overall)

Strahm: "6-3, 247. From Memorial High School up in Jersey. Two-time captain, three-year starter. Has his degree. A very versatile athlete. Full-speed player. Excellent, excellent catching radius. He's got great hands. Shows a lot of production in the passing game. Could be used as a slot receiver, a wing guy, a movement type of guy. He's got natural hands. Very business-like in his approach. Almost a protégé to our other tight end, (Owen) Daniels. Big upside. I think he had over 50 receptions and seven TDs this year. We really like this kid. He's really on the come."

Sherrick McManis, CB, Northwestern
Fifth round (144th overall)

Strahm: "5-11, 190, 4.5. Richmond High School in Peoria, Ill. Captain. 3.0 GPA. Has his degree. Three-year starter. He's got excellent measureables. Had some injury issues this season, which knocked him down in the draft, but we see a tremendous upside with his potential and his ability. Is very tough in his style of play. He's got very good ball skills. We see him as having nickel back potential for us. He loves contact. Very versatile player. We see a big upside with this kid."

Shelley Smith, G, Colorado State
Sixth round (187th overall)

Strahm: "We tried to address this issue in the draft early, but there were very few interior linemen. It was very thin in the position, and we were very fortunate in our sixth round pick to get him. 6-3, 300 pounds, from Westview High School in Phoenix. Three-year starter. Captain. Has got a degree. He's got great toughness. He's athletic. He's got good lateral range with good C.O.D. (change of direction). He can strike and sustain his run blocks. He's got good mobility for a big interior kind of lineman, good in-line strength. He's got power to gain what we call movement off the line, so he'll come out and do that. We see this guy having a chance to soak at that position and eventually help us interiorly."

Trindon Holliday, KR, LSU
Sixth round (197th overall)

Strahm: "To me, there's three things about pro football. Number one, it's about speed, and it's about field position and it's about matchups. When you grade him in those three areas, he gets an ‘A' in all three. This guy is 5-5, 165, but he plays like he's 6-4. There's no fear. He's physically tough, mentally tough. He's from Northeastern High School in Zachary, La. Had the fastest time in the world in 2008 – he was the fastest human being on earth – when he ran the 60 meters in 6.54. Fastest time in the world. In 2009, he won the NCAA 100 meters in 10 flat. That's going over 10 yards-plus once in every second. The guy is amazing to me. I think he's going to bring a special presence to our special teams. He averaged 25 yards in kickoff return per try and he averaged almost 15 yards in punt return, so right now, we've got better field position. Obviously, he's a tremendous threat just because of his natural catching abilities and his raw speed. A great, great pick in the sixth round as a specialist, and in the past we haven't had the opportunities to go get that kind of guy."

Dorin Dickerson, WR, Pittsburgh
Seventh round (227th overall)

Strahm: "This guy is really interesting. For him to be sitting there in the seventh round was unbelievable. Some people had him in the late third, early fourth. We couldn't wait to get him. He's 6-1, 220, and he's not a tight end; we're going to put him as a wide receiver. He's from West Allegheny High School in Pittsburgh, Pa. Extremely versatile athlete. There's nothing that this kid can't do. I'll give you an example: His senior year in high school, he ran for over 1,400 yards and 30 TDs. So his running skills after the catch or anything else are exceptional. Played wide receiver, running back, outside linebacker and tight end. Excellent worker. He's a dynamic athlete and a diverse talent. He needs time on the job at the wide receiver position, but he will come in and make all of our special teams. He's going to be a great contributor on special teams. Has very good playing speed, natural quickness. A hybrid-type player at this stage with a terrific upside. He had a 43½-inch vertical and a long jump of over 10½ feet. I mean, that is exceptional."

[Keith]

I like that the Texans warroom didn't get overly cute with this draft, trying to prove how smart they were in finding that small college phenom too early, outmaneuvering themselves, etc. To outsiders, they might get dinged for using early picks on guys with limited upside given that they were at big programs and coached well in college with plenty of starts, but you shouldn't take "project" players in the first three rounds. The draft is too important to the overall health of the team to take too many crapshoots with traditional 'day 1' picks.

