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Texans Linebackers

T

TheRealJoker

Hall of Fame
Christian Harris
Denzel Perryman
Cory Littleton
Garrett Wallow
Blake Cashman
Jake Hansen

I suspect Kirksey will be getting cut soon to make room for the new LB additions.

Adding Perryman and Littleton brings two veterans with a pro bowl on their resume. They are much better tacklers than what was roaming NRG last season. If DeMeco can work his magic then this LB corps will be much improved.

The reserves Wallow/Cashman/Hansen will be fighting for their jobs. Assuming Reeves-Maybin and Kirksey are removed as the “vets” then maybe they will stick around. But we still have the draft and the team can still add to this position if DeMeco wants another backer.

I’m interested to see how DeMeco will want to use Christian Harris. He is the most talented of the bunch. Hopefully he makes a significant jump in year two and stays healthy!

What are your thoughts on the LBs?

I still think it needs to be addressed in the draft but I am more thinking they can address it day three and hope they can leverage DeMeco’s history of developing LBs like he did in SF with Fred Warner (3rd round), Dre Greenlaw (5th) and Al-Shaair (UDFA). Spend the premium picks to upgrade the DL and make everything easier for the rest of the players on D.
 
Perryman and Littleton are definitely upgrades. Add in the Demeco factor and who knows how good the LB corps could be.

I like the strategy of using premium picks to upgrade the DL and finding some LB talent in later rounds that DeMeco can mold. I’m sure he will have the LB group ready to play every week.

I thought I read somewhere that Reeves-Maybin was already released but I could be wrong.
 
I said at the time that Christian Harris was drafted that I would love to see him playing some safety especially against tight ends at 230 pounds and 4.4 speed.
 
TheRealJoker said:
Christian Harris
Denzel Perryman
Cory Littleton
Garrett Wallow
Blake Cashman
Jake Hansen

I suspect Kirksey will be getting cut soon to make room for the new LB additions.

Adding Perryman and Littleton brings two veterans with a pro bowl on their resume. They are much better tacklers than what was roaming NRG last season. If DeMeco can work his magic then this LB corps will be much improved.

The reserves Wallow/Cashman/Hansen will be fighting for their jobs. Assuming Reeves-Maybin and Kirksey are removed as the “vets” then maybe they will stick around. But we still have the draft and the team can still add to this position if DeMeco wants another backer.

I’m interested to see how DeMeco will want to use Christian Harris. He is the most talented of the bunch. Hopefully he makes a significant jump in year two and stays healthy!

What are your thoughts on the LBs?

I still think it needs to be addressed in the draft but I am more thinking they can address it day three and hope they can leverage DeMeco’s history of developing LBs like he did in SF with Fred Warner (3rd round), Dre Greenlaw (5th) and Al-Shaair (UDFA). Spend the premium picks to upgrade the DL and make everything easier for the rest of the players on D.
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It could drop the draft need to one. I’d still have LB- Jack Campbell (Iowa) on my short list. At 6-5 and 251 lbs….DeMeco would have a lot of flexibility in how they would like to utilize him.
 
I believe Kirksey will thrive in Coach RD defensive scheme. Reason being we finally have a few DT that will demand double teams. This will allow those linebackers to do their jobs.
Therefore IMO Jake Hanson and Blake Cashman might be the odd men out.
 
Texansballer74 said:
I believe Kirksey will thrive in Coach RD defensive scheme. Reason being we finally have a few DT that will demand double teams. This will allow those linebackers to do their jobs.
Therefore IMO Jake Hanson and Blake Cashman might be the odd men out.
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I think it would be silly to keep Kirksey at this point. He’s too expensive and there’s a good chance he won’t even be a starter. I liked what I saw from Hanson at the end of last year I’d much rather cut Kirksey, save 5mil and bet on the upside of the younger guy
 
Toro Bravo said:
I agree. I want an old school Jack Lambert type mean SOB middle linebacker to control the middle and also cover TE's and RB's brave enough to come over the middle. I think Cambell could be that guy.
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If the Texans take a LB early (top 50 picks) then I will be fully bought in they are a stud perennial pro bowl type. If DeMeco hand picks someone that high then they must have the goods!
 
