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Houston Texans - AFC South
Virginia Tech OT Duane Brown
Virginia Tech OT Duane Brown
CollegeFootballNews.com
Posted Apr 25, 2008

Houston Texans - AFC South, 2008 Draft Selections & Prospects

Houston Texans

The Draft Was ... Weird early, but good as it went on. Duane Brown would've been a bit of a reach in the second or third round, much less the first, while Antwaun Molden is a very raw corner prospect who's hardly a sure-thing. RB Steve Slaton could become devastating in the Texan attack, while the final four picks, LB Xavier Adibi in the fourth, DT Frank Okam in the fifth, S Dominique Barber in the sixth, and QB Alex Brink in the seventh were all nice, safe choice on productive college players.
Best Value Pick: Xavier Adibi, LB Virginia Tech. 4th Round. A bit too small and a bit too slow, he's still a very good all-around player who could've gone much earlier without anyone blinking.
Biggest Reach: Duane Brown, OT Virginia Tech. 1st Round. Brown could end up being a Pro Bowl performer and this still was a weird pick. It's all about value. Brown's a project who could've been had a round later.
They Should've ... Stayed up high in the first round and gotten an upgrade for one of the need spots. Yeah, Houston needs plenty of players, but it also needs stars. Getting a high-end OT or a top running back prospect, like a Jonathan Stewart, might not have been as practical, but was needed for a franchise in search of wins.

#

Pick  
26 26 1st Round (from Jacksonville)   Duane Brown, OT/OG Virginia Tech
The former tight end beefed up to well over 300 pounds without losing much of his athleticism. However, he's not a pure pass protector and had big problems with the better defensive ends. He had a nice off-season and was good on the workout circuit, and he has great upside, but he needs the time and the work to develop. He could be a guard now, or a starting tackle in a few years.
CFN Projection: Fifth Round    CFN Position Rank: 12
16 79 3rd Round   Antwaun Molden, CB/FS Eastern Kentucky
Really fast with good size, he has the look of a starting corner, and he proved in workouts to have the strength to match up with any big receiver. While he has the athleticism and the measurables that some of the top corner prospects would die for, he's not a great football player. While someone will fall in love with the size/speed ratio, he needs work before he's a player.
CFN Projection: Sixth Round   CFN Position Rank: 22 (as a CB)
26 89 3rd Round (from trade)    Steve Slaton, RB West Virginia
He should've stayed. A speed rusher who always produced gaudy numbers, he gets it into gear instantly and can blast through any hole. The problem is size and toughness in crunch time. He went M.I.A. in some of West Virginia's biggest games and he almost never had to power over anyone. He's a pure space runner who can find the daylight and take off, but he'll have to prove early on that he's the sophomore version and not the 2007 back who was fine, but not as special.
CFN Projection: Fourth Round   CFN Position Rank: 12
19 118 4th Round    Xavier Adibi, OLB Viginia Tech
A phenomenal athlete who might be a big undersized, built more like a big safety than a tough outside linebacker, he was tremendously productive and a great running mate next to Vince Hall. He'll get killed by the more physical NFL blockers and he's not going to hit anyone hard, but he has the make-up and the speed to be a phenomenal cog in right system. He has the potential to be a far better pro than he was in college, and he was great at Tech.
CFN Projection: Second Round   CFN Position Rank:
13
16 151 5th Round    Frank Okam, DT Texas
He should've been a lot better than he actually was. A three-years starter for the Longhorns, Okam was fine, but nothing special even though he came up with a really nice senior season. At 6-4 and 335 pounds he's the biggest of the top tackles by far and he knows how to use it. even though he needs to play stronger. The question will be how he plays when the lights go on. Terrific in the off-season circuit, it left many wondering where that player was for four years.
CFN Projection: Late Third Round to Early Fourth     
CFN Position Rank: 10
7 173 6th Round  Dominique Barber, FS Minnesota
It's not his fault his team stunk. The brother of Dallas Cowboy RB, Marion, Barber made 174 tackles over the last two seasons as one of the Gophers' only playmakers. He timed a slow 4.68 and he isn't great against the pass, but most of his errors and most of his inconsistencies came from trying to do too much. No one else on that D, especially in the front seven, did much of anything.
CFN Projection: Fifth Round 
CFN Position Rank: 11
16 223 7th Round  Alex Brink, QB Washington State
Smart, tough, and experienced, he'll be a great practice player and a fine No. 3 quarterback who'll generate buzz in the preseason every year he sticks around. He's not huge and he doesn't have the most efficient delivery, but he can bomb away and put up good numbers at a high level.
CFN Projection: Seventh Round or Free Agent 
CFN Position Rank: 15

 



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