You take those shots later in the draft, and the Texans did just that. I'm actually a bit excited to see Holliday on returns. Dickerson, as a position switch, should hopefully slip to the practice squad where he can spend the entire season learning from guys like Andre Johnson and Kevin Walter.

And I was a bit perplexed by a couple picks at the time, like say for example Darryl Sharpton, but I love that they got a guy with "FBIs" from a school like Miami. Will he be an all-pro? As a 4th rounder, that isn't the expectation. He fills a need where the team needs depth, and he has a shot to make an immediate impact on special teams.

It's easy to only see the upside as a fan on these guys in May, but I think this draft went very well for the team. Up to the coaches (and vets) to make them better now.

[bckey]

As was said on another bb that if your scouts are spending 192 days on the road you are not doing your job very efficiently. I think too many times scouts are trying to evaluate way more than they need to. I mean these scouts need a degree in Psychology and Sociology as well as Human Anatomy & Physiology just to evaluate players today. All kidding aside I believe most NFL scouts get caught up in or are asked to do way more evaluation on each player than is needed. And the draft is still a crap shoot.

[Mike]

Originally Posted by bckey

As was said on another bb that if your scouts are spending 192 days on the road you are not doing your job very efficiently.

I disagree with that. They need to be on the road, hitting all the schools talking to coaches and finding out about these players. They need more than film to evaluate. Sometimes the best info comes from the Strength coach and other coaches who interact with the players on a regular basis. (who works hard in the offseason, why practices banged up, who is a turd). The scouts need to get to know the coaches at these programs, develop friendships with them so they don't just feed the NFL team a line of BS about the players.

[HPF Bob]

I suppose there were no team captain, has their degree, three year starter guys with FBIs that, oh, can also play kick-ass free safety for us??

The problem with scouts is that they fall in love with players and vastly overrate what they can accomplish at the next level. Then they take that back to the war room at draft time and convince others they've found that diamond in the rough. That's how we get Seth Wand. That's how we get Jacoby Jones. That's how we get C.C. Brown.

And, yes, sometimes that diamond in the rough turns into Tom Brady or Terrell Davis but, a lot of times, they were oversold because of everyone trying to be the smartest guy in the room.

I hate to pick on Roy because I like him but you may recall his infatuation a few years ago with a guy we dubbed "Captain America" because we didn't want his name circulated but his name was Boomer Grigsby. And where is Grigsby today? Just training camp fodder.

I'm glad to find high-character guys and I'm not against looking for that diamond in the rough. What I hate is reaching for guys when we have needs that aren't getting addressed. How many WRs and TEs do we need when those positions on the roster are largely filled?

There's also another problem. High-character guys are often not hell-raiser guys and every team needs a few hell-raisers (particularly on defense) who are simply not going to take getting embarrassed and will do whatever is needed to do something about it.

The Texans too often have no response when another team cheap-shots them. We need a few guys who are going to hit back and I don't care if they were team captains in college or three-year starters. I care that they'll care enough to hit back when Schaub gets knee-capped after the whistle. I don't mean stupid fouls like Antwan Peek did. I'm talking about sending the message that we won't tolerate cheap shots and a team of choir boys is highly unlikely to do that.

[Joshua]

Originally Posted by HPF Bob

How many WRs and TEs do we need when those positions on the roster are largely filled?

Sorry about going off on a tangent but there is something that occurred to me about the TEs. Both years we've drafted TEs because they were purportedly the BPA and great value. Don't recall about last year but at least this year, I also noticed on Saturday that ESPN's BPA tracker that they were running (probably Kiper's rankings) was dominated by TEs. It seemed like when the 4th round started, something like 4 of the top 6 BPAs (at least according to Kiper) were TEs. So, that got me thinking. Since most teams only carry 2-3 TEs and it is generally seen as a lesser position, maybe teams routinely pass over TEs carrying 2nd and 3rd round grades. Maybe finding all these great value TEs in the 4th and 5th rounds isn't that unusual and these guys drop to there every year. If TEs do usually drop because it's just not a premium position, we have to recognize that or we're going to end up drafting TEs every year.