Add Henry To’o To’o to the mix! I am expecting Kirksey to be cut or traded prior to the season. But in the event he’s not… it makes for an interesting camp competition for that SAM LB role between him and Littleton. Maybe even To’o To’o competes for playing time. I’d like to see them work To’o To’o into nickel packages alongside Harris this season while being mentored by Perryman. Get the young LBs on the field to chase after RBs and TEs.

If they can fit Kirksey under the cap and still add to the roster in the event an upgrade becomes available they might as well do it. Just not playing 97% of the snaps like last season. 3rd LB at best and off the field passing downs!
 
Texans have brought in several vets to the group this offseason. Perryman is the headliner as long as he’s healthy.

Hopefully the coaches can get the most out of the youngsters Harris and To’o To’o. I think the tackling will be much improved with this unit.

I still expect Kirksey to be cut due to cap reasons. But if he sticks around i’d expect a solid camp competition between him and Littleton/Carter for that SAM LB spot in base defense.

I would expect To’o To’o to get his feet wet this season as the 2nd LB on the field when the team goes nickel.
 
In DeMeco we trust. The LBs will be productive.

Perryman looked very good against the Ravens. The run defense will be in good hands as long as he stays healthy.

I am concerned about Christian Harris and his shoulder injury. @CloakNNNdagger noted he is playing with a harness which is undoubtedly compromising his play. I expect him to take limited reps in practice as long as he is healthy enough to play which isn’t ideal for a young player.

To’o To’o and Littleton worked into the lineup spelling Harris and in that 3rd LB slot. Hope the rookie can shine sooner than later. Hansen was starter in name only.
 
In all transparency, even though I've been anti-PFF for a long, long time now, I did subscribe before this past draft in order to do mock drafts and to look at some of the pre-draft evaluation material.

So now I'm looking at the grades, position by position, for the first time. I'm not saying I trust these numbers but...

According to PFF, this past week, To'o To'o was the 11th ranked LB out of 92. Perryman was ranked 32 and Harris 67.

To'o To'o was running around out there, and it was good to see. I didn't expect him to see much time this early.
 
The Pencil Neck said:
In all transparency, even though I've been anti-PFF for a long, long time now, I did subscribe before this past draft in order to do mock drafts and to look at some of the pre-draft evaluation material.

So now I'm looking at the grades, position by position, for the first time. I'm not saying I trust these numbers but...

According to PFF, this past week, To'o To'o was the 11th ranked LB out of 92. Perryman was ranked 32 and Harris 67.

To'o To'o was running around out there, and it was good to see. I didn't expect him to see much time this early.
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To'o² had 3 total tackles in 22 defensive snaps (34%). I'm sure he was fine, but how can you rank him ahead of guys that took nearly 3x the snaps and had 3x the tackles?

I heard on the radio than Rankins and Collins ranked #122 and 127 of 127 DTs rated in week 1. That seems absurdly low for a team that wasn't gouged in the run game and kept Lamar Jackson checked. I have to wince when I see these PFF numbers, to be honest.
 
PFF grades do not make sense to me but Christian Harris is a concern. He’s useful in coverage, not great but he’s fast and can close on pass catchers in the flat quickly which is great. But against the run I just don’t see a whole lot. To start off with each play he’s just in quicksand. He doesn’t diagnose quickly and it causes him to be out of position. He’s not very physical at the point of attack and tries to go around blockers all the time leaving the running back to just go around. That’s exactly how the Ravens got their biggest play of the game on the ground. Idk about him, it’s only year 2 and he missed half of last year so there’s definitely some hope for improvement the rest of the year.

Perryman was a beast in the run game no doubt about it he made our run defense work last week.

I saw the DT’s getting terrible grades and was a little confused as well. Like you I’m unsure how your starting DT’s get awful grades when you hold the other teams running backs to like 2.9 yards per carry.
 
Lucky said:
To'o² had 3 total tackles in 22 defensive snaps (34%). I'm sure he was fine, but how can you rank him ahead of guys that took nearly 3x the snaps and had 3x the tackles?

I heard on the radio than Rankins and Collins ranked #122 and 127 of 127 DTs rated in week 1. That seems absurdly low for a team that wasn't gouged in the run game and kept Lamar Jackson checked. I have to wince when I see these PFF numbers, to be honest.
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After the first 5 picks in the draft, their ranking system was waaay out of alignment with what the real world showed. Sometimes I think their rankings are contrarian just for the sake of being contrarian.
 
Lucky said:
To'o² had 3 total tackles in 22 defensive snaps (34%). I'm sure he was fine, but how can you rank him ahead of guys that took nearly 3x the snaps and had 3x the tackles?

I heard on the radio than Rankins and Collins ranked #122 and 127 of 127 DTs rated in week 1. That seems absurdly low for a team that wasn't gouged in the run game and kept Lamar Jackson checked. I have to wince when I see these PFF numbers, to be honest.
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I don't believe tackles are a very useful statistic. Also even if you were using tackles if he took 1/3rd the snaps and got 1/3rd of the tackles then that would track pretty closely wouldn't it?
 
I’m interested in seeing the snap counts for the Jags game. No Perryman in the lineup and it appeared Cashman made his way back from the hamstring injury.

I think Cashman deserves top two LB snaps after that performance. 6 tackles, INT and fumble recovery. He was consistently around the ball.

Christian Harris is compromised with his shoulder injury. Only 3 tackles yesterday and has not been a factor so far this season. To’o To’o has shown flashes but also rookie inconsistency. I feel like T2 will improve with more reps.

Not sure how long Perryman will be out but Cashman deserves more snaps on defense.
 
TheRealJoker said:
I’m interested in seeing the snap counts for the Jags game. No Perryman in the lineup and it appeared Cashman made his way back from the hamstring injury.

I think Cashman deserves top two LB snaps after that performance. 6 tackles, INT and fumble recovery. He was consistently around the ball.

Christian Harris is compromised with his shoulder injury. Only 3 tackles yesterday and has not been a factor so far this season. To’o To’o has shown flashes but also rookie inconsistency. I feel like T2 will improve with more reps.

Not sure how long Perryman will be out but Cashman deserves more snaps on defense.
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Cashman is the best LB on the team when healthy. An impact lb is a big need in the draft, fa.
 
My thoughts on the LBs 5 games in:

Cashman is the best LB on the field anytime he gets playing time. He embodies the SWARM philosophy of our HC, always around the ball and making plays. He has earned a full time starting job.

To’o To’o is solid and will only improve with more playing time.

Perryman should not be out there until he can play without a club. His best asset, his tackling, is compromised. Can’t make tackles with that club on. @CloakNNNdagger any idea when he’ll get that club off?

Harris was compromised to start the season with his shoulder injury. He needs to be on the bench when he returns from concussion protocol until that shoulder heals up.
 
TheRealJoker said:
My thoughts on the LBs 5 games in:

Cashman is the best LB on the field anytime he gets playing time. He embodies the SWARM philosophy of our HC, always around the ball and making plays. He has earned a full time starting job.

To’o To’o is solid and will only improve with more playing time.

Perryman should not be out there until he can play without a club. His best asset, his tackling, is compromised. Can’t make tackles with that club on. @CloakNNNdagger any idea when he’ll get that club off?

Harris was compromised to start the season with his shoulder injury. He needs to be on the bench when he returns from concussion protocol until that shoulder heals up.
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I don’t know that To’oto’o was all that solid. I think he needs a lot more coaching up but I do agree that he is a solution.
 
FuzzyLogic said:
I don't disagree we need thumpers, but I hope they can cover, the only TE's I like seeing get chunk yardage plays are in Texans uniforms. TE's killed us today.
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Yes they will have to know how to cover. But man we have too many small Linebackers. And I’m getting tired of them not blowing these running backs up. They’re either missing tackles or getting driven back on a lot of tackles.
 
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