[Mike]

We suffered without OD in the line-up. He was a third down security blanket and was a threat in the middle of the field. We are more efficient with him, and if they think they needed to find his replacement/compliment in case he gets hurt or is not resigned then I am all for it. Sorry, but I am not sure Casey is the answer for when OD goes down. Dreesen filled in admirably, but he is not the same threat.

We are becoming a mature team...Drafting players where we have talent already. Good teams do that all the time.

[Bigtinylittle]

1. I think Shelly is in serious need of a nickname. Shelly sounds too nice. How about Shellcrusher!

2. Right now, I love all of these guys. But I loved Freye and Harrison, who are gone. And Okam and Bennett, who may soon be gone. To my credit, I never liked that low round QB pick that we made. He was so forgettable I can't even remember his name.

3. It looks to me to be a pretty safe bet that we will get 3 guys who will be immediately on the field either as starters or rotation guys. Add in a new return man, and I'd say that's not bad for a team which was drafting at the 20 slot.

[NBT]

I hear all the pros and cons you guys have put out, either for what Smith and the scouts did, or what they supposedly didn't do. I guess I will have to fall in with the group who think we got a damn good Draft. True the elusive FS evaded us, but if Wilson and one or two others stay reasonably healthy this year, we will be OK back there. Besides who is to say we won't luck into a veteran FS like Pollard was for us at SS.

[Roy P]

Originally Posted by HPF Bob

I hate to pick on Roy because I like him but you may recall his infatuation a few years ago with a guy we dubbed "Captain America" because we didn't want his name circulated but his name was Boomer Grigsby. And where is Grigsby today?

They tried to make him a FB for some reason. I'd like to have seen him play LB, but he was 'too short' for the position.

[Warren]

Originally Posted by HPF Bob

The problem with scouts is that they fall in love with players and vastly overrate what they can accomplish at the next level. Then they take that back to the war room at draft time and convince others they've found that diamond in the rough.

The scouts will say that it's the coaches who tend to fall in love with players. The scouts claim they spend months evaluating a player and then after the season the coaches get involved and all of that goes out the window. Supposedly Tim Tebow is a perfect example of this as he stock increased late after he wowed the coaches in his interviews despite the holes in his game identified by the scouts.

[HPF Bob]

Good point, Warren.

[Bigtinylittle]

I agree. Good point.

[bckey]

Originally Posted by Mike

I disagree with that. They need to be on the road, hitting all the schools talking to coaches and finding out about these players. They need more than film to evaluate. Sometimes the best info comes from the Strength coach and other coaches who interact with the players on a regular basis. (who works hard in the offseason, why practices banged up, who is a turd). The scouts need to get to know the coaches at these programs, develop friendships with them so they don't just feed the NFL team a line of BS about the players.

As a former basketball scout I can tell you that the research and time-in gathering that research is half the battle. The call on scale and fitting into the chemistry and playbook are about 40% of it, and lastly trusting your gut to put your badge on the table for a guy that you have researched.

Sleeping in a hotel room for 192 days, in my professional opinion, is a guy that is extremely inefficient and is working harder not smarter.

Thanks for sharing.

posted by kaiser toro

Here is the link to the thread at TT on the same subject just for the purpose of letting you see another perspective.

http://www.texanstalk.com/forums/showthread.php?t=71547

[Mike]

Interesting perspective. Thanks for sharing. I respect his opinion, but don't think that is comparing apples to apples. The NFL has much more ground to cover just in terms of sheer volume of player numbers. With 224 draft picks and then average 10-15 UDFA's you have to simply see more players. The NBA is much less limited in the number of prospects. NFL scouts have to cover IAA, DII and even DIII kids.

I bet MLB scouts spend even more time than NFL scouts, because they have to cover the HS kids.